26/01/2026

BIZ & FINANCE MONDAY | JAN 26, 2026

15

‘Integration key to Asean competitiveness’

rolling out end-to-end track-and trace programmes based on shared data standards, enabling products to be tracked by production batch from source to consumer, supporting QR based information sharing where appropriate, and improving inter operability across supply chains to strengthen compliance, product integrity, and consumer trust. Trusted cross-border data flows should be treated as core trade infrastructure, with stronger inter agency data exchange, interopera bility and governance frameworks to unlock the benefits of digital trade facilitation. Standards and certification com plexity should be reduced through targeted convergence in areas such as core food safety information and labelling, lowering recurring com pliance costs without full harmoni sation and supporting MSMEs expanding across Asean. Border efficiency must be streng thened for time-sensitive and high value supply chains by accelerating risk-based clearance, expanding pre arrival processing, and scaling trusted trader arrangements, including autho rised economic operator mutual recognition, to ensure faster, more predictable release. Finally, talent mobility for critical technical roles should be improved through targeted measures that support short-term movement of specialists for calibration, production support and skills transfer, including piloting an Asean semiconductor visa or an equivalent fast-track pathway. Soh said that in 2026, the council will consolidate private sector priorities into a structured set of recommendations for Asean Economic Ministers and Asean Leaders through the Asean Business Advisory Council, focusing on cross cutting measures to strengthen regional supply chain performance.

o Council says region must reduce cost, time and regulatory frictions that hinder cross border trade and weaken supply chain linkages

TURNOVER on the Malaysian warrants market fell 24% week-on week (w-o-w) to RM531.2 million for the five-day period ended Jan 23. Warrants over the Hang Seng Index (HSI) dropped by 36.3% w-o-w to contribute about RM248.2 million, or 47.7% to the total. The Hong Kong market kicked off the week on a bearish note, with HSI futures extending their losing streak on Monday (-0.9%) and Tuesday (- 0.5%). Market sentiment turned sour after US President Donald Trump escalated efforts to assert US control over Greenland while also floating the possibility of new tariffs on several European countries. The external overhang was compounded by renewed regulatory tightening on the mainland, where exchanges moved to curb speculative and abnormal trading behaviours, prompting investors to tread carefully. HSI futures regained their footing for the rest of the week as sentiment improved across sectors, mirroring KUALA LUMPUR: The Asean Supply Chain Council (ASCC) has reaffirmed that Asean’s ability to compete and attract investment will increasingly depend on how well the region functions as an integrated production and trade ecosystem. In a statement, the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturing (FMM) said that as supply chains face higher volatility, rising compliance demands, and tighter delivery expectations, Asean must reduce cost, time and regulatory frictions that continue to hinder cross-border trade and weaken regional value chain linkages. The ASCC convened last Friday, bringing together 56 representatives from the Asean Business Advisory Council, the Asean Manufacturing Network (AMN), Asean sectoral business associations and partner organisations. The meeting was chaired by FMM president emeritus Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai, who is also chairman of AMN. The meeting reviewed the state of regional integration in two priority sectors identified for 2026, namely food and beverages and semiconductors. In the food and beverage sector, intra-Asean trade remains limited, accounting for only 23% to 24% of Asean food trade. This underlines the need to accelerate practical reforms that make it easier for businesses, especially MSMEs, to scale across Asean markets. In the semiconductor sector, discussions focused on strengthening resilience across high-value and time-sensitive supply chains, inclu ding improving border predictability, WARRANTS WATCH

reducing operational disruptions and supporting talent mobility to sustain Asean’s role in critical global pro duction networks. The meeting also highlighted that supply chain competitiveness and investment attraction are tightly linked. Recent regional data shared by Unescap during the meeting showed that greenfield foreign direct invest ment (FDI) inflows into Asean declined by 17% from US$89.5 billion in 2024 (Q1 to Q3) to US$74.4 billion in 2025 (Q1 to Q3). Despite this, Asean continued to capture 29% of greenfield FDI announcements in the Asia-Pacific and received US$39.8 billion in intraregional greenfield investment pledges, representing 36% of the total. “The message was clear that Asean remains highly investable, but investor confidence will depend on stronger policy coordination and more consistent implementation across the Asean member states,” Soh said in the statement. Against this backdrop, the council aligned on priority action areas, with the private sector to deliver practical, implementable recommendations to Asean governments in 2026. Key private sector recommenda tions for 2026 focus on accelerating Asean-wide e-certification and digital sanitary and phytosanitary interoperability through a common minimum dataset for single-window exchange, to reduce duplication, shorten processing times and im prove trade predictability. The private sector also calls for

QL Resources breaks ground on RM1.3b QL Innofood Park in Perak Ahmad Zahid (fifth, left) and Saarani (sixth, left) officiating the groundbreaking of QL Innofood Park in Hutan Melintang, Perak. Others are (from left) State Legislative Assembly member for Rungkup Datuk Shahrul Zaman Yahya, QL Resources executive director and project pead of QL Innofood Park Eric Cheah, Perak State Director of Land and Mines Datuk Mohamad Fariz Mohamad Hanip, Chia Song Kun, QL Resources group CEO Chia Song Kooi, Perak State Secretary Datuk Ahmad Suaidi Abdul Rahim, Orang Besar Jajahan Bagan Datuk Toh Seri Lela Paduka Datuk Dr Khalid Ismail and State Legislative Assembly member for Hutan Melintang Wasanthee Sinnasamy.

