TheEdge 200122

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022 w w w. t h e e d g e m a r k e t s. c o m

ISSUE 318/2022

CEOMorningBrief

SONY LOSES US$20 BIL IN MARKET VALUE
AFTER MICROSOFT DEAL p16

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022 w w w. t h e e d g e m a r k e t s. c o m

ISSUE 318/2022

CEOMorningBrief
HOME: Former chief justice Md Raus heads RCI to investigate Tabung Haji p2
Independent director’s tenure now capped at 12 years p2

Genting Hong Kong woes put focus on billionaire Lim’s next steps p7
WORLD: China wants internet giants to get approval for investments, fundraisings — sources p17

UK inflation surprises with jump to highest in 30 years p18

New airlines a surprise to Malaysia Airlines as
industry braces for overcapacity — CEO

Report on Page 5.

SC now clarifies

Azam Baki controlled
his own share trading

account

Report on Page 4.

THURSDAY JANUARY 20, 2022 2 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

the edge ceo morning brief published by publisher + ceo . Ho Kay Tat
editor-in-chief . Kathy Fong
Read from desktop or mobile device. (266980-X) chief commercial officer . Sharon Teh
You can print in A4 to read. Set print chief operating officer . Lim Shiew Yuin
mode to fit or shrink oversize page. tel . 603-77218000 editors . Jenny Ng . Joyce Goh
Level 3, Menara KLK, 1 Jalan PJU 7/6, Tan Choe Choe . Lam Jian Wyn
to get on emailing list Mutiara Damansara, 47810, Petaling Jaya, to contact editors: [email protected]
to advertise: [email protected]
[email protected] Selangor, Malaysia

HOME

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): The gov- Former chief can be conducted transparently and fairly
ernment has obtained the consent of justice Md Raus and to avoid any issues involving conflict
Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdul- of interest with the relevant parties,” he
lah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah heads RCI said in a statement Wednesday.
to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate
(RCI) to investigate LembagaTabung Ha- Tabung Haji Wan Junaidi said the appointments will
ji’s (TH) management and operational is- be effective from Jan 20 to July 19, and the
sues from 2014 to 2020. Bernama Commission was given six months to carry
out an investigation and prepare a report
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Depart- Malay Chambers of Commerce Malaysia to be presented to Al-Sultan Abdullah.
ment (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Dr deputy president Norsyahrin Hamidon.
Wan JunaidiTuanku Jaafar said the setting
up of the RCI is in accordance with the Wan Junaidi said the RCI members are
Commission of Inquiry Act 1950 (Act 119). those with calibre with vast expertise and ex-
perience in their respective fields, namely the
Wan Junaidi said in addition, His Majes- judiciary, civil service, administration, eco-
ty has also consented to the appointment of nomics, finance, investment, capital markets,
six RCI members, including former Chief banking, Islamic finance and accounting.
JusticeTun Md Raus Sharif as its chairman.
“Those appointed have been ensured
The other five are former Chief Secre- to be independent and do not have any
tary to the GovernmentTan Sri Samsudin direct links to TH.
Osman, RHB Group founderTan Sri Ab-
dul Rashid Hussain, former Bank Mua- “This is to ensure that the investigation
malat Malaysia Berhad chairman Tan Sri
Dr Mohd Munir Abdul Majid, Universiti
Islam Antarabangsa Sultan Abdul Halim
Mu’adzam Shah (Unishams) vice-chancel-
lor Prof Dr Asmadi Mohamed Naim and

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): A person Independent parency on the criteria for board appoint-
can serve as an independent director for director’s tenure ments,” said Bursa.
not more than a cumulative tenure of 12
years under enhanced listing requirements now capped Another key enhancement is the re-
announced by Bursa Malaysia onWednes- at 12 years quirement for the PLCs with a market
day (Jan 19). capitalisation of RM2 billion as at Dec
BY SULHI KHALID 31, 2021 to appoint at least one woman
All long-serving independent directors theedgemarkets.com director on their boards by Sept 1, 2022,
impacted by this enhancement must re- as announced by the minister of finance
sign or be redesignated as non-independ- and re-election of directors across the PLC in Budget 2022.
ent directors by June 1, 2023, said Bursa group, which must be published on the
in a statement. PLCs' websites, starting from July 1, 2022. For the remaining PLCs, the require-
ment must be complied with by June 1,
This new regulation comes as the “PLCs are also required to disclose the 2023.
stock exchange operator enhanced re- application of the PLCs' fit and proper pol-
quirements in the Main and ACE Mar- icy in the nomination and election of their Bursa Malaysia chief executive officer
ket Listing Requirements aimed at fur- directors in their annual reports. Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift said the
ther strengthening board independence, amendments will serve as an impetus for
quality and diversity. “This seeks to improve the overall qual- Malaysian PLCs to refresh their board
ity of directors and promote greater trans- composition, with greater focus on board
“Additionally, the exchange introduc- quality, diversity and independence, that
es a new rule which requires public listed will promote board dynamism ultimately.
companies (PLCs) to have in place a fit
and proper policy that addresses board “The bedrock of a well-functioning
quality and integrity for the appointment and well-governed PLC is an effective and
quality board,” he said in the statement.

THURSDAY JANUARY 20, 2022 3 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

THURSDAY JANUARY 20, 2022 4 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

HOME

SC now clarifies The explanation was made after it was re- MoU on
Azam Baki ported thatAzam had significant shareholdings Indonesian
controlled his in several companies. He denied any wrong- domestic workers
doing and said the stocks purchased had sub- to be finalised
own share trading sequently been transferred to Nasir’s account. during Saravanan’s
account working visit to
The SC then issued a statement on Jan Indonesia next
BY IZZUL IKRAM 6 saying it would look into the issue, not-
theedgemarkets.com ing the stipulation under Section 25(4) of Monday
the SICDA, as well as Section 29A which
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19):The Securi- states that all dealings in securities shall Bernama
ties Commission Malaysia (SC) has clar- be effected only by the beneficial owner of
ified that evidence gathered in its inquiry the securities or an authorised nominee. BLOOMBERG
into Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commis- Money trail
sion (MACC) chief commissionerTan Sri It is not immediately clear if critics of KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Issues
Azam Baki’s share trading account shows Azam’s share trading case will be satisfied related to the memorandum of under-
that he is the named account holder and with the latest clarification. standing (MoU) on the recruitment
had control of the account. and placement of Indonesian domestic
It is likely that they will demand evi- workers (PDI) will be finalised during
Azam “operated the account that he had dence that the funds used to purchase the a working visit by Human Resources
opened, in that he had given instructions shares in fact came from Nasir. Minister Datuk Seri M Saravanan to Ja-
to buy, sell and transfer securities from the karta, Indonesia next Monday (Jan 24).
said account”, the SC said in a statement A group of PKR members of Parlia-
on Wednesday (Jan 19). ment (MPs) had previously questioned The minister is scheduled to meet
Anti-Corruption Advisory Board chair- Indonesian Manpower Minister Ida
“Therefore, the SC arrived at the de- manTan Sri Abu Zahar Ujang if the board Fauziyah to finalise the details, so
cision that there was no breach of Section saw the documents that showed the money that the MoU can be signed on Feb
25(4) of the Securities Industry (Central trail from Nasir to Azam. 7 and 8 in Bali, Indonesia.
Depositories) Act 1991 (SICDA),” it added.
This came after Abu Zahar had an- “This is in line with the decision
Section 25(4) stipulates that a trading nounced that the board found there was made in a Cabinet meeting on Jan 12
account must be opened in the name of the no criminal conduct or conflict of interest for a visit to be made to resolve issues
beneficial owner or authorised nominee. by Azam over the share purchase as it was related to the signing of the MoU.
not made by the MACC chief but by Nasir.
Under the Rules of Bursa Malaysia “These main issues related to the
Depository, an individual cannot act as But the PKR MPs — Sivarasa Rasi- MoU — which are one-maid-one-task
an authorised nominee, this would mean ah, Maria Chin Abdullah, Ahmad Fah- for a household, the one-channel sys-
that Azam was the beneficial owner of the mi Mohd Fadzil, Sim Tze Tzin, Hassan tem as well as PDI wages — have been
shares in his account. Karim, Maszlee Malik and Syed Ibrahim agreed through a series of negotiations
Syed Noh — questioned if it was allowed between the two parties,” Saravanan
In an earlier statement onTuesday, the for Nasir to acquire shares using Azam’s said in a statement here on Wednes-
SC said it had completed its inquiry into trading account, and demanded evidence day (Jan 19).
Azam’s share purchase claims, but could of the money trail between the brothers.
not “conclusively establish” if the MACC He added that the previous MoU
chief ’s trading account was not opened Meanwhile, six other MACC advisory was signed by the human resources
in his name as the beneficial owner or an board members — Tan Sri Ismail Omar, minister in 2006 in Bali and the pro-
authorised nominee. Datuk Seri Azman Ujang, Datuk Seri tocol to amend the MoU was signed
Akhbar Satar, Datuk Dr Hamzah Kass- in Bandung, Indonesia in 2011.
Azam, who is mired in a proxy stock im, Datuk David Chua Kok Tee and Prof
trading issue, had explained in a press Datuk Dr Mohammad AgusYusoff — had “My meeting with Ida Fauziyah
conference earlier this month that his distanced themselves from the statement will also be attended by Home Min-
share trading account had been used by made by Abu Zahar, saying it was merely ister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin,
his younger brother Nasir to purchase the chairman’s personal view. who will be on a series of working
shares in 2015. visits to Indonesia during the same
Read also: MUDA urges Azam Baki to period as well,” Saravanan noted.
take temporary garden leave over share
controversy Click here

THURSDAY JANUARY 20, 2022 5 THEEDGE CEO MORNING BRIEF

HOME

PETALING JAYA (Jan 19): Malaysia Air- New airlines “The announcement on the new air-
lines Bhd’s parent Malaysia Aviation Group a surprise to lines is certainly a surprise to us at the mo-
Bhd’s (MAG) chief said onWednesday (Jan Malaysia Airlines ment [and that] obviously [the new air-
19, 2022) that announcement on the Ma- as industry braces lines] could be a threat and competitor [to
laysian Aviation Commission’s (Mavcom) for overcapacity MAG].”
preliminary approvals for new airlines SKS
Airways Sdn Bhd and MYAirline Sdn Bhd — CEO According to him, the ASL granted by
was a surprise to MAG at a time when the Mavcom to MYAirline is still subject to
Malaysian aviation sector is mindful of a BY SEAH EU HEN the airline obtaining an air operator’s cer-
potential airline overcapacity for a nation theedgemarkets.com tificate from the Civil Aviation Authority
of about 32 million people. of Malaysia.
On Dec 22, 2021, aviation regulator
“My concern here, is that... can a coun- Mavcom announced on its website that “Does it make sense that you have air-
try with a 32 million population take more the regulator had approved the issuance lines such as AirAsia Group Bhd and Ma-
airlines? [The new airlines] are flooding the of a conditional approval (CA) for an air laysia Airlines scrambling to try and stay
market with unnecessary capacity,” MAG service licence (ASL) to Z9 Elite Sdn Bhd, alive post-pandemic, [and] you add more
group chief executive officer (CEO) Cap- which is doing business as MYAirline. capacity. It will make things worse.
tain Izham Ismail said.
Mavcom said the CA for MYAirline was “My fear for the new airline is that it
“This is where regulators and policy- for 12 months effective from Jan 1, 2022 may derail the sustainability of existing
makers [have] got to be really clear on what to Dec 31, 2022. airlines with unnecessary extra capacity,
they want to do. Do they want to flood the which will benefit consumers but might not
market with capacity in a free-for-all situa- In another announcement on Dec 22, be sustainable to the country as a whole,”
tion or do you want to make aviation com- 2021, Mavcom said it had also approved the Izham said.
panies contribute to the country’s econo- issuance of an ASL to SKS for 36 months
my by being profitable and sustainable?” effective from Jan 1, 2022 to Dec 31, 2024. Looking ahead, Izham said Malaysia’s
Izham said. infrastructure developments such as the
On Wednesday (Jan 19), Izham said East Coast Rail Link and Pan-Borneo
Izham was responding to queries by th- MAG is monitoring the situation closely, Highway will render the extra aviation ca-
eedgemarkets.com on SKS Airways and adding that the aviation group does not pacity redundant while noting that Malay-
MYAirline at the memorandum of under- know the share of the business that the new sia is still a relatively small market with an
standing signing ceremony here onWednes- airlines will take from MAG. estimated 32 million population.
day between MAG and the SarawakTour-
ism Board (STB) under a collaboration for For now, as the structure and business
which the two parties will work hand-in- plan of MYAirline are unclear at the mo-
hand to market and promote events involv- ment, Izham declined to comment further
ing STB, Malaysia Airlines, Firefly, MAS- on the airline.
wings and MHholidays.
He, however, said MAG believes that
SKS Airways can help fill up the unmet
demand for flights to island destinations.

