15/01/2026

BIZ & FINANCE THURSDAY | JAN 15, 2026

20

MARKETS/FROM THE BROKERS

SUNBIZ presents extracts of a selection of commentaries and research reports received from stockbrokers on counters that could be of interest to investors.

DISCLAIMER: The information is extracted from stockbrokers’ commentaries and research reports and do not represent the views or opinions of Sun Media Corporation Sdn Bhd. It is not a solicitation, recommendation or an offer to buy or sell the equities featured. Sun Media Corporation shall not be liable or responsible for any consequences resulting from usage of the information.

[ Compiled by SunBiz Team

Strong growth for Malaysia’s Islamic banking sector KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s Islamic financing will account for nearly half of the banking sector’s total financing by 2030 versus 42% as of the end of 2024, S&P Global Ratings said. In its report Asia-Pacific Islamic Banking Outlook 2026: Rebound Masks Regional Divergence, the ratings agency said this is due to steady growth, supported by a comprehensive regulatory framework, a deep local sukuk market, and strong retail acceptance. “Consumers and small businesses will continue to drive financing growth, in line with growth trends at the country’s conventional banks,“ S&P Global Ratings said. It added that the growth in Islamic financing remains primarily driven by domestic operations, with overseas business gaining traction in some markets. “Keen competition in Malaysia’s mature market has prompted some of the largest Islamic banks to examine overseas growth opportunities in Southeast Asia, including Islamic wealth management. “Malayan Banking Bhd, which owns the largest Islamic bank in Malaysia, has started operations in the Philippines through an Islamic window,“ it said. The ratings agency expects financing growth for Asia-Pacific’s Islamic banks to edge up towards the higher end of its forecast range of 8-10% over the next three years after a 2025 slowdown. Total assets are likely to surpass US$550 billion (RM2.2 trillion) by end-2028 against US$430 billion at end-2024, constituting about 20% of the global Islamic banking market. Malaysian Islamic banks will continue to play a key role in advancing inclusive financing, in line with the central bank’s value based intermediation principles, the ratings agency said. – Bernama

THE ringgit closed 0.2% firmer against the US dollar yesterday, supported by sustained portfolio inflows into Malaysian bonds and equities, reflecting confidence in domestic-demand growth, stable policy settings, and attractive real yields. At 6 pm, the local currency strengthened to 4.0465/0525 versus the greenback from Tuesday’s close of 4.0555/0600. It was also higher against a basket of major currencies. IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said that even as the US Dollar Index (DXY) held near the 99 level, it underlined a clear decoupling between US dollar/ringgit and broader dollar moves. He said while the DXY was supported by still-elevated US yields, the absence of global risk aversion meant that dollar strength did not translate into defensive flows, allowing higher yielding and fundamentally supported currencies such as the ringgit to outperform. “All together are providing the ringgit with an independent source of strength rather than leaving it hostage to day-to-day movements in the US dollar,” he told Bernama. At the close, the ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies. It appreciated versus the Japanese yen to 2.5488/5526 from 2.5521/5551 at Tuesday’s close, strengthened vis-à-vis the euro to 4.7146/7216 from 4.7344/7396, and edged up against the British pound to 5.4446/4526 from 5.4676/4737. The local note also performed better against its Asean peers. The ringgit was higher versus the Singapore dollar at 3.1432/1481 from 3.1511/1549 at Tuesday’s close, gained vis-à-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 239.9/240.3 from 240.3/240.6 yesterday. Ringgit rises 0.2% against US dollar at close

Exchange Rates

FOREIGN CURRENCY

SELLING TT/OD

BUYING TT

BUYING OD

1 US Dollar

4.1330 2.7690 3.1980 2.9660 4.8030 2.3720 3.1980 5.5390 5.1770

3.9880 2.6560 3.0990 2.8840 4.6480 2.2850 3.0990 5.3640 4.9570 3.2000 56.9600 60.6400 50.7400 4.3300 0.0226 2.4880 38.5800 1.3700 6.6300 108.2500 105.5000 23.5500 1.2300 41.9600 12.1100 107.6600 N/A

3.9780 2.6400 3.0910 2.8720 4.6280 2.2690 3.0910 5.3440 4.9420 3.0000 56.9600 60.4400 50.5400 4.1300 0.0176 2.4780 38.3800 1.1700 6.4300 108.0500 105.3000 23.3500 1.0300 41.7600 11.7100 107.4600 N/A

1 Australian Dollar 1 Brunei Dollar 1 Canadian Dollar 1 New Zealand Dollar 1 Singapore Dollar 1 Sterling Pound 1 Swiss Franc 100 UAE Dirham 100 Bangladesh Taka 100 Chinese Renminbi 100 Danish Krone 100 Hongkong Dollar 100 Indian Rupee 100 Indonesian Rupiah 100 Japanese Yen 100 New Taiwan Dollar 100 Norwegian Krone 100 Pakistan Rupee 100 Philippine Peso 1 Euro

