KUALA LUMPUR: A stable government that is able to implement good policies will attract foreign investors, says Bursa Malaysia Bhd
chairman Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar.
Wahid made the remark as Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is expected to test his majority in Parliament in about two weeks.
Asked about his “advice” to the Cabinet, Wahid said the country must continue its efforts to achieve the shared prosperity vision. To achieve this, it needs the help of a competent civil service.
Speaking to reporters yesterday during the launch of the final two digital guidebooks under the public-listed companies (PLCs) Transformation Programme here, he said beyond the sentiment on political stability, the performance of PLCs is a key factor to woo investors.
“We expect to see our PLCs continue to increase their top line, improve their earnings, pay more dividends, and this will lead to a continuous improvement of the stock market,” he said.
Earlier in his speech, Wahid said the earnings performance of the PLCs has not been attractive for more than a decade.
“Our PLCs’ earnings performance, as measured by growth in Malaysia’s Index earnings per share (EPS) has been muted since the global financial crisis. Earnings fell to a 10-year low in 2020 and only began to recover last year. Despite the buds of recovery, our EPS remains lower than the 2012-level.
“Malaysia’s weightage in the Morgan Stanley Capital International Emerging Markets Index has been generally declining since 2019, negatively impacting our ability to capture larger fractions of global funds. Nonetheless, we are glad that our weightage has recently increased to 1.62% in October 2022, up from 1.39% in 2021,” he said.
Wahid, who was also the former chief executive officer of Malayan Banking Bhd, stressed that local PLCs should take deliberate and committed actions to improve their performance.
“This is where Bursa Malaysia’s PLC Transformation Programme is timely.
Out of the 971 companies listed on Bursa Malaysia, more than 100 PLCs have committed to participate in the PLC Transformation programme.
By end-2025, Abdul Wahid expects at least 300 PLCs to be part of the programme.
However, he noted that the programme is not mandatory for the PLCs.
Commenting on the two guidebooks launched yesterday, Abdul Wahid said they would aid PLCs in realising areas in which the companies’ practices can be improved.