Malaysia Airlines expects ‘best-case scenario’
despite lingering pandemic

PETALING JAYA (Jan 19): Malaysia BY SEAH EU HEN A conservative expectation is for
Airlines Bhd is ready for the future and theedgemarkets.com Malaysia Airlines to return to pre-pan-
expects the “best-case scenario” where demic financial performance by the first
the loss-making national airline returns hence, we have decided to embark on quarter of 2024 as the premium airline
to pre-Covid-19 pandemic financial the partnerships with Sarawak, Penang, focuses on Asia-Pacific markets while
performance by the fourth quarter of Langkawi and many more,” Izham told strengthening its position in the Malay-
2023 as it is now cash-flow positive fol- reporters here on Wednesday (Jan 19) sian and Asean markets, he said.
lowing a successful corporate restruc- at the memorandum of understanding
turing, according to its group chief ex- signing ceremony between the airline’s The Covid-19 pandemic, which began
ecutive officer Captain Izham Ismail. parent Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd to be widely reported since early 2020,
(MAG) and the SarawakTourism Board has brought the global aviation sector to
Izham said the results of Malaysia (STB). Under the collaboration, MAG its knees as pandemic-driven movement
Airlines’ successful corporate restruc- and STB will jointly work to market restrictions barred people from travelling
turing include the removal of about and promote events involving STB, to curb the spread of Covid-19.
RM15 billion worth of the airline’s li- Malaysia Airlines, Firefly, MASwings
abilities and around RM10 billion of and MHholidays. For now, global Covid-19 vaccine pro-
total debt. gress has, however, bought optimism to
According to Izham, Malaysia Air- the aviation industry as nations gradually
“We are very clear that we are a pre- lines, which has been cash-flow positive reopen borders and as global economies
mium airline, our fares are slightly high- since October 2021, expects to achieve recover from the pandemic’s impact.
er because they come with products and its “best-case scenario” where it returns Read also: Malaysia Aviation Group, Sar-
services such as flexibility in resched- to pre-pandemic financial performance awak Tourism Board embark on a year-
uling and extra baggage. as seen in 2019, by the fourth quarter long partnership Click here
of 2023.
“Malaysia Airlines is very lean and
agile.We are really ready for the future,

thursday January 20, 2022 6 TheEdge CEO morning brief

home

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): CGS-CIMB CGS-CIMB: “In short, we think that aggressive price
Securities Sdn Bhd said on Wednesday MAHB competition will likely follow a surge in
(Jan 19) Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd aircraft seat capacity in the post-pandem-
(MAHB) is the “unequivocal winner” as ‘unequivocal ic period, which may stimulate passenger
new airline MYAirline Sdn Bhd is seen winner’ as new traffic volumes, with MAHB as the une-
triggering price competition in the coun- quivocal winner,” the analyst explained.
try’s aviation sector. airline seen
triggering price Yap said CGS-CIMB, however, re-
In a note on Wednesday, CGS-CIMB duced its target price for MAHB to
analyst Raymond Yap said MYAirline is competition RM6.95 from RM7.45 on a downward
currently in the process of starting up. revision of its 2022 forecast for aviation
by Izzul Ikram passenger traffic on account of Omicron
“It has recruited many individuals and theedgemarkets.com Covid-19 variant-driven disruptions.
negotiated the lease of two [Airbus] A320s
with more to come. Nonetheless, he noted that the research
house had an unchanged “add” call for
“An airline starting up during the MAHB shares. At 10.37am, MAHB had
[Covid-19] pandemic with a clean bal- slipped eight sen or 1.38% to RM5.72, val-
ance sheet and access to ultra low-cost uing the company at about RM9.5 billion.
aircraft leases will likely ensure low op-
erating cost and the ability to compete It has 1.66 billion issued shares, ac-
aggressively with incumbents for market cording to the group’s latest quarterly fi-
share by offering sustainably low airfares,” nancial report.
Yap added.

Existing airlines in Malaysia include
Malaysia Airlines Bhd, AirAsia Group Bhd
and Malindo Airways Sdn Bhd.

Yap noted that AirAsia’s aircraft fleet
grew last year despite the Covid-19 pan-
demic after the group absorbed its affil-
iates’ planes.

According to him, AirAsia will likely
be eager to redeploy its aircraft fleet and
retain its market share in Malaysia’s avi-
ation sector.

“[Meanwhile,] Malaysia Airlines has
renegotiated its aircraft lease rates and is
in a good position to compete, while Ma-
lindo is also considering bringing back its
jet planes from Indonesia if demand in
Malaysia warrants their return.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): The Ma- Mavcom indicates applications from the air cargo segment,
laysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) recovery in which signals continued and sustained
has approved 27 AirTraffic Rights (ATR) growth.The increase in ATR approvals is
out of the 28 applications submitted in domestic aviation, also attributed to new cargo Air Service
the fourth quarter of 2021 (4Q21), which approves 27 ATR Licence (ASL) holders, namely World
is a 33.3% jump in applications and a applications in 4Q Cargo Airline Sdn Bhd and M Jets In-
28.6% increase in approvals compared ternational Sdn Bhd, which received nine
with 3Q21. Bernama ATRs for 4Q21.

Of the 28 ATR applications, 17 were 2021.This promising development illus- Mavcom expects the segment to grow
for domestic routes, which have more trates the sector’s resilience and its ability by between 3.9% and 6.7% year-on-year
than doubled compared with seven ap- to bounce back post-pandemic. in 2022, translating to between 20.8 bil-
plications submitted in 3Q21. lion and 21.6 billion in freight tonne kilo-
“We hope that this continues as air metres (FTK).
In a statement, the commission re- travellers are highly encouraged to pre-
ported that the increase was primarily plan their flights for festive periods well In terms of the breakdown of ATR
due to the reopening of interstate borders in advance to avoid crowds and high-tick- allocations for 4Q21, Malaysia Airlines
in October 2021 and a rise in demand et prices,” Mavcom executive chairman Bhd and World Cargo Airline Sdn Bhd
for domestic holiday-related travel, with Datuk Seri Saripuddin Kasim said in the received the highest number of approvals
the additional flights mainly to Langkawi statement on Wednesday (Jan 19). with six ATRs each followed by AirAsia
followed by Johor Bahru, Penang, and Bhd (five ATRs) and M Jets International
Kota Bharu. The commission also received 13 ATR Sdn Bhd (three ATRs).

“Despite the ongoing pandemic, we Additionally, AirAsia X Bhd, FlyFire-
are seeing encouraging signs of recovery fly Sdn Bhd and Malindo Airways Sdn
within the domestic segment, as indicated Bhd received two ATR allocations each,
by the increase in ATR applications for and MyJet Express Airlines Sdn Bhd was
domestic routes in the fourth quarter of awarded one ATR allocation.

thursday January 20, 2022 7 TheEdge CEO morning brief

home

(Jan 19): Troubled cruise operator Gen- Genting Hong er parts of his Genting empire to help
ting Hong Kong Ltd has filed to wind Kong woes put with any bailout or provide financial help.
up the company, putting the spotlight on focus on billionaire And he has a history of taking such steps.
what support its lead shareholder Tan Sri Lim’s next steps
Lim Kok Thay may provide. He has used Genting Malaysia to con-
by Yantoultra Ngui duct related party transactions previously.
The Hong Kong-based firm has been Bloomberg One example: Genting Malaysia said in
pummelled by the plunge in travel de- 2019 that it was buying a 46% stake in
mand due to Covid-19 that has led to a Bloomberg Empire Resorts in New York from him.
string of restructurings and insolvencies This deal caused a slump in Genting
among travel firms globally. It reported Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay Malaysia shares.The Malaysia firm now
a record loss of US$1.7 billion (RM7.12 owns a 49% stake in Empire Resorts.
billion) in May, and the latest develop- the Genting group of companies listed in
ments come just as Hong Kong reimposes Malaysia and Singapore have no cross Another concern is that Lim pledged
some of its strictest virus curbs since the shareholding with Genting Hong Kong almost his entire stake in Genting Hong
pandemic began. except for Lim being a common share- Kong as collateral for loans to keep the
holder in all three. So as far as earnings Hong Kong firm going.
Winding up the company likely won’t go, there would be no impact on the What are the other Genting empire
have any earnings impact on the other Malaysia- and Singapore-listed Genting firms?
Genting firms as there’s no cross share- shares. • Genting Bhd:This is the holding com-
holding between them. But the question What are the risks then?
some analysts have asked is whether Lim The worry is whether Lim would tap oth- pany of Genting Malaysia, Genting
may try to bail out the firm with help Singapore, Genting Plantations and
from its sister companies, which could other businesses such as properties
pose risks for their shares. and oil and gas. Lim and family con-
trol Genting via a private investment
What’s next? vehicle called Kien Huat Realty.They
The filing at the Supreme Court of Ber- control the Malaysia and Singapore
muda, where the company has its regis- firms indirectly via Genting Bhd.
tered office, is a way to get assistance safe- • Genting Malaysia: The outlook looks
guarding its assets. The firm “exhausted bright for the Malaysian casino and
all reasonable efforts” to negotiate with resorts operator, after the government
its creditors and stakeholders, it said in promised no more Covid lockdowns.
a statement to the Hong Kong stock ex- It’s resumed operations, attracting big
change Wednesday. crowds.
• Genting Singapore:The firm operates
Investors will also be watching for po- a casino and resort (Resorts World
tential resumption in the firm’s Hong Sentosa) in the city-state. It’s also
Kong-listed shares, which have plunged opened but business could be ham-
almost 50% this month. The stock will pered by dependency on foreign tour-
remain suspended until further notice. ists with Singapore still only slowly and
selectively opening up to travel.
Will this affect other Genting firms?
Genting Hong Kong was established in Read also: Cruise operator Genting
the early 1990s when tycoon Lim want- Hong Kong files to wind up company
ed to diversify the business risk from his Click here
main casino resort in Malaysia. He owns
a 76% stake in Genting Hong Kong. But

Genting Malaysia’s subsidiary to make
redemption of RM1.4b debt notes

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Gent- by Justin Lim ting Hong Kong Ltd filed to wind up
ing Malaysia Bhd’s (GENM) subsid- theedgemarkets.com the company on Wednesday, after the
iary GENM Capital Bhd will redeem latter warned last week of a potential
its RM1.4 billion medium term notes ly redemption of the MTN under stock cross default amounting to US$2.78
(MTN) next Friday (Jan 28) ahead code number UI180083 next Friday, billion (approximately RM11.66 bil-
of the MTN scheme’s maturity date which is part of its RM3 billion MTN lion) due to the insolvency of its in-
of July 11, 2023, according to facility programme. direct wholly-owned German-based
agent Maybank Investment Bank Bhd. subsidiary MV Werften Holdings Ltd,
According to Cbonds’ website, as negotiations with the German gov-
According to Maybank’s filing with GENM Capital’s UI180083 MTN pro- ernment to rescue the unit failed.
Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) Fully gramme has an annual interest rate of
Automated System for Issuing/Tender- 4.98%. Genting Hong Kong is controlled
ing (FAST) website, GENM Capital’s by Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, who owns
notice dated Jan 14 indicated the ear- The early redemption comes just as
sister company cruise ship operator Gen- continues on Page 8

thursday January 20, 2022 8 TheEdge CEO morning brief

home

Titijaya Land, PDC Proton inks MoA EV sector. This is also an opportunity
to develop Medi- to distribute smart to tap on smart’s customer base, which
Tech City in Batu will open up more opportunities for the
Kawan, Penang Automobile’s Proton brand,” said Proton chairman
with RM9.9b GDV EVs in Malaysia, Datuk Seri Syed Faisal Albar.