113.5500 3.4500 59.4700 65.8900 53.3900 4.6600 0.0256 2.6080 14.1000 41.9300 1.5300 7.0500 114.0300 111.1300 26.0800 1.4000 46.0700 13.6600

100 Qatar Riyal 100 Saudi Riyal

100 South Africa Rand 100 Sri Lanka Rupee 100 Swedish Krona

100 Thai Baht

Source: Malayan Banking Bhd/Bernama

Telecommunications Neutral

Oil & Gas Neutral

AirAsia X Bhd Outperform. Target price: RM2.15

Jan 14, 2026: RM1.78

Source: PublicInvest Research

Source: Bloomberg, TA Research

Source: Company data, RHB

AIRASIA X Bhd’s (AAX) has fixed the issue price for its proposed private placement at RM1.65 per share, with the RM1 billion fund raising exercise being fully subscribed by a mix of institutional and private investors. The share allotment is scheduled for Jan 16, followed by listing on Bursa Malaysia on Jan 19. Shares for the acquisition of AirAsia Aviation Group Ltd (AAAGL) will be issued concurrently with the private placement shares. To recap, AAX’s RM1 billion private placement was postponed as the identified investors required additional time to finalise their subscription documentation. In response, AAX sought and received an extension from Bursa Securities, moving the deadline to Jan 19 to complete the private placement, the acquisition of AAAGL, and the granting of subscription options. AAX anticipates that its fourth and first quarters will be buoyed by the peak holiday season, supported by encouraging forward bookings in its core markets. Additional weekly frequencies will be added for routes to Australia and East Asia to meet the anticipated surge in travel demand. In terms of its route network, AAX recently launched its maiden flight to Tashkent, Uzbekistan and Istanbul, pursuing its expansion strategy into Central and West Asia, building on the success of its Almaty route in Kazakhstan. The group maintains a fleet size of 19 A330 aircraft, 18 of which are currently operational. The reactivation of the final aircraft has been delayed due to global maintenance, repair, and overhaul backlogs. The merger of Capital A’s aviation arm into AAX is nearly complete and will create a larger, more efficient aviation group. Outperform with RM2.15 TP. – PublicInvest Research, Jan 14

TO recap, the EIA expects global oil inventories to continue rising into 2026 as production remains ahead of consumption, keeping near-term pressure on crude prices. Although supply and demand growth are projected to move broadly in tandem next year, absolute production is still expected to exceed consumption by 2.25 million barrels per day (mbpd), leading to sustained inventory builds. This could strain available onshore storage capacity and gradually push excess barrels into higher cost alternatives such as floating storage, which may increasingly influence market pricing dynamics. In our view, while downside risks to oil prices persist in the short term, a disorderly decline appears unlikely. Opec+ supply discipline—evidenced by production running below targeted levels—and China’s ongoing strategic stockpiling should help cushion prices from sharper weakness. We also believe rising marginal storage costs could form a natural price floor, resulting in a more range-bound price environment despite continued inventory accumulation. Recent developments surrounding Venezuela have re introduced geopolitical risk premium into the oil market, with reports highlighting how the country’s oil endowment factored into US actions against the Maduro regime. While Venezuela holds one of the world’s largest proven crude reserves, years of sanctions, operational degradation and underinvestment have structurally constrained output, leaving current production at a fraction of historical levels. – TA Research, Jan 14

MALAYSIA’S three mobile network operators (MNO) will have until Feb 1 (unless extended) to complete the purchase of the Finance Ministry’s 41.7% stake in DNB and related shareholder loans (including interest) and advances for RM327.8 million. This brings their cumulative investments in DNB (including the Aug 2025 equity injection of RM118 million) to RM678 million each. With an effective 33.3% stake each, the MNOs would have to equity account the losses from DNB (FY24: -RM1.2 billion). We expect the tight competition in the mobile space to persist, while competitive pressures within the fibre broadband (FBB) segment should ease, given the higher household FBB penetration. Investors will likely shift their focus towards the wholesale and enterprise segments (which are structural drivers) due to slower growth in the consumer/retail segment. Following upgrades in 2025, the capacity of TM’s twin core data centres (DC) has doubled (~40MW) while AIMS’ (30% associate of Time dotCom (TDC)) DC capacity has expanded to ~40 MW (IT load) with the completion of Block 3 of its Cyberjaya DC campus, allowing both to capitalise on the stronger co-location demands. Three consortiums have reportedly been shortlisted as potential suitors to acquire Edotco which is 63% held by Axiata Group, according to a Dec 1, 2025 report by The Edge weekly. We see the transaction timeline potentially stretching into the later part of Q1’26 or Q2’26, with a series of approvals (regulatory and shareholders) required across jurisdictions. – RHB Research, Jan 14