Nine M'sian firms make it to Forbes' Best under a Billion

SINGAPORE: Nine Malaysian companies made it to the Forbes Asia’s Best under a Billion list this year compared with eight companies last year, according to Forbes Asia.

Glove maker Hartalega Holdings Bhd, which made it to the list for the first time, was also profiled in the September issue of Forbes Asia.

Other Malaysian companies that made it to the list are CBS Technology Bhd, Coastal Contracts Bhd, Hai-O Enterprise Bhd, KKB Engineering Bhd, Latexx Partners Bhd, Mudajaya Group Bhd, My E.G Services Bhd and Willowglen MSC Bhd.

CBS Technology specialises in RFID (radio frequency identification), e-security and e-procurement services; Coastal Contracts is involved in marine services and vessels while Hai-O is a multi-level marketer of herbal care products.

Besides steel fabrication, KKB manufactures steel pipes and LPG cylinders as well as hot-dip galvanising. Latexx manufactures rubber gloves, Mudajaya is involved in civil engineering and construction services, My E.G is an e-government service provider and Willowglen is a computer-based control system provider.

According to Forbes Asia, more companies are making their maiden appearance on Forbes Asia’s Best under a Billion list this year.

“In all, 151 firms are new on the list, compared with 136 last year, while 49 are returnees. Firms in information technology, healthcare and electronics sectors accounted for close to half of the 200 companies on the list,” Forbes said in a statement yesterday.

The annual Best under a Billion list picks the top-performing 200 firms from close to 13,000 publicly listed Asia-Pacific companies with actively traded shares and sales between US$5mil and US$1bil.

Forbes Asia said the selection of the final 200 was based on earnings growth, sales growth and shareholders’ return on equity in the past 12 months and over three years.

This year, China and Hong Kong have once again outdone the rest of Asia-Pacific with the most number of small and midsize firms represented on the list.

“This is the third consecutive year that both economies have dominated the list with 71 firms making the cut, down from 78 last year,” it said.

India is in the second place with 39 entries, 19 more than last year, thus making it the biggest gainer while South Korea is in the third position with 20 companies, followed by Taiwan with 19 and Australia with 13. Malaysia tied with Thailand for the sixth most number of entries.

The 200 winning companies will be honoured at an award ceremony and dinner in Hong Kong on Nov 23.