Bernama Thailand Proton also shared, citing forecasts
by the International Renewable Energy
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Titijaya by izzul ikram Agency, that the new EV market will grow
Land Bhd has signed a memorandum of theedgemarkets.com to around 10 million units in Southeast
understanding with Penang Development Asia by 2025, and that smart Automo-
Corporation (PDC) for the development KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Perusahaan bile, with its new product portfolio due to
of Medi-Tech City, which will occupy a Otomobil Nasional Sdn Bhd (Proton) is be launched in the coming years, will be
93.07-hectare piece of land in Batu Ka- planning to introduce premium electric well placed to take advantage of growth
wan, Penang, with a gross development vehicle (EV) brand smart Automobile Co in the region.
value (GDV) of RM9.9 billion. Ltd’s range of new EVs into the rapidly
growing ASEAN automotive market. “The MoA with Proton Edar is for the
Slated for completion in 10 years, Me- company to establish a multi-level sales
di-Tech City is earmarked to be an integrat- In a statement Wednesday (Jan 19), and service network in Malaysia andThai-
ed, sustainable and hi-technology medical Proton said it and smart Automobile land, as well as a brand experience centre
city and business hub in Penang, which is have signed a memorandum of agree- and a number of sales locations, provid-
already occupied by more than 300 multi- ment (MoA) which will see both parties ing local markets with sales and after-sales
national companies. collaborating via Proton Edar, who will services for smart vehicles.
be appointed as the importer, distributor
“It will be a development with compli- and dealer for smart Automobile in Malay- “With smart’s ‘dual-home’ (Europe
ance with the Responsible Business Alliance sia andThailand. At the same time, smart and China) business strategy, the company
(RBA) and environmental, social and cor- Automobile (Nanning) Sales Co Ltd — a already covers two of the world’s largest
porate governance (ESG),” the company wholly-owned unit of smart Automobile automotive markets. Now, as part of our
said in a statement. — will fulfil the role of a gateway for smart forward-looking strategy, we are joining
Automobile to the region, said Proton. hands with Proton in Southeast Asia.With
Upon its completion, Medi-Tech City minimal investment, the agreement will
would serve as a medical hub, providing ec- smart Automobile is a joint venture be- allow us to enter the Thai and Malaysian
otourism and global business services with tween German and Chinese automotive markets in the near future.
facilities including a hospital, medical cam- groups Mercedes-Benz AG and Zhejiang
pus, medical supply hub, corporate suites Geely Holding Group Co Ltd founded “As our regional partner, Proton has
and a rehabilitation centre. in 2019, which they plan to develop into a first-class corporate reputation, exten-
a world-leading, premium EV technolo- sive experience and valuable knowledge
Titijaya also has an 8.09-hectare built- gy brand. of local operations. We look forward to
to-suit development in Penang situated in working together to provide consumers in
Bayan Lepas with close proximity to the “With the signing of the MoA, Proton Southeast Asia with a new premium, in-
Penang InternationalAirport and SultanAb- is taking its first steps on its New Energy telligent, all-electric driving experience,”
dul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge,providing Vehicle strategic journey. By collaborat- said smart Automobile’s chief executive
value-added logistical support to the project, ing with smart Automobile, we will be officer Tong Xiangbei.
which aims to capture demand from vari- able to gain experience in the selling,
ous sectors in the vicinity of Bayan Lepas. servicing, and charging of new EVs and According to Proton, the MoA with Pro-
build up the skill sets we require to be a ton Edar is for the company to establish a
force in Asean’s rapidly expanding new multi-level sales and service network in Ma-
laysia and Thailand, as well as a brand ex-
perience centre and a number of sales loca-
tions, providing local markets with sales and
after-sales services for smart vehicles.“Cur-
rently, there are no plans to collaborate be-
yond the tenets of the agreement,” it added.

from Page 7 the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 mentum. For the nine months ended Sept
(3QFY21) showed its total borrow- 30, 2021, it almost halved its net loss
75.5% of the company. Lim holds 44.8% ings had risen to RM13.1 billion from to RM1.12 billion from RM2.02 billion
in flagship Genting Bhd, which controls RM9.39 billion as at end-December in 9MFY20, though revenue shrank to
49.5% of GENM, 52.7% of Genting 2020, with RM12.91 billion of long- RM2.27 billion from RM3.49 billion.
Singapore Ltd (GENS) and 55.4% of term borrowings and RM203.8 million
Genting Plantations Bhd, according to of short-term borrowings. News of Genting Hong Kong’s wind-
Genting’s 2020 annual report. ing-up soured trading sentiments for both
In 3QFY21, GENM narrowed its GENM and Genting. GENM’s share
KokThay is chairman and chief exec- net loss to RM289.25 million from price closed six sen or 2.07% lower at
utive officer (CEO) of both Genting and RM704.64 million a year earlier, despite RM2.84, giving it a market capitalisa-
Genting Hong Kong, and deputy chair- revenue dropping 42% to RM826.27 mil- tion of RM16.86 billion, while Genting
man and CEO of GENM and executive lion from RM1.42 billion, as its overseas fell eight sen or 1.74% to RM4.53, for a
chairman of GENS. ops maintained their strong recovery mo- market value of RM17.56 billion.

GENM’s financial statements for

thursday January 20, 2022 9 TheEdge CEO morning brief

home

AmBank Group, MYOR-based products to the market with Supermax falls
Maybank jointly the aim of providing hedging instruments after Canada
enter Malaysia’s that can support varying risk management terminated
first overnight strategies,” said both banking groups. glove supply
rate IRS trade contract on
worth RM500m AmBank’s group treasurer and depu- forced labour
ty managing director of wholesale bank-
theedgemarkets.com ing Jamzidi Khalid said the transaction allegations
complements ongoing efforts to further
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Am- develop and deepen the Malaysian fi- Bernama
Bank Group and Malayan Banking Bhd nancial market, in line with industry-led
(Maybank) have jointly entered the coun- initiatives set out by the central bank’s KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Super-
try’s first Malaysia overnight rate (MYOR) Financial Markets Committee and the Fi- max Corp Bhd’s share price fell on
interest rate swap (IRS) transaction, with a nancial Markets Association of Malaysia Wednesday (Jan 19), a day after news
notional value of RM500 million. (FMAM). broke that Canada has terminated its
sourcing contract for nitrile gloves
In a joint statement, the groups said “We are grateful and indeed honoured from the glove producer over allega-
this transaction marked the first time the to work on this landmark MYOR IRS tions of forced labour.
new MYOR reference rate — introduced transaction with Maybank. This repre-
by Bank Negara Malaysia in September sents a major milestone in the Malaysian The stock shed as much as six sen
last year — was used as an alternative to financial market, and we look forward to or 4.44% before regaining one sen to
the Kuala Lumpur Interbank Offered Rate seeing further development as we move a close at RM1.30, 3.7% lower from
(KLIBOR) for an IRS transaction. step closer towards embracing the reform. Monday’s close, after 13.1 million
shares were traded.
“Globally, alternative reference rates “The transaction demonstrates the
such as MYOR have been introduced to bank’s enthusiasm and commitment to Canada paused the import of
improve the integrity of financial bench- deliver timely effective solutions that suit gloves in November 2021 to decide
mark rates as part of a transition to transac- our customer’s needs and at the same time, the next steps after receiving an audit
tion-based rates, arising from the London contribute to market breadth and liquidity report on alleged labour practices.
Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) reforms in developing the local interest rates land-
following the global financial crisis.These scape,” he said. “Although Canada represents
alternative reference rates are meant to be around 9% of the group’s total mar-
more robust benchmark rates and based Meanwhile, Maybank managing direc- ket share and this fluctuates based on
upon transactions in active and liquid tor of global markets and transaction bank- the tenders awarded each year, we
markets. ing Md Farid Kairi said the transaction think if the issue is not resolved soon,
marked a major milestone for the devel- it will have a substantial impact on the
“This collaboration between Maybank opment of the MYOR benchmark, which group’s future expansion plans and
and AmBank is a step towards introducing was critical to enhance the robustness of hence [its] earnings,” MIDF Research
interest rates benchmarks and provide cli- said in a research note onWednesday.
ents with greater flexibility of timely and
relevant financial solutions. The research firm added that with
the prompt response of Supermax to
“We would like to thank AmBank for mediate the situation by introducing
their partnership in this transaction and foreign worker management policy on
we look forward to continue to support Jan 3 to speed up its efforts to meet the
Bank Negara’s initiatives in enhancing the labour standards of the International
MYOR market,” he added. Labour Organization, the time taken
to overcome the termination of the
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): KNM KNM board contract could be sooner than other
Group Bhd's board of directors has ap- gives nod for glove manufacturing companies.
proved the proposed listing of its indirect subsidiaries’ listing
wholly-owned subsidiaries on Catalist. on Singapore’s Despite Supermax stating its efforts
to improve its environmental, social,
FBM Hudson Italiana SpA and FBM- Catalist and governance standards since 2019,
KNM FZCO, collectively known as the MIDF Research opined that the cur-
FBM group, will be listed on the spon- theedgemarkets.com rent consecutive forced labour allega-
sor-supervised board of the Singapore tions highlight a lack of application of
Stock Exchange via an initial public offer- The company added that it will release the policies designed across the group.
ing (IPO), KNM said in a bourse filing on further details on the IPO and other de-
Wednesday (Jan 19). velopments after the prospectus for the “We believe that with proper im-
proposed listing is finalised. plementation of the policies, the group
“The proposed sponsor for the pro- will be able to weather the storm effi-
posed flotation is PrimePartners Corpo- At noon break, KNM settled unchanged ciently,” the research firm added.
rate Finance Pte Ltd (PPCF), who will act at 13.5 sen, giving it a market capitalisation
as the full sponsor, manager, underwriter of RM478.7 million.
and placement agent. PPCF is a boutique
corporate finance firm headquartered in
Singapore. It is licensed by the Monetary
Authority of Singapore to provide finan-
cial advisory and capital raising services,”
said KNM.

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 10 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

home

Bumi Armada UOB Kay Hian proxy to the booming tech sector, not-
to dispose of starts coverage of ing that it was on track to posting record
four overseas Coraza, setsTP at revenue and profit for 2021, with high-
65 sen — more than er contribution from the semiconductor
subsidiaries for double IPO price sector coupled with improved operational
RM187m efficiency.
by Sulhi Khalid
by Justin Lim theedgemarkets.com According to the research house, the
theedgemarkets.com expanded capacity from its new factory
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): UOB Kay and machinery will mostly be allocated
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Bumi Armada Hian has set a target price of 65 sen towards serving semiconductor custom-
Bhd is planning to sell four overseas subsidiaries for Coraza Integrated Technology Bhd, ers as well as new services to be offered
for a total cash consideration of US$44.5 million which is slated to list on Bursa Malay- later.
(RM186.6 million),as part of its plan to exit the sia’s ACE Market onThursday (Jan 20).
offshore marine services business. “As of November last year, the group
The target price represents a 132.1% had an outstanding purchase order of
The subsidiaries — Bumi Armada Marine premium to its initial public offering RM91.5 million to be fulfilled in 2022.
Uray Pte Ltd (BAMU),BumiArmada Marine (IPO) price of 28 sen, the research house
Pokachi Ltd (BAMP), Bumi Armada Marine said in a note on Wednesday (Jan 19). “The group has also maintained a
Naryan Mar Pte Ltd (BAMN) and Bumi Ar- good working relationship with its ma-
mada Marine LLC (BAM) — are being sold According to the research house, the jor customers which are the prominent
to AC Management and KN Holdings, both target price was derived from a multiple players in the semiconductor, medical &
units of PJSC Lukoil, Bumi Armada’s bourse of 21 times price-to-earnings (P/E) for life sciences as well as electrical & elec-
filing showed. 2022, which is at a 50% discount to its tronics sectors listed on the New York
industry peers’ average forward P/E. Stock Exchange.
The proposed disposals are expected to re-
sult in a disposal loss of approximately RM25 “Our P/E multiple yardstick implies “These customers are deepening their
million. an undemanding PEG (price/earnings- presence in Malaysia currently follow-
to-growth) ratio of 0.6 times given its ing the US-China trade diversion which
Nevertheless, Bumi Armada said the trans- multi-year growth story. Blue-sky valua- would continue to benefit Coraza.
actions would generate cash inflow to enable the tion if pricing at 1x PEG ratio suggests a
group to repay and reduce its corporate debt, potentially higher target price of RM1.05 “We see multiple legs of growth that
and allow it to redeploy and focus its resourc- (at 34.6 times 2022F PE),” it said. can supercharge a three-year revenue/
es on its core activities. It plans to use US$38 core net profit CAGR (compound an-
million of the proceeds to trim its debt, and UOB Kay Hian added that the sheet nual growth rate) of 17%/35%, riding on
set aside US$6.5 million for working capital. metal fabrication firm is an attractive a strategic portfolio exposure, aggressive
capacity expansion and growing relevance
It inked the sale and purchase agreement for in major customers’ high margin prod-
the disposals onWednesday (Jan 19). ucts. Coraza is expected to raise RM33
million from its IPO exercise.
BAMU,BAMP and BAMN are principally Click here to read the full story
involved in ship owning,chartering and manag-
ing ships and vessels.They also provide marine BCorp to yang for the proposed disposal.
support and other services to offshore oil and sell Berjaya However, the group did not indicate
gas (O&G) companies. University
College toThai the disposal value.
Other than BAM — which is only involved Nanyang was incorporated by its ma-
in providing marine support and other servic- group
es to O&G companies — the remaining three jority shareholder, Krirk International
companies own Bumi Uray, Bumi Pokachi by Justin Lim Education Holding Co Ltd, to invest in
and Bumi Naryan vessels, which have been theedgemarkets.com the education business in Malaysia.
working for LUKOIL-Nizhnevolzhskneft Ltd
Liability Co (LUKOIL NVN) in the Caspian KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Berjaya Krirk was incorporated in Thailand
Sea, Russia since 2016 under three charter Corp Bhd (BCorp) has proposed to and is principally involved in education
party contracts. dispose of its 71.73% stake in Berjaya businesses. It owns and manages Krirk
Higher Education Sdn Bhd, which owns University, a university in Thailand.
BAMU, BAMP and BAMN were incor- Berjaya University College (BUC), to
porated in Singapore, while BAM was set Nanyang International Education Group The BUC transaction, which is pend-
up in Russia.The four subsidiaries recorded Sdn Bhd. ing approval from the Ministry of Higher
a combined loss after taxation of RM56.6 Education, is expected to be completed
million for the nine months ended Sept 30, In a statement, BCorp said its whol- by June 2022, said BCorp.
2021, and have combined net assets (includ- ly-owned subsidiary Berjaya Group
ing capital contribution) of RM219.9 million. Bhd has inked an agreement with Nan- BCorp group chief executive officer
Jalil Rasheed said the disposal “is put-
The disposals are expected to be complet- ting rubber to the road” in terms of the
ed by the first quarter of this year. group’s promised plan to divest some of
its non-core areas so it can focus on its
Bumi Armada’s share price closed up one core businesses.
sen or 1.92% to 53 sen, bringing the group
a market capitalisation of RM3.13 billion. BCorp’s share price ended Wednes-
day’s session unchanged at 24.5 sen, giv-
ing it a market capitalisation of RM1.33
billion.

