17/09/2026

BIZ & FINANCE THURSDAY | SEPT 17, 2026

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Signs of renewed foreign interest in M’sian equities

Ű BY HAYATUN RAZAK

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is seeing early signs of renewed foreign investor interest in its equity market, although the recovery remains fragile amid elevated US Treasury yields, a stronger dollar and domestic political uncertainty, according to CGS International Securities Malaysia country head Alan Inn. “While the 0.05% month-on-month increase in foreign ownership in July is modest, it is an encouraging early signal that needs monitoring before it can be called a sustained trend change,” Inn told SunBiz . Inn also flagged the prospect of heightened political and electoral uncertainty as a potential near-term risk to foreign investor sentiment towards Malaysian equities. “Increased noise around elections could weigh on foreign investor sentiment towards Malaysian equities,” he said. While Malaysia is not currently in a general election period, political positioning ahead of the next national polls could influence investors’ assessment of policy continuity and the direction of fiscal and economic policies. Malaysia’s 15th General Election was held in November 2022. Under Article 55 of the Federal Constitution, Parliament continues for five years from the date of its first meeting unless dissolved earlier, with a general election required within 60 days of dissolution. This puts the next general election due by February 2028, although it can be called earlier. The latest fund flow data underscore the cautious assessment. Foreign investors turned net buyers of Malaysian equities last week, net buying RM70.91 million, according to MIDF Research. This was the first weekly foreign inflow in September, following a net outflow of RM589.38 million in the first week of the month. Despite the improvement, foreigners remained net sellers of RM518.47 million over the first two weeks of September, while MIDF said foreign investors had sold RM4.02 billion of Malaysian equities since early July. Inn said foreigners had also been net sellers of Malaysian Government Securities (MGS) and Government Investment Issues (GII) in July, although they remained net buyers of the government debt instruments on a year-to-date basis. Foreign ownership of MGS and GII remains around 20%, compared with foreign ownership of Malaysian equities at about 18.4%, he said. “The key variable would be the US dollar,” Inn said, pointing to the possibility that actions by the US Treasury aimed at suppressing long term yields could weaken the greenback and make emerging markets such as Malaysia more attractive in the coming quarters.

account for approximately 48% of the country’s total exports,” he said. “While Vietnam and Indonesia are developing their own competitive advantages within the regional supply chain, we believe that the ecosystem that Malaysia has built in the E&E space will be resilient.” The competition, nevertheless, is inten sifying. Malaysia is competing with Vietnam and Indonesia for new manufacturing investment, while companies are increasingly looking beyond simply shifting production away from China to building more resilient, multicountry supply chains. The challenge for Malaysia is therefore to retain and deepen higher-value activities such as semi conductor manufacturing, engi neering, design, testing, advanced manufacturing and related services rather than compete primarily on labour or production costs.

o However, it’s still early days and global backdrop has become more challenging in recent weeks, says CGS International Securities Malaysia country head

RM467.95 billion in the first half of 2026, accounting for 48.2% of Malaysia’s total exports, according to Malaysia External Trade Development Corp. Semiconductors alone contributed 73.7% of E&E exports. Malaysia External Trade Development Corp said the strong performance was supported by the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, which has driven un precedented demand for E&E products. Inn said Malaysia was increasingly moving up the value chain by con centrating on areas where it could create incremental value and establish sustainable com petitive advantages. “Malaysia has seen

The global backdrop, however, has become more challenging in recent weeks. The 10-year US Treasury yield approached the 5% level on Monday, reaching 4.9915% before easing to around 4.95%, its highest level in nearly three years. Rising oil prices and renewed inflation concerns have pushed bond yields higher, while markets are also watching the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision later today (tomorrow morning Malaysian time). A sustained period of elevated US yields could therefore delay the rotation of international capital into emerging markets, even as Malaysia’s domestic fundamentals improve. Despite the uncertainty over portfolio flows, Inn believes Malaysia is benefiting from longer term shifts in global supply chains, particularly the relocation and diversification of production capacity following the pandemic, geopolitical tensions and trade disruptions. “Post-war investment themes continue to gain traction, particularly around the onshoring of production capacity across key sectors such as industrial goods, food production, and energy,” Inn said. “We believe that corporations and the government need to focus on prioritising security of supply over cost considerations in their sourcing decisions.” Inn expects technology exporters in Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand to continue performing strongly over the next several years, although growth could moderate in the near term because of a high base. He said the China+1 strategy had already translated into strong export numbers and that the electrical and electronics (E&E) sector should continue to perform despite near-term fluctuations. E&E exports surged 42.5% year-on-year to

