World's biggest money manager cuts funds to M'sia because other regional markets lucrative

(right) Director and Portfolio Manager Asian Equities team blackrock Joshua Crabb and Co;head Institutional unit trust advisor (IUTA) AmInvest Penny Leong at media briefing at Menara AmBank.

PETALING JAYA: BlackRock Inc, the world’s largest asset manager based in New York, is reducing shares in Malaysian companies because it is betting that stocks in other regional markets will rise at a faster pace this year.

The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KL Composite Index (FBM KLCI) climbed 10% last year to outperform many of its regional peers, prompting foreign analysts, including those at Standard Chartered bank, to cut their rating on Malaysian equities to “neutral” from “overweight”.