.jpg)
Invest Malaysia Beijing 2010 saw China's top fund managers meet with some of Malaysia's largest public listed companies, key regulators and policy makers, to gain first-hand knowledge of Malaysia's vibrant investment opportunities. The Invest Malaysia Beijing 2010 roadshow was led by Bursa Malaysia, one of the largest bourses in Asia, in partnership with Maybank, Malaysia's largest banking group.
Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid Omar, Director of Bursa Malaysia, said, "The Malaysian capital market is experiencing growing confidence and vibrancy. This is underscored by an increasing number of Malaysian multinationals and the country's rising status in the global markets. Today, Malaysia is the 10th most competitive nation in the world as stated in the IMD, World Competitiveness Yearbook 2010 and has recently received a number of accolades, which should drive increased investment and liquidity into the market. Our most exciting and recent achievement is being one of the 11 countries in the world to receive Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) approval.
"We expect this vibrancy to continue, fuelled by mergers and acquisitions, and IPOs like last week's Marine & Heavy Engineering Holdings (MMHE) IPO and the upcoming PETRONAS Chemical Group IPO - two of ASEAN's largest to date. Malaysia's recently announced Economic Transformation Program (ETP), the catalyst for the next phase of Malaysia's growth is also expected to generate robust investment opportunities through 131 nation-building projects in 12 key economic sectors," added Wahid.
The Keynote Speech of the Invest Malaysia Beijing 2010 roadshow was delivered by Senator Dato' Seri Idris Jala, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, and the CEO of the Performance Management and Delivery Unit (PEMANDU), a unit tasked with reforming the social and economic performance of Malaysia. The Minister explained in detail Malaysia's ETP and the investment opportunities that will arise from this economic transformation programme. The key economic sectors mentioned include Construction & Infrastructure; Renewable Energy; Palm Oil; Oil & Gas (upstream & downstream); Agriculture, Automotive, Aluminium smelting, Wafer Fabrication and Financial Services.
Tengku Dato' Zafrul Aziz, CEO of Maybank Investment Bank, said, "Positioned at the heart of ASEAN, Malaysia provides access to one of the world's fastest growing regions with direct reach to over 570 million people. Together with the country's pro-business policies and the ETP, Malaysia is set to take the stage as ASEAN's most vibrant investment destination. Chinese fund managers were suitably impressed by our line-up of highly respected public listed companies that are increasingly gaining a foothold regionally and globally.
"A hotly discussed topic was Maybank's recent listing of MMHE, which was more than 25 times oversubscribed and closed the first day 15% above IPO price. In addition, Malaysia's positive market outlook as well as the growth opportunities presented by the ETP will provide further impetus to our capital market growth and present exciting investment opportunities both in the short and long-term," added Zafrul.
Wahid also said, "To ensure a vibrant capital market, Malaysia has taken affirmative steps via strategic capital market reforms and liberalisation policies."
Following these reforms, Malaysia has gained the confidence of the Chinese government and, is the first Emerging market to be recognised as an approved investment destination under the QDII programme administered by China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) and China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).
To add to the QDII validation, Malaysia's FTSE country classification was upgraded in September 2010 to Advanced Emerging market status from that of Secondary Emerging market; the US Securities and Exchange Commission recently recognised Malaysia as a designated offshore securities market and Malaysia was again ranked 4th in the world for Investor Protection in the Global Competitiveness Report 2010/2011 by the World Economic Forum.
"These recognitions are indeed reflective of the positive steps that Malaysia has undertaken to bring about a strong level of confidence as well as add further liquidity into the market," added Wahid.
Wahid concluded on the topic of Malaysian corporate multinationalisation saying, "Malaysia, being blessed with an abundance of natural resources and a pro-business environment, has allowed Malaysian companies to thrive and expand their reach beyond Malaysia's shores. When investors buy into Malaysian companies, they are not just buying into the growth from Malaysia but also benefiting from their regional and global exposure."