Inn said Malaysia’s structural investment case remained intact, supported by supply chain diversification, semicon ductor demand, AI infra structure, data centre invest ment and deeper regional integration. “Technology exporters across Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand have continued to deliver strong performance and we think this trend will continue over the next few years. However, growth may soften in the near term due to the high base effect,” he said. “We think the E&E sector will continue to do well despite near-term fluc tuations.”

record foreign direct investment the last five years, most notably in the E&E manufacturing and data centre spaces. “This has translated into strong trade per formance, with E&E exports reaching RM467.9 billion in 1H 2026, up 42% year-on year, compared with E&E imports of RM348.5 billion, which rose 29.2% over the same period.” Inn said the widening E&E trade surplus indi cated that Malaysia was capturing an increasing share of value creation within the global supply chain. “Today, E&E

Inn says increased noise around elections could weigh on foreign investor sentiment towards Malaysian equities.

products

Vietjet boosts partnerships with Thales and CFM to support expansion PETALING JAYA: Vietjet has strengthened its strategic partnerships with Thales, a global leader in advanced technologies in aerospace, and CFM International, an aircraft engine manufacturer, through new agreements covering aircraft component maintenance, next-generation engine maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO), digital aviation, artificial intelligence (AI) and cyber security. quirements, capabilities, infrastructure, workforce and industry considerations associated with a potential local maintenance solution. The initiative comes as Vietjet continues to expand its next-generation fleet. Future LEAP engine MRO capabilities could support the airline’s long-term operations while helping Vietnam develop high-value aerospace services, train internationally qualified engineers and strengthen its role in the global aviation supply chain.

These capabilities will support Vietjet’s expanding fleet and international network, including the Malaysia-Vietnam service. The agreements were announced in Paris during the official visit to France by Vietnam’s General Secretary and President To Lam, deepening cooperation between Vietjet and two major international aerospace technical and technology partners while contributing to wider Vietnam-France economic and technology cooperation. . Vietjet and Thales have signed a strategic repair-by-the-hour contract, under which Thales will provide comprehensive component main tenance services for Vietjet’s Airbus fleet. The partnership will enhance technical reliability and fleet availability while supporting greater cost efficiency and operational per formance as Vietjet continues to expand its

CFM International has powered Vietjet’s growth since the airline took delivery of its first CFM56 powered Airbus A320ceo aircraft in 2014. The airline currently operates 50 CFM56-powered A320ceo and A321ceo aircraft. The relationship is entering a new phase through Vietjet’s recent 200 aircraft Boeing 737-8 order that includes 737-8s and 737-8-200s powered by CFM LEAP-1B engines. Together, the agreements with Thales and CFM International reinforce Vietjet’s focus on fleet reliability, advanced aviation technology and MRO capabilities as it continues to expand its international network. For Malaysian travellers and the wider regional aviation market, these partnerships form part of Vietjet’s broader efforts to strengthen its operations across the Asia-Pacific region, while supporting the development of a stronger regional aviation ecosystem.

New collaborations will support Vietjet’s expanding fleet and international network, including the Malaysia-Vietnam flights.

cooperation in digital technology, AI and cybersecurity. Together with leading French partners, we look forward to connecting technological expertise with a dynamic aviation market, contributing to stronger trade, investment and ties between Vietnam and France.” Complementing this partnership, Vietjet and CFM International have signed a letter of intent (LoI) to assess the feasibility of developing engine MRO capabilities for LEAP engines in Vietnam. Under the LoI, CFM International would propose a consulting agreement to provide Vietjet with advisory services covering engine MRO re

international operations. Building on their long-standing relationship, Vietjet and Thales have also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) covering digital aviation, avionics, cybersecurity and AI enhanced airline operations. The cooperation will explore secure cloud solutions, predictive analytics and decision-support technologies to support more efficient and secure airline operations. Nguyen Thanh Son, CEO of Vietjet, said, “Our partnership with Thales will not only enhance the reliability, safety and operational efficiency of Vietjet’s fleet, but also open up new areas of