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 11 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

home

news In brief

Coastal Contracts seeks to provide RM924m financial aid to JV in Mexico
to fund gas conditioning plant project

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Coastal Contracts Bhd plans to provide financial assistance

of up to US$220 million (RM924 million) to its joint venture company in Mexico,

Coastoil Dynamic SA de CV. The amount is more than 5% of Coastal Contracts’s

net tangible assets for the financial year ended June 30, 2021, so it has to seek

shareholders’ approval at an extraordinary general meeting. In a bourse filing, the

integrated marine oil and gas service and solution provider said the assistance is mainly

to fund the construction of the Papan plant project and working capital for the plant’s Tropicana redesignates ex-IGP
initial operations. The project was awarded to Coastoil Dynamic by state-owned Mohamad Fuzi Harun as its chairman
Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex). This funding would allay unnecessary delays and ensure

the timely completion of the plant, the group said, adding the plant is expected to KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Tropicana Corp

commence operation in the third quarter of 2022. “The proposed provision of financial Bhd has redesignated its independent

assistance is envisaged to be funded via Coastal group’s internally-generated funds, director and former inspector-general of

bank borrowings, issuance of bonds and/or project financing,” it added. — by Justin Lim police (IGP), Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun,

as its chairman effective Wednesday

KAB set to acquire mini-hydropower PetChem to be sole Southeast Asia (Jan 19). The property developer said
plant in Indonesia melamine producer with new plant Fuzi, 62, is replacing Top Glove Corp Bhd
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Electrical and in Kedah founder and chairman Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee
Chai, who resigned from the Tropicana

mechanical engineering services provider KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Petronas chairman post on Jan 11. Tropicana, in

Kejuruteraan Asastera Bhd (KAB) is set to Chemicals Group Bhd (PetChem) plans a Bursa Malaysia filing, noted that the

acquire a mini-hydropower plant located in to build a 60,000 tonnes per annum ex-IGP is also currently the chairman of

North Sumatera, Indonesia. In a statement, melamine plant in Gurun, Kedah, which Jaya Tiasa Holdings Bhd. The former top

KAB said its wholly-owned KAB Energy will make it the sole melamine producer in cop was appointed to Tropicana’s board in

Holdings Sdn Bhd (KABEH) had inked a Southeast Asia. In a statement, PetChem October 2020. — by Sulhi Khalid

term sheet agreement with Sarawak Cable said the plant is targeted to come Nestcon bags RM188.5m
Bhd (SCB) to acquire the latter’s Indonesian onstream in 2024 but did not indicate how construction contract
unit PT Inpola Mitra Elektrindo (PT IME) for much it is investing in the plant. It said

RM10,000 and free from all encumbrances. the project is in line with its journey to KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Nestcon Bhd

“PT IME will also be released from all expand into derivatives by adding value to has been awarded a fixed lump sum turnkey

liabilities and encumbrances upon the full the molecules from its existing products construction job worth RM188.5 million from

settlement of the purchase consideration such as urea, methanol, polyolefins and Konsortium Exsim Development Sdn Bhd

and outstanding dept of up to RM61.5 more. It plans to use urea produced from (KED) to build a 39-storey apartment building

million,” it said. As part of the deal, KABEH its wholly-owned Petronas Chemicals in Jalan Klang Lama, here. Nestcon, via its

is required to undertake a due diligence Fertiliser Kedah (PCFK) unit as feedstock wholly-owned Nestcon Builders Sdn Bhd, has

exercise, to be completed within three to produce the melamine. “This is a accepted the letter of award from KED for

months from the date of the term sheet significant milestone for PCG (PetChem) the job. Under the contract, Nestcon Builders

execution. PT IME designed and built the and further strengthens our strategy of will design and build the apartment building,

mini-hydropower plant Kombih III that has diversifying our product portfolio. By which will have 608 units of apartment suites

an installed capacity of 11 MW, which it housing the plant within the vicinity of and three retail shops, in 36 months, and

currently operates. It achieved commercial PCFK, we will be able to maximise the hand over the project on or before Jan 18,

operations on Oct 12, 2021. PT IME has a overall value through the integration of 2025, according to Nestcon’s bourse filing.

20-year agreement to supply energy to feedstock and utilities with the existing Nestcon’s share price closed 0.5 sen or 1.11%

Indonesian state-owned utility company PCFK facility,” said PetChem managing lower at 44.5 sen on Wednesday, bringing

PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara. KAB director cum chief executive officer Mohd the group a market capitalisation of RM287

managing director Datuk Lai Keng Onn Yusri Mohamed Yusof. — by Justin Lim million. — by Justin Lim

said this is the group’s maiden venture

into the hydropower sector and its first Ex-BNM governor Ahmad Don takes over as MGRC chairman
foray into Indonesia. “Upon completion

of the acquisition, the asset is projected KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Malaysian Genomics Resources Centre Bhd (MGRC) has

to contribute at least RM270 million in redesignated its independent director Tan Sri Ahmad Mohd Don as its new chairman

revenue to the group over the concession effective Wednesday (Jan 19). The former Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor is

period,” he said. In a separate filing, SCB replacing Tan Sri Dr Rafiah Salim, who retired in November last year. Ahmad, 74, is

said PT IME was identified as a target for currently also an independent director of United Malacca Bhd, Alliance Bank Malaysia

sale after it entered into an asset sharing Bhd and Sunway REIT Management Sdn Bhd, MGRC’s Bursa Malaysia filing showed. He

agreement with Hong Leong Islamic was appointed to MGRC’s board in May 2020. Ahmad was the central bank’s governor

Bank Bhd, AmBank (M) Bhd and Bank from 1994 to 1998. MGRC provides genome sequencing and analysis, and genetic

Muamalat Malaysia Bhd and a trustee to screening services. Founded in 2004, it recently diversified its business to include

settle debts of around RM124.59 million. biopharmaceutical and healthcare products and services. — by Sulhi Khalid

— by Izzul Ikram

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 12 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

home

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Abdul Abdul Azeez’s the Baling MP’s appeal at the Court of
Latif Abdul Rahim — the older brother older brother Appeal.
of ex-Lembaga Tabung Haji chairperson acquitted of
Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim — abetment in The lawmaker’s appeal seeks to over-
was fully acquitted by the High Court on highway projects turn the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s de-
Wednesday (Jan 19) of abetting his younger cision on March 12 last year to dismiss his
brother to accept bribes linked to highway bribery application to quash the three corruption
projects in Perak and Kedah. and 10 money laundering charges against
by shazni ong him.
A full acquittal was granted follow- theedgemarkets.com
ing Abdul Latif ’s revision application Azeez, 54, faces three counts of accept-
to substitute a discharge not amounting given is that if there are any new develop- ing bribes amounting to RM5.2 million
to an acquittal (DNAA) order to a full ments in the evidence, the case against the in relation to road projects in Perak and
acquittal over two corruption-abetment applicant will resume. Kedah, as well as 10 counts of money laun-
charges. dering.
“This also cannot be regarded as a
Justice Datuk Collin Lawrence Seq- proper reason for granting a discharge The Baling MP is alleged to have com-
uerah ruled that the revision application not amounting to an acquittal. mitted the graft offences at CIMB Bank,
had merit, noting that the prosecution had JalanTun Perak in Kuala Lumpur on Dec
failed to give a good reason why the court “There was nothing forthcoming to 8, 2010, and at Affin Bank, Pusat Bandar
should grant a DNAA rather than a full show that the prosecution would proceed Puchong in Selangor on June 13, 2017,
acquittal. with any [proceedings] definitely and when and April 10, 2018.
this would happen.
He said there is no merit to the case by He is accused of committing money
the respondent (prosecution) and that the “This amounted to consigning the ap- laundering offences in the Klang Valley,
trend of cases suggests that unless there plicant to an indefinite and indeterminable between March 8, 2010, and Aug 30, 2018.
are good reasons shown, the order grant- future,” he said.
ed should be a discharge amounting to Prior to the DNAA ruling by the Ses-
an acquittal. Latif ’s counsel Datuk Seri Jahab- sions Court, Latif, 63, was accused of
erdeen Mohamed Yunoos was present abetting Azeez to obtain a RM4 million
“The reason that the applicant is to be for the defendant, while deputy public bribe from one Mohammad Redzuan Mo-
a witness against the other accused (his prosecutors Nik Haslinie Hashim and hanan Abdullah, as gratification to help
younger brother) would open the pos- Hafizatul Ifa Ab Razak appeared for the Menuju Asas Sdn Bhd secure road pro-
sibility of the applicant being effectively prosecution. jects, via limited tender from the Works
held to ransom to testify favourably for Ministry.
the prosecution. Meanwhile, Abdul Azeez’s corruption
and money trial before the Kuala Lumpur The project involved the Pantai Baru
“This would not amount to the proper Sessions Court has been stayed, pending Coastal Expressway Project, upgrading
reason to grant discharge not amounting to works of Federal Road FT005 (Teluk In-
an acquittal, not the least being that there tan to Kampung Lekir, Perak) valued at
is the possibility of the proprietary of such RM644.48 million.
evidence being attacked and subsequently
being regarded as tainted,” he said. He was alleged to have committed both
abetment offences at Affin Bank, Pusat
Justice Sequerah noted the other reason Bandar Puchong in Selangor on June 13,
2017, and April 10, 2018.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Motorists Damaged RFID failures during rainy conditions.
on PLUS Malaysia Berhad (PLUS) high- stickers will be Consequently, many users voiced their
ways who have damaged radio-frequency replaced free of
identification (RFID) stickers can now get charge — PLUS dissatisfaction and PLUS has taken imme-
them replaced for free. diate remedial measures by adding staff at
Bernama toll plazas and increasing the visibility of
PLUS Strategic Stakeholder Engage- direction signs for RFID lanes.
ment chief Syed Mohammed Idid Syed Bernama
Ahmed Idid said additional staff have Syed Mohammed Idid also assured mo-
been assigned at toll plazas to help those torists that they should not worry about
encountering problems with their RFID the use of TnG cards and Smartags, as
stickers. they are still being used in many toll pla-
zas throughout the country.
“We have people on standby with hand-
held devices, if their RFID can’t be detect- He said the RFID pioneer project was
ed, we will help purchase a coupon for them seen to be more cost effective as it was zero
to go to the nearest Touch ‘n Go (TnG) maintenance and safer, on top of payments
fitment location to check their RFID. If being linked to e-wallets that could be paid
at that time TnG still can’t detect, we will via auto debit.
give a new RFID tag free of charge,” he
told Bernama TV here Wednesday. On complaints that the price of RFID
stickers was too high, he said the RM35
Media outlets reported last Monday price tag was set by TnG.
(Jan 17) that several toll plazas in the
Klang Valley, including the Putra Mah- Toll transactions using RFID technol-
kota and Sungai Besi toll plazas were ogy for private vehicles (Class One) have
jammed during peak hours due to RFID been implemented for the route between
Juru, Penang and Skudai, Johor on the
North-South Expressway since Jan 15.

