INVE$T | Market Sentiments
Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin launched Pelaburan Rakyat (Perkukuh), a ‘GLIC mandate recharge’ to reform the mandate and roles of Malaysia’s government-linked investment companies (GLICs) to be aligned with the national agenda and support the nation’s economic recovery plan. Perkukuh as a reform comprises 20 key initiatives focusing on achieving a clearer mandate for each GLIC, more investments in catalytic and developmental areas, increased private sector participation and streamlining of the government’s role. Malaysia’s GLICs involved in the programme comprise four sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) and four institutional investors. The SWFs comprise Khazanah Nasional Bhd, Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (KWAP), the National Trust Fund (KWAN) and Ministry of Finance Inc (MoF Inc). The institutional investors, meanwhile, comprise the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), Lembaga Tabung Haji (LTH) and Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT). Speaking at the virtual launch, PM shared measures to attract private investments, such as by kick-starting the development of new growth ecosystems — including through Khazanah’s newly-established RM6 billion Impact Fund. He also mentioned three examples of measures under Perkukuh “to increase the attractiveness of GLCs while allowing them to operate effectively in a regulated environment”, namely to:
- review the government’s golden shares in investee companies;
- re-define Malaysia’s strategic sectors; and
- determine new areas of national interest.
Stating that succession planning will have an impact on the outcome of the Perkukuh programme, he hoped that there will be a more structured, yet flexible, approach involving socioeconomic leadership development which should include talent rotation programmes between the GLICs, GLCs and the public sector. Perkukuh will also look at optimising operations of the GLICs “where the management of certain asset classes will be pooled” to achieve economies of scale and improved returns. For the SWFs, there will be a re-balancing of focus between financial returns and socio-economic deliverables. A key priority will be on patient capital investing in a more strategic and targeted way into new growth areas. Meanwhile, institutional investors will retain their mandate of maximising returns of contributors, be it future retirees or those who wish to pursue the haj, while playing a synergistic role in contributing to national development. This will include a more cohesive and scaled-up approach to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and supporting national priorities like ESG and green financing. The programme will be overseen by a “New Growth Coordination Council” chaired by the prime minister. As Perkukuh will push GLICs to optimise capital allocation and focus on new growth areas, the council will ensure these are aligned with key policies comprising the National Fourth Industrial Revolution Policy, MyDIGITAL, the National Investment Aspirations framework, the Twelfth Malaysia Plan, and the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030. In formulating Perkukuh, the Govt drew on the deep expertise of the GLICs’ ecosystem, regulators, ministries as well as industry captains, including those involved in the first GLC Transformation Programme.
E-commerce income in Q2 jumps 23% on-year to RM276.6 billion – DOSM
According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin, Malaysia’s e-commerce income for the second quarter of 2021 rose 23.3% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM276.6 billion, attributed to transaction growth driven by the manufacturing and services sectors, Coming from a low base, the services sector registered a significant 20.5% y-o-y increase to RM404.5 billion. The wholesale & retail trade, food & beverages and accommodation segment increased 21.8% to RM324.6 billion. This was followed by a 14.7% rise to RM59.5 billion in the information & communication and transportation & storage segment. Simultaneously, the health, education and arts, entertainment & recreation segment as well as the professional and real estate agent segment reported a similar uptrend, with a 27.3% hike to RM12.2 billion and an 8% increase to RM8.2 billion, respectively. The number of persons engaged in this sector was 3.6 million persons, a 0.7% or 25,812-person decline compared with the same period last year. The decline was attributed to the information & communication and transportation & storage segment which fell by 2.4% (11,297 persons), followed by a 0.2% (6,127 persons) drop in the wholesale & retail trade, food & beverages and accommodation segment. Similarly, the health, education and arts, entertainment & recreation segment fell 1.7% (4,772 persons) and the professional and real estate agent segment dropped 2% (3,616 persons). Compared with the same quarter of last year, salaries and wages paid increased by 0.4% or RM100.5 million. The growth was contributed by the information & communication and transportation & storage segment, which jumped RM120.8 million or 2.8%. This was followed by the wholesale & retail trade, food & beverages and accommodation segment and the health, education and arts, entertainment & recreation segment, which rose RM9.3 million and RM3.0 million respectively.
Eye On The Markets
This week, on Friday (13Aug), the Ringgit opened 4.2375 against the USD from 4.2245 on Monday (9Aug). Meanwhile, the Ringgit was 3.1205 to the Sing Dollar on Friday (13Aug). On Monday (9Aug), the FBM KLCI opened at 1491.76. As at Friday (13Aug) 10:00am, the FBM KLCI is up 9.82 points for the week at 1501.58. Over in US, the overnight Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 14.88 points (+0.04%) to 35,499.85 whilst the NASDAQ added 51.10 points (+0.35%) to 14,816.30.