PETALING JAYA: Main Market listed QL Resources Bhd marked the development of QL Innofood Park, an integrated food manu facturing hub in Hutan Melintang, Perak, with a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday. With a strategic investment totalling RM1.3 billion, QL Innofood Park reflects QL Resources’ long term commitment to strengthen Malaysia’s food security through scalable, value-added and halal protein food production. The ceremony was officiated by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad, underscoring the project’s importance to both national and state development agendas. Led by QL Foods Sdn Bhd, the project represents a key step in QL Resources’ expansion of food product manufacturing beyond its existing surimi-based products. QL Resources executive chairman Dr Chia Song Kun said QL Innofood Park is a natural progression of the company’s existing food manu facturing capabilities. “It supports the production of a broader range of products, in addition to our existing surimi based ones, to include those that are soy, chicken and flour-based. This is a timely development that will enable QL to better meet the growing demand for convenient, protein-rich and sustainable foods in the global market, while supporting our national food security goals,“ he said in a statement. The almost 100-acre QL Innofood Park will be developed in phases over a 10-year period. The initial phase focuses on core infrastructure, including smart cold storage, sustainable utilities, and logistics facilities to support long term scalability and operational efficiency. Construction of this core infra structure is targeted for completion by mid-2027, with an associated

investment of about RM300 million. Concurrently, about RM100 million in annual investments have been earmarked to construct production plants within the park. Upon completion, QL Innofood Park will comprise 13 production facilities, supported by integrated utilities, logistics, warehousing and worker facilities. It will have a combined capacity of up to 130,000 metric tons (MT) per annum, increasing QL Resources’ current production capacity of 50,000 MT per annum in Hutan Melintang by 2.5 times, bringing the total to 180,000 MT per annum. This will position QL Innofood Park as a key platform for both domestic supply and export markets. In line with QL Resources’ strategic business growth enablers, the facilities at QL Innofood Park are designed with a strong emphasis on automation, digitalisation and operational efficiency. The park will integrate key Industry 4.0 technologies from the outset, including centralised cold room systems equipped with automated storage and retrieval systems, smart warehousing for packaging materials and data-enabled pro duction and quality monitoring. These capabilities are expected to improve productivity, reduce reliance on manual labour and strengthen food safety standards across operations. Sustainability considerations have been integrated into the design and planning of QL Inno food Park, supporting Malaysia’s low-carbon and net-zero ambi tions. These include solar photo voltaic installations, biomass boilers using agricultural waste, solid waste segregation facilities, and energy-efficient equipment . QL Innofood Park is also expected to have a broader contribution to the local community and economy. Upon completion, it is projected to create about 3,000 direct jobs, benefiting the surrounding com munities in Hilir Perak.

Zetrix, AirAsia X and 99 Speed Mart on investors’ radar

Top stock warrants by value traded: Warrant Value Issuer Exercise

Expiry date

name

(RM mil)

level

HSI-CWM7 HSI-PWN4 HSI-PWNT HSI-PWL8 HSI-PWN1

41.8 33.1 28.6 20.3 18.3

Macquarie Macquarie Kenanga Macquarie Macquarie

28,000.00 26,000.00 24,000.00 27,000.00 27,000.00

26 Feb 2026 26 Feb 2026 26 Feb 2026 29 Jan 2026 26 Feb 2026

week include AirAsia X and 99 Speed Mart, with warrants such as AAX-C32 and 99SMART-C23 on investors’ radar. To view the full list of structured warrants available on Bursa Malaysia, visit malaysiawarrants.com.my. Provided for Malaysian residents’ information only. This commentary has not been reviewed by the Securities Commission Malaysia. It is not an offer or recommendation to trade and is not research material. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. You should make your own assessment and seek professional advice. The warrants will not be offered to any US persons.

the rebound in mainland markets. With the moves, call warrant HSI CWM7 was the top-traded by value at RM41.8 million with 184 million units changing hands. Other than that, the leaderboard was dominated by put warrants. HSI-PWN4 was the most popular HSI put warrant with a turnover value of RM33.1 million. Elsewhere, turnover for warrants over local stocks saw an uptick (+3.6%), representing 48.4% of overall turnover. Warrants over Zetrix AI stood out as one of the top warrants despite Zetrix shares staying flat w-o w. Top warrants include Zetrix-CAW and Zetrix-C9B with 99.4 million and 82.4 million traded, respectively. Other top names by turnover for the