T H U R S D A Y J A N U A R Y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 13 T H E E D G E C E O M O R N I N G B R I E F

HOME

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 19):The Federal Court on Fed court allows served for the Bukit Kiara longhouse residents.
Wednesday (Jan 19) allowed the second series AG’s Report, KL On Jan 27, 2021, the Court of Appeal
of the Auditor-General’s Report 2019 and the City Plan 2020 to
addendum to the Kuala Lumpur City Plan 2020 be used byTaman quashed the development order given by
document to be used by lawyers representing DBKL to Memang Perkasa.
TamanTun Dr Ismail (TTDI) residents who are Rimba Kiara
against the proposedTaman Rimba Kiara high- project opponents In doing so, the Court of Appeal set aside
rise residential property project within TTDI the High Court’s decision on Nov 28, 2018
because both documents are public documents BY HAFIZ YATIM to reject the TTDI residents’ attempt to stop
which can be easily accessed by the public. theedgemarkets.com the high-rise residential project.

A three-member bench led by Federal Court serviced apartments and one block of affordable Later on Sept 1, 2021, the Federal Court
Judge Datuk Nallini Pathmanathan allowed the apartments — are Memang Perkasa Sdn Bhd,the gave proponents of the project permission to
usage of both documents by lawyers representing Kuala Lumpur City Hall,YayasanWilayah Perse- appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision
theTTDI residents during the planned hearing kutuan and Bukit Kiara longhouse residents. to quash the project’s development order.
of the appeal by proponents of theTaman Rimba
Kiara high-rise residential property project to Memang Perkasa is the developer of the In the apex court onWednesday, represent-
appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision to property project under a joint venture with ing theTTDI residents were lawyers Datuk Dr
quash the project’s development order. Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan. Gurdial Singh Nijar Gurdial, Abraham Au and
Alliff Benjamin.
“However, the relevance and weight of The Kuala Lumpur City Hall is also known
these two documents will be determined in as Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL). The lawyers helped the TTDI residents
the appeal proper. We say the application by make the application to include the second
the [TTDI] residents is not necessary [due It was reported that the TTDI residents series of the Auditor-General’s Report 2019
to both documents being public documents]. protested against the proposed development and the addendum to the Kuala Lumpur City
which had secured conditional planning per- Plan 2020 document in the appeal records.
“The documents are included in the ap- mission and a development order from DBKL
peal records [of theTTDI residents],” Justice and that the affordable apartments were re- Representing proponents of the Taman
Nallini said. Rimba Kiara project, meanwhile, were law-
yers BThangaraj,Tan Sri Cecil Abraham, Khoo
The three-member bench included Fed- Guan Huat and Datuk Harpal Singh Grewal,
eral Court Judges Puan Sri ZalehaYusof and who helped them oppose the relevance of the
Datuk Rhodzariah Bujang. two documents to the appeal records.

Proponents of the plannedTaman Rimba Ki- Justice Nallini, however, said that as the two
ara project — comprising eight blocks of high-end documents are considered public documents
and accessible by the public, there should not
be any dispute on the matter.

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 14 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

home

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 19):The Court of Ap- Court of Appeal sel Mohd Haijan Omar, while senior federal
peal in a two-one majority decision ruled rules Sabah-born counsel Mohd Izhanudin Alias represented
that a 27-year-old man who was born in man a Malaysian the Malaysian government,the National Reg-
Sabah to a Sarawakian father and a mother istration Department (NRD) director-gen-
believed to be from Indonesia is entitled to citizen eral and the home minister as the appellants.
Malaysian citizenship.
Bernama On Oct 21,2019,the Kuala Lumpur High
Justice Datuk Che Mohd Ruzima Court recognised that Malaysia-bornWong
Ghazali, who delivered the majority rul- He said the majority judgement agreed was a stateless person, declaring him a Ma-
ing, said Wong Kueng Hui had fulfilled with the High Court judge that the respond- laysian citizen based on the Second Sched-
Article 14(1)(b) of the Federal Constitu- ent (Wong) had done what is possible to de- ule, Part II under Section 1(e), a provision
tion (FC), read together with the Second termine the citizenship status of his mother. where those born within Malaysia and are not
Schedule, Part II under Section 1(e) of the born a citizen of any other country are enti-
FC, to be granted the status of citizenship Justice Azizah, in a dissenting judge- tled under the law to Malaysian citizenship.
by operation of law. ment, saidWong’s biological mother died
when he was 17, so this is not a case where Judge Datuk Nordin Hassan, who is now
In dismissing the government’s appeal the respondent had no knowledge of his a Court of Appeal judge, also ordered the
against a High Court decision, the judge birth mother at all. NRD director-general to issue a citizenship
said the High Court was correct in decid- certificate or identification card to Wong.
ing in 2019 thatWong is entitled under the “The respondent had in fact made que-
law to be a Malaysian. ries with the Indonesian embassy in Ma- However, the NRD director-general,
laysia. So, the respondent knew the mother home minister and Malaysian government
The majority decision was agreed to by was from Indonesia. As such, it cannot be on Oct 31, 2019 filed an appeal and also
Justice Datuk M Gunalan, while Justice said that it is proven that the respondent obtained a stay of the High Court’s decision.
Datuk Azizah Nawawi dissented. (Wong) is stateless. I will therefore allow
the government’s appeal with no order as Wong’s Malaysian father passed away
“After examining the records of appeal, to costs,” Justice Azizah said. when he was 10 years old, while his non-Ma-
we find there was no error in the decision laysian mother died when he was 17.
made by the High Court judge.The undis- Wong, who was born on Jan 2, 1995, at-
puted evidence shows Wong was born in tended the online proceedings with his coun- Wong applied twice under Article 15A
Hospital Keningau as the result of a mar- of the FC to be recognised as a Malaysian,
riage between the biological father who is but both applications were rejected.
a Malaysian and a mother whose citizen-
ship status is not known,” said Justice Che Wong then filed a lawsuit through a
Mohd Ruzima. judicial review on June 20, 2019 to seek
several court orders, including to be rec-
ognised as a Malaysian citizen.

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 19): Putrajaya on CNY 2022: Family in the compound of their respective houses.
Wednesday (Jan 19) announced more re- reunion dinner, The Chap Goh Mei prayers at temples
laxed standard operating procedures (SOPs) house-to-house
for the Chinese NewYear (CNY) celebra- on Feb 15 are allowed in accordance with
tions this year, including allowing family visits allowed, says the SOPs, she said.Also allowed are the
reunion dinner and house-to-house visits. National Unity lion and dragon dances, subject to the
Minister SOPs set by the creative industry.
Unlike last year where the reunion din-
ner was limited to only 15 family members Bernama “The SOPs are prepared for the safety
living within a 10km radius, the reunion of the people and those celebrating the
dinner scheduled to take place on Jan 31 CNY,” she added.
is allowed to involve as many relatives and
members of the family. Meanwhile,Wee said the SOPs for this
year’s CNY had clearly been more relaxed
National Unity Minister Datuk Hali- than last year. “It has been discussed in de-
mah Mohamed Sadique said CNY open tail in three meetings involving numerous
houses, however, are not allowed. stakeholders,” he said.

CNY receptions, on the other hand, are Suhaimi Yusuf/The Edge Read also:
allowed but limited to invited guests only,
with a number not exceeding 50% of the Malaysia records 3,229 new daily
space capacity. Covid-19 cases on Jan 19 Click here

CNY receptions organised by compa- Fake Covid-19 vaccination certs
nies or associations must be held in a hall detected in Kedah — Exco Click here
or a restaurant and not in the open or over
a long period of time like open houses, she Johor police arrest eight individuals
told a joint press conference on the SOPs for allegedly involved in sale of fake
CNY 2022 withTransport Minister Datuk Covid-19 vaccination certs Click here
Seri DrWee Ka Siong here onWednesday.
Risk assessment, umrah travel SOP to
Halimah said prayers at temples are also be finalised in mid-February Click here
allowed on Feb 1 and 2 in full compliance
with the SOPs under Phase Four of the Na-
tional Recovery Plan, while the special night
prayers for ‘Hokkien Clan’ on Feb 8 and 9
and other religious activities are only allowed

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 15 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

home

Syed Saddiq’s criminal trial to begin
in KL High Court on June 7

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 19): Muar by Timothy Achariam & Shazni Ong that the trial is fixed for a hearing, we take
Member of Parliament (MP) Syed Sad- theedgemarkets.com note of this,” Gobind added.
diq Syed Abdul Rahman, who is facing
a total of four charges involving criminal in the court” when posting about the case Justice Zaini then cautioned: “He has
breach of trust (CBT), misappropriation on social media platforms. to separate his hat from being a politician
of funds and money laundering of more and an accused in the court. I am sure
than RM1 million, will have his case heard Before that,Wan Shaharuddin told the you will be able to advise your client on
from June 7. judge that the accused should be mindful what to do.”
when commenting on the case on social
Presiding High Court Judge Mohamed media platforms as it can be used against Charges against Syed Saddiq
Zaini Mazlan set the trial dates after the him during the course of the trial. On the first charge, Syed Saddiq is being
four charges were read again to Syed Sad- charged as the then Parti Pribumi Ber-
diq in the High Court onWednesday (Jan “This is not a gag order against the ac- satu Malaysia (Bersatu) Armada (Youth)
19). The man pleaded not guilty to all cused. However, there are a few postings chief — who was entrusted with control of
charges. on [his] Facebook [page] about the case Armada funds — with committing CBT
and his defence. I want to remind him, as by withdrawing RM1 million via a CIMB
Justice Zaini set March 24 for case someone who is older and more mature, Bank Bhd cheque without obtaining per-
management and the trial dates as fol- that this can be used against him,” Wan mission from the Bersatu supreme lead-
lows: June 7 to 10, 20 to 22 and 27 to 28; Shaharuddin said. ership council.
July 4 to 8, 13 to 15 and 18 to 22.
“I ask him not to post anything that will He is being charged with committing
Syed Saddiq was represented by law- affect his defence,” the prosecutor added. the offence at a CIMB Bank Bhd branch
yer Gobind Singh Deo, who is also the at Menara CIMB KL Sentral on March 6,
Puchong MP, while the prosecution was Gobind, meanwhile, pointed out that 2020 — under Section 405 of the Penal
led by Deputy Public Prosecutor Wan as Syed Saddiq is a public figure, he will Code, which is punishable under Sec-
Shaharuddin Wan Ladin. be asked by many quarters to state his po- tion 406 of the same code.The code pro-
sition about the case and that some form vides for maximum imprisonment of 10
Syed Saddiq reminded to ‘separate of flexibility should be allowed. years with whipping, and a possible fine,
his hat from being an accused and a if convicted.
politician’ “The accused will be asked to state his
On Tuesday, Justice Zaini reminded Syed position [as] the public will want to know The former youth and sports min-
Saddiq he was to “separate his hat from the details of the case. I have always said ister also faces a charge of misusing
being a politician and an accused person that some form of flexibility should be RM120,000 in donations meant for the
given to the accused to speak about the 14th general election campaign collect-
charges. However, we understand now ed through a Maybank Islamic Bhd ac-
count owned by Armada Bumi Bersatu
Enterprise.

The act was allegedly committed at
Maybank Islamic Bhd, Taman Pandan
Jaya here between April 8 and April 21,
2018. The charge under Section 403 of
the Penal Code carries a jail term of up
to five years with whipping and a possible
fine if convicted.

The other two charges involve alleged
money laundering activities, namely
two transactions of RM50,000 from his
Maybank Islamic Bhd account into his
Amanah Saham Bumiputera account,
which are believed to be proceeds of il-
legal activities.

Syed Saddiq is alleged to have commit-
ted the acts at a bank in Jalan Persisiran
Perling, Taman Perling here on June 16
and June 19, 2018.

Zahid Izzani Mohd Said/The Edge Gobind pointed out that as Syed Saddiq
(pictured) is a public figure, he will be asked

by many quarters to state his position
about the case and that some form of

flexibility should be allowed.

