Malaysian corporate earnings to grow up to 7% in 2023: StanChart

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian corporate earnings are set to grow by 6.0 per cent and 7.0 per cent in 2023, according to Standard Chartered Bank (StanChart) Malaysia.

StanChart head of managed investment and products management Danny Chang said two key drivers for corporate earnings in the next 12 months would be the financial and plantation sectors.

"I think corporate earnings disappointments are likely to come from sectors such as real estate and construction industries, which could pull back some of the profitability of Malaysia’s corporate earnings,” Chang said at an online media conference in conjunction with StanChart’s global market outlook for the second half of 2022.

He also anticipates the ringgit to likely trade at the 4.36-level against the US dollar by the end of this year.

Meanwhile, StanChart head of asset allocation and thematic strategy Audrey Goh said at the conference that Asian equities were still a preferred region for investments globally, and the region is expected to outperform the United States and European markets.

"On the back of that, our preferred areas have been China and India.

"In Malaysia, it would be slightly more lukewarm on the back of debt, mainly because valuations are still quite high and I do not see the central bank (Bank Negara Malaysia) cutting weights or even giving more fiscal spending to help support growth,” she added. - Bernama