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 16 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

world

(Jan 19): Sony Group Corp shares fell 13% Sony loses game companies with strong content and
inTokyo onWednesday, their biggest drop US$20 billion IP portfolios.
since October 2008, after PlayStation rival in market value
Microsoft Corp announced a US$69 bil- after Microsoft Sony has maintained a consistent lead in
lion deal to acquire games publisher Acti- sales and exclusive games over Microsoft’s
vision Blizzard Inc. deal competing offerings across several PlaySta-
tion and Xbox generations.Now that its Red-
The blockbuster acquisition escalates by Takashi Mochizuki & Vlad Savov mond,Washington-based rival has signaled
Microsoft’s spending spree to secure intel- Bloomberg its determination to spend freely to close that
lectual property assets for its Xbox Game gap, Sony will be under pressure to respond.
Pass service, wiping US$20 billion off So- the Game Pass roster, the headwinds for
ny’s valuation in a day. Sony are only going to get tougher.” “Sony will struggle to match Microsoft
in terms of money it can spend to buy
The push to attract paying subscribers with Elsewhere across the games industry, popular game IP,” Morningstar Research
an overwhelming portfolio of games challeng- publishers rallied in the wake of Micro- analyst Kazunori Ito said. “Falling shares
es Sony’s traditional console business model soft’s announcement, with Capcom Co illustrate investors are worried that Sony
that relies on high-profile exclusive titles and and Square Enix Holdings Co up by more may not be able to keep winning if indeed
hardware sales. Games and network servic- than 3.7% in Tokyo. the industry shifts away from the hard-
es account for about 30% of Sony revenue. ware-based model.”
Analysts, including Jefferies’ Atul Go-
Microsoft announced Tuesday that yal, saw the move as raising valuations for Read also:
it has more than 25 million Game Pass Microsoft to gobble up Activision in
subscribers and “will offer as many Ac- US$69 billion metaverse bet
tivision Blizzard games as we can within “The US multinational is buying “Call
Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass,” of Duty” maker Activision Blizzard for
spanning both existing and new titles, US$68.7 billion in the biggest gaming
according to Xbox chief Phil Spencer. industry deal in history as global technology
Call of Duty, Diablo and World of War- giants stake their claims to a virtual future.
craft are among several highly successful The deal announced by Microsoft on
franchises developed under the Activision Tuesday, will bolster its firepower in the
Blizzard umbrella. booming video gaming market where it takes
on leaders Tencent and Sony.”
“Sony will have a monumental challenge Click here
on its hands to stand on its own in this
war of attrition,” said Amir Anvarzadeh of
Asymmetric Advisors. “With Call of Duty
now most likely to be added exclusively to

ZURICH (Jan 19): A group of more than Millionaires forum... you’re part of the problem.”
100 billionaires and millionaires has issued group calls for A spokesperson for theWorld Economic
a plea to political and business leaders con- wealth tax at
vening virtually for the World Economic virtual Davos Forum said paying a fair share of taxes was
Forum: make us pay more tax. one of the forum’s tenets, and a wealth tax
by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi -as exists in Switzerland, where the organ-
The group calling itself the “Patriotic & Simon Jessop isation is based -could be a good model to
Millionaires” said that the ultra-wealthy Reuters deploy elsewhere.
were not currently being forced to pay their
share of the global economic recovery from 15%, aimed at making it harder for them In most countries outside a handful in
the pandemic. to avoid taxation, the millionaires said the Europe and some recent joiners in South
wealthy still needed to contribute more. America, the rich do not have to pay an-
“As millionaires, we know that the cur- nual taxes on assets such as real estate,
rent tax system is not fair. Most of us can Over the course of the two years of the stocks or artwork, because they are taxed
say that, while the world has gone through pandemic, the fortunes of the world’s 10 only when the asset is sold.
an immense amount of suffering in the richest individuals have risen to $1.5 tril-
last two years, we have actually seen our lion - or by $15,000 a second - a study by According to a study conducted by the
wealth rise during the pandemic - yet few if Oxfam this week showed. Patriotic Millionaires together with Oxfam
any of us can honestly say that we pay our ‘Part of the problem’ and other non-profits, a progressive wealth
fair share in taxes,” the signatories said in In the letter, the signatories including tax starting at 2% for those with more than
an open letter, published on the occasion Disney heiress Abigail Disney and ven- $5 million and rising to 5% for billionaires
of the World Economic Forum’s “virtual ture capitalist Nick Hanauer told Davos could raise $2.52 trillion, enough globally to
Davos”, which began on Jan. 17. participants convening for a week of on- lift 2.3 billion people out of poverty and guar-
line power-brokering and talks: “You’re antee healthcare and social protection for
Reuters reported last year on the stag- not going to find the answer in a private individuals living in lower income countries.
gering rise in billionaire’s wealth in 2020,
as the world went into lockdown and the The World Bank in 2021 published
global economy faced its worst recession an article urging countries to consider a
since World War Two, prompting the mil- wealthy tax to help reduce inequality, re-
lionaires’ group to call for higher taxes. plenish state coffers depleted by COVID-19
relief schemes and regain social trust.
While that spurred more than 130
countries to agree a deal to ensure big com- However, outside Argentina and Colom-
panies pay a global minimum tax rate of bia, no new wealth tax schemes have been
initiated since the start of the pandemic.

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 17 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

world

HONG KONG/BEIJING (Jan 19): Chi- China wants tain clearances from regulators before they
na’s cyberspace regulator has drafted new internet giants can list their shares outside the mainland.
guidelines that will require the country’s to get approval
large internet companies to obtain its ap- for investments, ChenWeiheng, partner and head of US
proval before they undertake any invest- fundraisings law firm Wilson Sonsini’s Greater China
ments or fundraisings, sources familiar practice, said the reported CAC “internal
with the matter said on Wednesday. — sources practice guidance”, if confirmed, could sig-
nificantly impact the investment landscape
The proposed requirements from the by Xie Yu & Yingzhi Yang of the internet and “even end the era for
Cyberspace Administration of China Reuters big internet platform operators to build an
(CAC) will apply to any platform com- ecosystem through investments”.
pany with more than 100 million users, or applied to private market investments, such
with more than 10 billion yuan (US$1.58 as pre-IPO private funding rounds. “The development appears to be driven
billion) in revenue, they said. by the regulatory considerations of continued
China has routinely updated a nega- antitrust concerns in the internet space and
Any internet firm involved in sectors tive list prohibiting foreign investment the need to oversee the investment activities
named on the negative list issued by China’s in sectors such as compulsory education of major listed internet companies...it would
National Development and Reform Com- institutions, news organisations and rare be a logically consistent move with the prior
mission (NDRC) last year will also need to earth minerals. Late last year, the NDRC antitrust andVIE-related regulatory actions.”
apply for approval, the sources said. required companies in such sectors to ob-
Chinese tech giants such as Alibaba
Some internet companies have already Group, Tencent Holdings, Meituan and
been briefed, they added, and the draft ByteDance have created large empires
rules are still subject to changes. over the years by acquiring or investing
in smaller players, practices which Chinese
The sources declined to be identified regulators now criticise as monopolistic
as the information was not yet public.The and unfair to their users.
CAC did not immediately respond to a
Reuters request for comment. Some of these firms have over the past
year been subjected to a host of punish-
The proposed rules would intensify the ments, including fines for not reporting
oversight from China’s increasingly asser- past deals and for monopolistic behaviour.
tive regulators, who have over the past year From Feb 15, China will also require com-
reined in formerly freewheeling internet panies with data on more than 1 million
giants in areas from dealmaking to their users to undergo a security review before
handling of user data. listing their shares overseas.
Click here to read the full story
It was not immediately clear what types of
investments or fundraisings could be impact-
ed. One senior technology industry executive
said there were concerns whether it would be

SINGAPORE (Jan 19): Hong Kong’s Hong Kong’s The latest virus controls are also hurt-
stringent travel restrictions are now the ‘draconian’ ing the outlook for an economy that only
biggest challenge for American business- travel curbs are just rebounded last year after two years
es and expatriates in the city, with 44% of top AmCham of contraction.While there are still many
respondents in a new survey saying they’re business opportunities in Hong Kong,
likely to leave. concern travel restrictions are “increasingly out of
step with international practice” and are
The American Chamber of Commerce by Krystal Chia weighing on sentiment, AmCham said in
in Hong Kong said 60% of businesses and Bloomberg a statement Wednesday.
individuals surveyed in its 2022 sentiment
study ranked international travel restric- which include flight bans and forcing almost The strict quarantine rules for travellers
tions as their top concern, overtaking other all arrivals into 21 days of isolation, have con- make it difficult for head offices to oper-
hot-button issues like US-China relations tributed to an exodus of expatriates. ate, with about 44% of respondents saying
and political uncertainty. business was affected by significant disrup-
Many of those surveyed said the gov- tion. More than 30% of those surveyed said
“Hong Kong still holds business oppor- ernment seemed unconcerned about Hong they’d had to delay new investments, while
tunities but an array of issues, especially Kong’s status as an international financial 30% struggled to fill senior executive roles.
draconian travel restrictions and worsening centre, according to AmCham President
US-China relations, weigh on sentiment,” Tara Joseph. “That’s something new and The chamber said in October that lob-
AmCham said in its report. hopefully the government will respond to bying the government about reopening its
this,” she saidWednesday on BloombergTV. borders has been like “talking to a wall”.
In last year’s report, 65.4% of respond- “We spoke to them about it yesterday, but The survey reflected that, too, with more
ents cited US-China relations as the big- there’s just a sense that the government than half of respondents saying they feel
gest concern.That dropped to 44% in the doesn’t care.” the government is unconcerned or dismiss-
latest survey. ive about business concerns.

The survey — conducted in September AmCham surveyed 151 corporate rep-
before Hong Kong’s Omicron outbreak resentatives and 111 individual members.
prompted even tighter travel and quaran- Click here to read the full story
tine curbs — is evidence the city’s dogged
adherence to Covid Zero is denting its appeal
as a global financial hub. The travel rules,

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 18 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

world

bloomberg

UK inflation US housing
surprises with starts rise
jump to highest unexpectedly
on multifamily
in 30 years building

by Andrew Atkinson & Philip Aldrick by Reade Pickert
Bloomberg Bloomberg

LONDON (Jan 19): Britain’s inflation rate tricity and 28.1% for gas, the biggest increas- WASHINGTON (Jan 19): New US
surged unexpectedly to the highest since es since 2009. Food prices are now climbing home construction unexpectedly
1992, sharpening a squeeze on households at their fastest rate since July 2008. strengthened in December to the fastest
and adding to pressure on the government pace in nine months, led by apartment
and Bank of England to respond. “Rising inflation poses tricky questions projects and suggesting builders found
for the Bank of England,” saidYael Selfin, some success navigating shortages of
Consumer prices rose 5.4% from a year chief economist at KPMG UK.“Shortages materials and labour.
ago in December, driven by a broad in- of goods, demand for which rose during
crease in the cost of food, drink, restaurant the pandemic, and high energy prices have Residential starts rose 1.4% to a 1.7
meals and furniture, the Office for National both contributed to quickening the pace million annualised rate from a 1.68 mil-
Statistics saidWednesday. Economists had of price rises.” lion pace in November, according to
expected a reading of 5.2%. government data released on Wednes-
The monthly increase was driven by day. For all of 2021, 1.6 million homes
Household spending power is weaken- food and non-alcoholic beverages, restau- were started, a 15.6% surge from the
ing, with the price of everyday goods and rants and hotels, furniture and household prior year and the most since 2006.
services rising faster than wages. Policy goods, and clothing and footwear. That
makers at the central bank are weighing suggests price gains have moved beyond Applications to build, a proxy for fu-
another increase in interest rates as early energy, which is due to hit consumer bills ture construction, jumped 9.1% to an
as next month, and ministers are looking again starting in April. annualised 1.87 million units in De-
at ways to soften a surge in utility bills due cember, the highest since January of
to hit in April. “Food prices again grew strongly, while last year. Permits in 2021 surged 17.2%
increases in furniture and clothing also from the previous year.
“Rising inflation means that Britain’s pushed up annual inflation,” said Grant
cost of living squeeze will continue to get Fitzner, chief economist for the ONS. Home prices have surged over the
tighter over the coming months, particu- “These large rises were slightly offset by last year as potential buyers compete for
larly when energy bills jump in April,” said petrol prices, which despite being at record a very limited number of homes. Build-
Jack Leslie, senior economist at the Resolu- levels were stable this month, but rose this ers are racing to replenish inventory, but
tion Foundation think tank.“The drivers of time last year.” supply chain challenges, high commod-
inflation are becoming more broad-based.” ities prices, and a lack of skilled workers
The retail price index, used to set pay- have elongated construction timelines
The strength of inflation is fanning outs on gilts and for pricing public services and inflated backlogs.
speculation of a rapid cycle of tightening including train fares, surged 7.5% from a
for monetary policy. Strong figures from year ago, the most since 1991.That’s more Without enough finished homes to
the jobs market onTuesday reinforced that than the 7.1% pace that economists had meet demand, housing affordability is
outlook.The BOE last month delivered the expected. poised to deteriorate further in 2022.
first increase since the start of the pandem- Mortgage rates now stand at the high-
ic and may move again on Feb 3. In one encouraging sign, pipeline price est level in nearly two years, which will
pressures appeared to ease in December. make it that much more difficult for
UK government bonds slid, with 10- The cost of fuel and raw materials used those looking to become homeowners
year yields rising eight basis points to 1.3%, by factories unexpectedly fell, and prices for the first time.
the highest since early 2019. Money mar- charged rose less than forecast.
kets have almost fully priced in rate-hike “To the extent that 2022 brings an-
next month. Core CPI, which excludes energy, food ything new, it will be the question of
and other volatile items, accelerated to whether higher home prices and/or ris-
“I understand the pressures people are 4.2%, the highest since 1992. ing mortgage rates will dampen demand
facing with the cost of living, and we will enough to bring the market into better
continue to listen to people’s concerns as Inflation averaged 4.9% in the fourth balance,” Stephen Stanley, chief econ-
we have done throughout the pandemic,” quarter, higher than 4.3% forecast by the omist at Amherst Pierpont Securities
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak Bank of England. For December alone, LLC, said in a note.
said in a statement. the BOE had predicted a rate of 4.5%.
Multifamily starts — which include
Pat McFadden, the Labour opposition’s “We’ve not seen the end of rising infla- apartment buildings and condomini-
shadow chief secretary to theTreasury, said tion yet,” said Alpesh Paleja, lead econo- ums — climbed 10.7% to a 530,000
“the triple whammy of an imminent rise mist at the CBI, Britain’s biggest employers rate, the fastest since February 2020.
in the energy price cap, real wages falling group. “With prices on the rise and real
andTory tax rises coming down the tracks wages already falling, it’s likely households Click here to read the full story
are going to make this crisis even worse.” will face a cost-of-living crunch.”
Read also: UK home rents climb at fastest
Households are feeling the squeeze not pace since 2017 in December Click here
just from rising energy bills, but higher food
prices. Energy bills have risen 18.8% for elec-

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 19 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

world

bloomberg

Morgan Stanley
profit surges
on M&A wave,

advice to wealthy

by Matt Scuffham & Sohini Podder
Reuters

NEWYORK/BENGALURU (Jan 19):Mor- M&A volumes are expected to remain US$24.6 billion, mainly due to the ac-
gan Stanley beat quarterly profit expectations robust despite the prospect of debt be- quisition of fund manager Eaton Vance.
onWednesday by capitalising on a boom in coming costlier, while Main Street lenders
dealmaking and earning robust fees from are expected to post healthier profits from In the quarter ended Dec 31, profit
managing assets for wealthy clients, send- consumer lending as interest rates are set rose to US$3.59 billion, or US$2.01 per
ing the shares of the Wall Street investment to rise later this year. share and was above market expectations
bank up 5%. of US$1.93 per share, despite the blow
Beating expectations to trading.
Full-year profit as well as revenue was a Overall revenue from institutional securi-
record for the bank, which advised on some ties, which houses the Morgan Stanley’s Revenue rose to US$14.52 billion com-
of the world’s biggest mergers during the investment banking and trading units, fell pared with US$13.59 billion in the year-
year. Net income surged 37% to US$15 slightly to US$6.7 billion, mainly due to ago period.
billion and revenue jumped 23% to nearly weak trading.
US$60 billion. Return on tangible equity, a closely
Revenue from trading fell 26%. Equi- watched metric for profitability that meas-
Morgan Stanley’s results rounded out a ty trading revenue rose 13%, but the gains ures how well a bank is using its capital to
mixed earnings season for the nation’s largest were wiped out by fixed income trading rev- produce profit, rose to 19.8%.The figure
banks that cashed in on the merger-and-ac- enue which slumped 31% to US$1.23 bil- was well above the bank’s two-year target
quisition (M&A) wave, but were dragged lion. However, investment banking revenue of between 14% and 16%.
down by weak trading and higher expenses, rose 6% to US$2.43 billion in the quarter.
which swelled as they spent heavily to retain Unlike larger rivals such as JPMorgan
key personnel in a race for talent. Equity underwriting revenue of US$853 and Bank of America, both Morgan Stanley
million was lower than last year even though and its peer Goldman Sachs lack big con-
In 2021,Wall Street investment banking Morgan Stanley advised on some of the big- sumer lending units, which has limited their
giants have advised on several major business gest IPOs, including Amazon-backed elec- exposure to pandemic-led loan defaults and
combinations, initial public offerings (IPOs) tric-vehicle maker Rivian Automotive Inc. allowed them to focus on their twin strengths
and helped put together deals involving spe- in investment banking and trading.
cial-purpose acquisition companies. Its wealth management unit also turned
in a strong quarter with a 10% rise in reve- Chief executive James Gorman, how-
Morgan Stanley advised on 420 deals last nue to US$6.25 billion powering a record ever, has been taking steps to insulate the
year and was ranked third in the global in- annual profit. bank from its reliance on trading and en-
vestment banking league tables, following gineered two large back-to-back acquisi-
larger rivals Goldman Sachs and JPMor- However, the investment bank saw an tions — Eaton Vance and E*Trade — to
gan Chase, according to data from Dealogic. 18% jump in compensation expenses to bolster its ability to gain clients in its wealth
management and brokerage arms.
League tables rank financial service firms
based on the amount of investment banking
advisory fees they generate.

BENGALURU (Jan 19): Australia’s Australia’s Lynas very strong during the quarter and favour-
Lynas Rare Earths Ltd posted record sec- posts record able market conditions continued, with
ond-quarter revenue on Wednesday (Jan revenue on customers indicating their expectations
19) as demand for metals used in electric of accelerated demand in the next quar-
vehicles (EVs) grew amid a global push for strong rare earth ter,” Lynas chief executive officer Amanda
reducing carbon emissions. demand Lacaze said.

The prices of neodymium and prase- by Yamini C S However, shipping delays and disrup-
odymium (NdPr), widely used to make Reuters tions hurt production of NdPr, with output
magnets that power EV motors, have nearly falling to 1,359 tonnes in the three months
tripled over the past 14 months as compa- to Dec 31 from 1,367 tonnes a year earlier,
nies and governments stepped up efforts the world’s largest producer of rare earths
to meet climate targets. outside China said.

Rare earth materials are a group of 17 Revenue jumped nearly 70% to
minerals that are also used in wind tur- A$202.7 million (US$145.56 million or
bine generators, smartphones and military about RM610.98 million) for the Decem-
equipment. ber quarter, compared with A$119.4 mil-
lion a year earlier.
“Demand for Lynas products remained

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 20 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

world

Indonesia’s tech start-up GoTo Group and Blibli, an TPG said to
largest IPO e-commerce platform backed by Djarum near Pathology
turns into a flop Group, both plan to go public in 2022. Asia stake sale
as Bukalapak at US$2 billion
Investors will likely focus on tech com-
falls panies that would be able to report posi- value
tive earnings within three to six months
by Fathiya Dahrul after their initial public offering (IPO), by Elffie Chew & Manuel Baigorri
Bloomberg said Rudiyanto, a director at Panin Asset Bloomberg
Management.
(Jan 19): PT Bukalapak.com has lost SINGAPORE/HONG KONG (Jan 19):
more than half its value since raising The worsening sentiment may be spe- Private equity firm TPG Capital Asia is
US$1.5 billion (about RM6.29 billion) cific to Bukalapak. Changes in manage- close to an agreement to sell a minority
in Indonesia’s biggest public offering. ment due to its chief executive officer stake in Pathology Asia Holdings Pte in a
leaving to join the public sector could be deal that values the healthcare business at
The shares closed at a record low 352 a cause for concern, said BRI Danareksa about US$2 billion, according to people
rupiah on Tuesday (Jan 18), pushing its analyst Niko Margaronis. Compared to with knowledge of the matter.
market value below 37 trillion rupiah Bukalapak, companies like GoTo have a
(US$2.6 billion or about RM10.9 bil- larger base of potential users and stronger Government-backed investors from Asia
lion). That’s down 66% from the 109 links with retailers, while Blibli has the and the Middle East are among parties inter-
trillion rupiah market cap recorded on backing of the Djarum conglomerate, he ested in taking a stake in Pathology Asia, said
its first trading day in August. added. the people, who asked not to be identified as
the information is private.The buyout firm
The IPO flop may not bode well for “It’s a process. People have to start ap- could agree to sell a little less than 30% of
upcoming tech listings that are expected preciating the Internet economy growth the unit to potential investors as soon as the
to propel the local stock market to anoth- even though they are loss-making,” Mar- end of this month, one of the people said.
er year of record deals. Indonesia’s largest garonis said.
TPG was exploring selling the Pathol-
Bukalapak’s key shareholders includ- ogy Asia stake ahead of a potential ini-
ed Singapore’s GIC Pte Ltd and Archi- tial public offering of the unit, Bloomberg
pelago Investment Pte Ltd, which held News reported last month. The buyout
a combined 11% stake in the company firm asked banks to submit proposals for
as of August, while PT Elang Mahkota the potential listing of Pathology Asia in
Teknologi’s unit had a 23.9% stake. March and was considering Singapore as
an option for the listing venue.
Burberry
bullish on profit Deliberations are ongoing and the inves-
tor line-up could change, said the people. A
as outerwear, representative forTPG declined to comment.
leather goods
Pathology Asia’s brands include Quest
sales soar Laboratories and Gribbles Pathology in
Southeast Asia. It announced the acquisi-
by Paul Sandle tion of Singapore’s Innovative Diagnostics
Reuters Pte in 2018, and bought a minority stake in
Australian drug testing company SafeWork
LONDON (Jan 19): British luxury pre-pandemic levels, with all product Laboratories Pty the following year.
brand Burberry expects to beat profit categories growing by double digits,
expectations after its full-price sales ac- helped by flagship stores that were at- TPG has invested more than US$13
celerated in the third quarter, driven by tracting a new generation of Burberry billion in companies including jeweller
a strong performance in outerwear and customers. APM Monaco, clinical research firm Novo-
leather goods and a material improve- tech, and the Indian conglomerate Shriram
ment in Asia and Europe. Burberry said adjusted operating Group, its website showed.
profit for the year to April 3 would rise
Burberry has stopped markdowns by about 35% at constant exchange
in its main stores and online as these rates, well ahead of consensus, which
were damaging its status as a high-end stands at £472 million.
luxury brand.
Brown said she expected forecasts to
Shares in the group, which have risen move much closer to the top end of the
by 1% over the last 12 months, signifi- range - which stands at £497 million —
cantly underperforming its peers, jumped plus a benefit from currency of some
6.5% to 1,871 pence onWednesday after £13 million (US$18 million).
Burberry’s bullish outlook. Click here to read the full story

Julie Brown, its finance chief, said
full-price sales were up by 26% on

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 21 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

world

LONDON (Jan 19): British Prime Minister UK’s Johnson, reuters
Boris Johnson, fighting to save his premier- facing ‘pork pie’
ship amid a storm over a series of lockdown plot to oust him, Boris Johnson
parties in Downing Street, told parliament says he will not
on Wednesday he will not resign. Downing Street
resign lockdown parties
Johnson is struggling to quell an inter- — some held when
nal revolt by his own lawmakers who are by William James & Alistair Smout ordinary people
angry over the parties in Downing Street, Reuters
the prime minister’s office and residence, could not bid
during Covid-19 lockdowns, as well as fac- chairman of the party’s 1922 Committee. farewell in person
ing opposition calls for him to step down. As many as 20 Conservative lawmak- to dying relatives —
have undermined
Johnson, who in 2019 won his party’s ers who won their seats at the last national Johnson's authority.
biggest majority in more than 30 years on election in 2019 plan to submit letters of
a pledge to “Get Brexit Done”, has repeat- no confidence in Johnson, the Telegraph Click here to read the full story
edly apologised for the parties and said that reported. A handful of others have already
he was unaware of many of them. said they had written such letters.

However, he attended what he said he Toppling Johnson would leave the
thought was a work event on May 20, 2020 United Kingdom in limbo for months
which revellers had been told to “bring just as the West deals with the Ukraine
their own booze”. crisis and the world’s fifth largest econ-
omy grapples with the inflationary wave
“Every week, the prime minister of- triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic, with
fers absurd and frankly unbelievable de- UK inflation rising to the highest level in
fences to the Downing Street parties, nearly 30 years.
and each week it unravels,” Keir Starm-
er, leader of the opposition Labour Party, Johnson on Tuesday denied an accu-
told parliament. sation by his former adviser that he had
lied to parliament about a lockdown party,
Starmer, who welcomed the defection saying nobody had warned him the “bring
of lawmaker Christian Wakeford who left your own booze” gathering might contra-
Johnson’s Conservatives to join Labour, vene Covid-19 rules.
asked Johnson if a prime minister should
resign if he misled parliament.

When asked directly if he would resign,
Johnson said: “No.”

To trigger a leadership challenge, 54 of
the 360 Conservative members of parliament
must write letters of no confidence to the

STRASBOURG (Jan 19): The European Macron urges new gether a joint proposal, a joint vision, a new
Union must draw up proposals in the coming EU security deal security and stability order for Europe.”
weeks for a new security deal that it would in ‘frank’ dialogue
then negotiate with Russia, French Presi- Europeans would share the proposal
dent Emmanuel Macron said onWednesday, with Russia with North Atlantic Treaty Organization
calling for a “frank dialogue” with Moscow. allies before discussing it with Russia, he
by Benoit van Overstraeten, said.
Speaking amid growing worries over a Rus- Myriam Rivet & Tangi Salaün
sian military build-up at Ukraine’s borders, A proponent of the EU having its own
Macron did not spell out what a “new stabil- Reuters “strategic autonomy” in the field of de-
ity and security order” could entail but said fence, Macron added that the bloc must
it must ensure Europe defends its interests. Earlier, US Secretary of State Antony bring itself to a position to make sure “it
Blinken warned during a visit to Ukraine can be respected”, including by making
“We will make sure that Russia could launch a new attack at sure it is not too dependent on Russia for
that Europe makes its “very short notice”. its energy supplies.

unique and strong Some European states fear they are be- Addressing lawmakers at the start of
voice heard,” he ing bypassed and their security concerns France’s six-month presidency of the EU,
told the European ignored as Russia deals directly withWash- Macron said that France, together with
Parliament. ington in security talks over the continent Germany, wants to continue seeking a po-
— with some coordination with the EU. litical solution to the tensions over Ukraine,
Emmanuel in talks with both Russia and Ukraine.
Macron “It is good that Europeans and the
United States coordinate, but it is nec- Separately, Macron said the EU must
reuters essary that Europeans conduct their own review its relationships with the Western
dialogue,” Macron said. “We must put to- Balkans and offer them sincere prospects
of joining the bloc.

The EU must also propose a new alli-
ance to African countries, he said, adding
that EU and African countries would dis-
cuss it at a summit in February.

t h u r s d a y J a n u a r y 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 22 T h e E d g e C E O m o r n i n g b r i e f

MARKETS

CPO RM 5,155.00121.00 OIL US$ 88.390.88 RM/USD 4.1930 RM/SGD 3.1090 RM/AUD 3.0186 RM/GBP 5.7027 RM/EUR 4.7554

Top 20 active stocks

NAME VOLUME CHANGE CLOSE YTD MARKET
(MIL) (RM) CHANGE CAP
(%) (RM MIL)

EA Holdings Bhd 269.60 -0.010 0.015 -25.00 96.8

Dagang NeXchange Bhd 213.60 0.045 0.910 19.74 2871.3

Sarawak Consolidated 111.3 0.065 0.270 31.71 157.2

SMTrack Bhd 90.2 -0.010 0.225 18.42 148.3

AHB Holdings Bhd 63.2 0.005 0.135 3.85 39.4

Ageson Bhd 62.6 -0.010 0.035 -12.5 54.5

AirAsia Group Bhd 59 -0.025 0.590 -25.32 2451.3

My EG Services Bhd 53 -0.050 0.945 -11.68 6989.8

MQ Technology Bhd 44.8 0.005 0.075 50 65.8 World equity indices

Kanger International Bhd 41.3 0.005 0.025 25 149.5

Inari Amertron Bhd 40.2 -0.160 3.280 -18.00 12,143.7 CLOSE CHANGE CHANGE CLOSE CHANGE CHANGE
(%)
Bumi Armada Bhd 38.9 0.010 0.530 12.77 3130.7 DOW JONES 35,368.47 -543.34 -1.51 (%)
INDONESIA 6,591.98 -22.08 -0.33
NWP Holdings Bhd 35.3 0.005 0.180 -26.53 94.8

TWL Holdings Bhd 33.8 0.005 0.065 30.00 167.1 S&P 500 4,577.11 -85.74 -1.84 JAPAN 27,467.23 -790.02 -2.80

Cuscapi Bhd 30.6 0.000 0.365 30.36 344.9 NASDAQ 100 15,210.76 -400.83 -2.57 KOREA 2,842.28 -21.96 -0.77

NCT Alliance Bhd 30.1 -0.010 0.490 -4.85 431.6 FTSE 100 7,557.65 -5.90 -0.08 PHILIPPINES 7,261.54 -82.42 -1.12

Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd 28.5 0.010 0.875 7.36 1756.6 AUSTRALIA 7,332.50 -76.28 -1.03 SINGAPORE 3,283.94 3.90 0.12

SerSol Bhd 28.4 0.015 0.480 18.52 123.0 CHINA 3,558.18 -11.73 -0.33 TAIWAN 18,227.46 -151.18 -0.82

ATA IMS Bhd 27.7 -0.040 0.515 -15.57 619.5 HONG KONG 24,127.85 15.07 0.06 THAILAND 1,659.35 -0.92 -0.06

BCM Alliance Bhd 25.1 -0.005 0.030 0 61 INDIA 60,098.82 656.04 -1.08 VIETNAM 1,442.79 3.85 0.27

Data as compiled on Jan 19, 2022 Source: Bloomberg Data as compiled on Jan 19, 2022 Source: Bloomberg

Top gainers (ranked by %) Top losers (ranked by %)

NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET
(%) (‘000) CHANGE CAP (%) (‘000) CHANGE CAP
(%) (RM MIL) (%) (RM MIL)

Fintec Global Bhd 0.015 50.0 1235.2 50.00 88.2 EA Holdings Bhd 0.015 -40.000 269637.0 -25.00 96.8

Sarawak Consolidated 0.270 31.7 111,268.10 31.71 157.2 Daya Materials Bhd 0.010 -33.330 2839.4 0.00 20.4

Catcha Digital Bhd 0.175 25.0 115.8 9.38 23.6 Eduspec Holdings Bhd 0.015 -25.000 1,040.50 0 45.7

Kanger International Bhd 0.025 25.0 41328.3 25.00 149.5 Compugates Holdings BHd 0.015 -25.000 636.2 0.00 57.3

Talam Transform Bhd 0.025 25.0 25.0 25.00 107.4 Ageson Bhd 0.035 -22.220 62556.6 -12.50 54.5

AT Systematization Bhd 0.030 20.0 2321.2 0.00 162.4 MNC Wireless Bhd 0.020 -20.000 72.2 33.33 35.2

SHH Resources Holdings BHD 0.720 11.6 516.50 56.52 72 Borneo Oil Bhd 0.025 -16.670 4798.4 -16.67 183.9

Parlo Bhd 0.165 10.0 4440.8 10.00 72.1 Scomi Group Bhd 0.025 -16.670 98.8 25.00 27.3

Bina Puri Holdings BHD 0.055 10.0 2104.6 22.22 87.9 BCM Alliance Bhd 0.030 -14.290 25142.4 0.00 61.0

Sand Nisko Capital Bhd 0.585 9.4 5973.4 7.34 135.5 Minda Global Bhd 0.060 -14.290 1862.1 9.09 79.3

TWL Holdings Bhd 0.065 8.3 33771.9 30.00 167.1 Scomi Energy Services Bhd 0.060 -14.290 26.0 9.09 28.1

Complete Logistic Services Bhd 3.150 7.9 641.2 25.50 405.2 YGL Convergence Bhd 0.170 -12.820 1545.3 17.24 43.4

Velesto Energy Bhd 0.140 7.7 18123.5 16.67 1150.2 Systech Bhd 0.245 -12.500 6004.6 6.52 84.7

Reach Energy Bhd 0.070 7.7 1513.4 16.67 76.7 Sanichi Technology Bhd 0.035 -12.500 3032.7 40.00 49.1

Lion Posim Bhd 0.565 7.6 0.3 0.89 128.7 Advance Information 0.125 -10.710 75.7 -3.85 33.3

PUC BHD 0.145 7.4 3849.5 0.00 214.1 Sinmah Capital BHD 0.170 -10.530 2527.2 17.24 55.2

MQ Technology Bhd 0.075 7.1 44798.5 50.00 65.8 mTouche Technology Bhd 0.085 -10.530 227.1 -5.56 78.8

Pan Malaysia Holdings Bhd 0.075 7.1 6017.2 -6.25 69.7 Flexidynamic Holdings Bhd 0.385 -10.470 799.3 -14.44 109.3

China Ouhua Winery Holdings 0.075 7.1 1832.4 -37.50 50.1 PNE PCB BHD 0.090 -10.000 1957.1 5.88 50.4

Magna Prima Bhd 0.450 7.1 10 9.76 179.6 Farlim Group BHD 0.235 -9.62 5 -6 36

Data as compiled on Jan 19, 2022 Source: Bloomberg Data as compiled on Jan 19, 2022 Source: Bloomberg

Top gainers (ranked by RM) Top losers (ranked by RM)

NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET NAME CLOSE CHANGE VOLUME YTD MARKET
(RM) (‘000) CHANGE CAP (RM) (‘000) CHANGE CAP
(%) (RM MIL) (%) (RM MIL)

Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd 21.400 0.340 223.8 -1.74 23,066.80 Malaysian Pacific Industries 39.78 -2.22 1117.4 -19.41 7912.1

Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd 25.740 0.240 153.3 4.04 9,440.90 Nestle Malaysia Bhd 131.90 -1.60 60.20 -1.71 30930.6

Complete Logistic Services Bhd 3.150 0.230 641.2 25.50 405.20 AEON Credit Service M Bhd 14.72 -0.46 103.1 8.08 3758.1

Petronas Gas Bhd 16.740 0.180 482 -7.00 33,124.00 Kesm Industries Bhd 11.00 -0.46 69.4 -10.42 473.2

Hartalega Holdings Bhd 5.740 0.150 3,340.40 0.17 19616.2 UWC BHD 4.60 -0.43 7597.2 -25.93 5062.9

Hengyuan Refining Co Bhd 4.020 0.140 536.50 3.88 1,206.00 Dutch Lady Milk Industries BHD 32.28 -0.38 3.4 -3.70 2065.9

PMB Technology Bhd 12.420 0.120 74.1 1.14 2,641.40 Hong Leong Financial Group 18.40 -0.36 482.9 6.11 21072.5

Analabs Resources BHD 1.330 0.080 641.00 7.26 144.90 Kobay Technology BHD 4.47 -0.33 1908.7 -25.87 1449.1

New Hoong Fatt Holdings Bhd 2.240 0.080 2.00 -0.88 185.20 Greatech Technology Bhd 4.90 -0.30 10699.3 -27.19 6135.5

SHH Resources Holdings BHD 0.720 0.075 516.50 56.52 72 Hong Leong Bank Bhd 19.50 -0.30 1563.2 4.73 42270.5

MISC Bhd 7.010 0.070 842.6 -0.57 31,290.90 Pentamaster Corp Bhd 4.18 -0.28 8071.2 -24.68 2977.5

Sarawak Consolidated 0.270 0.065 111268.1 31.71 157.20 Sam Engineering & Equipment 20.66 -0.28 117.0 -7.77 2796.3

Sand Nisko Capital Bhd 0.585 0.050 5973.4 7.34 135.50 Frontken Corp Bhd 3.18 -0.24 17660.8 -20.5 5000.3

Scientex BHD 4.670 0.050 2,170.60 -2.51 7243.2 Transocean Holdings BHD 2.67 -0.23 77.4 -13.87 173.8

Duopharma Biotech Bhd 1.630 0.050 1175.5 -2.98 1535.1 Rapid Synergy Bhd 9.05 -0.23 55.1 -9.05 967.4

YNH Property Bhd 2.650 0.050 70.7 0 1400.5 Genetec Technology Bhd 2.39 -0.22 5885.0 -21.26 1628.2

Teo Guan Lee Corp BHD 1.060 0.050 25.00 3.92 86.90 TIME dotCom Bhd 4.26 -0.22 865.4 -7.39 7777.1

Pimpinan Ehsan Bhd 1.550 0.050 11.5 6.16 107.10 PIE Industrial BHD 3.00 -0.19 934.5 -21.05 1152.1

Dagang NeXchange Bhd 0.910 0.045 213648.7 19.74 2871.3 Kotra Industries Bhd 3.37 -0.19 199.3 6.65 498.7

British American Tobacco M’sia 13.54 0.04 434.5 -3.15 3866.1 CIMB Group Holdings Bhd 5.33 -0.18 19217.6 -2.2 54480.3

Data as compiled on Jan 19, 2022 Source: Bloomberg Data as compiled on Jan 19, 2022 Source: Bloomberg