Week 7 - 2023
RINGGIT UP 5.3% AGAINST US DOLLAR IN 4Q22
NST, 11/02/2023
The ringgit ended the 4Q22 stronger by 5.3% against the US dollar. Similarly, the ringgit has strengthened against several major trading partners, with the nominal effective exchange rate appreciating 0.4% during 4Q22. Domestic financial conditions had eased mostly due to global developments during 4Q22.
STRONG 8.7% GDP GROWTH FOR 2022
The Edge Property, 13/02/2023
Malaysia’s economy recorded an encouraging performance, with the GDP for 2022 recording 8.7%, exceeding the estimate of 6.5%-7% made in October 2022. This growth performance also far exceeds the 3.1% economic growth achieved in 2021. The achievement of 8.7% growth for 2022 is supported by a strong economic performance in 4Q22 which, among other things, saw the recovery of private spending and investment, a decrease in unemployment and the strengthening of the ringgit.
MIDA-APPROVED FDI AT RM392.9 BILLION FOR 2018-2021
The Edge Markets, 14/02/2023 & The Sun, 15/02/2023
The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) approved total foreign direct investment (FDI) of RM392.9 billion between 2018 and 2021, of which RM300.5 billion or 76.5% had been realised as of the end of 2021. Of the total FDI approved between 2018 and 2021, RM350.6 billion were under the manufacturing sector, followed by RM42.3 billion under the services sector.
75% STRATA SCHEME OWNERS MUST AGREE TO SHORT STAYS
The Star, 11/02/2023
An apartment unit can only be rented out for short-term stays in Kuala Lumpur if it has the consent of three-quarters (75%) of the owners in a strata scheme. The management body must issue a 21-day notice to inform unit owners of the impending vote that will take place at their respective annual general meetings. The management was liable to collect RM5,000 or more as a security deposit from owners who intend to rent out their units to cover any damage to shared facilities caused by the visitors, adding that the money could be refunded at the end of the tenancy of the unit.
SIX CRITERIA TO STRENGTHEN TOWN PLANNING PROVISIONS, POLICIES
The Edge Property, 14/02/2023
The Ministry of Local Government Development Malaysia is committed to strengthening town planning provisions and policies by focusing on six development criteria through the Town and Country Planning Department (PLANMalaysia). The development criteria are connectivity of neighbourhoods, sustainable township planning, multi-sized open spaces, visual permeability as passive security, the adaptation of renewable energy, and sustainable communities.
SUNWAY SPEARHEADS FIRST GREEN LEASE PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMME
NST, 15/02/2023
Sunway Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) has introduced a green lease partnership programme for all its tenants and hotel lessees as part of the company’s aspiration to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Prominent Sunway REIT tenants such as The Body Shop, Muji, L’OCCITANE, Starbucks Coffee, Roche (Malaysia), Accenture Technology Solutions and Sunway Hotels have committed to partnering with Sunway REIT in the programme. The Memorandum of Understanding was developed with key targets to improve energy efficiency, save water and divert water waste from landfills. The Green Lease Partnership Programme is the Company’s initiative to promote and engage with its stakeholders in order to reduce Scope 3 emissions. Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions are frequently under an organization’s authority, whereas Scope 3 emissions are the result of activities by an organization’s value chain, such as suppliers or customers.
AIRASIA SET TO RELAUNCH SEVEN INTERNATIONAL DESTINATIONS IN CHINA
The Edge Markets, 13/02/2023
AirAsia is set to relaunch seven international destinations in China as its rebound continues post-pandemic. AirAsia Malaysia is set to restart four destinations from two hubs (Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu) to Macau, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Kunming, with a total of 10 flights weekly, with the plan to increase the frequency by up to 27 flights weekly in March 2023. Complementing the resumption of the short-haul destinations, AirAsia X Malaysia will reconnect Kuala Lumpur to Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Chengdu with 10 flights weekly from 1st March 2023.
PUTRAJAYA YET TO FINALISE APPROVAL FOR KULIM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
The Edge Markets, 16/02/2023
The Malaysian Government has not provided its final approval for the development of Kulim International Airport (KXP), pending the completion of the National Airport Strategic Plan (NASP) in August 2023. The study on NASP began in March 2022 and was expected to take 18 months to complete.
NEXGRAM SCRAPS RM62 MILLION LAND ACQUISITION DEAL
The Edge Market, 15/02/2023
Nexgram Biomedic Sdn Bhd has terminated a deal with Melaka Corporation pertaining to the acquisition of a 24.8 acres of land in Melaka State for RM61.53 million, given the pair were unable to fulfil certain conditions required under the agreement after numerous extensions of time. Nexgram had proposed to utilise the land for a mixed development dubbed the “Melaka Lifecare Specialist project”, comprising a hospital building, service offices, wellness centre and bioscience research centre, retirement and medical tourism, a 3-star hotel and condo hotel, as well as a commercial and recreation park.
VESTLAND SECURES TWO CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS WORTH RM200 MILLION
The Edge Market, 16/02/2023 & The Star, 17/02/2023
Vestland Bhd has secured two construction contracts worth a combined RM200 million from subsidiaries of Tafi Industries Bhd. The first contract worth RM125 million involves building, mechanical and electrical works for 27 units of shop offices, 384 townhouses and an electrical substation in Cameron Highlands. The second contract worth RM75 million involves the main building works for a block of 39 storey service residences in Kepong Baru, Kuala Lumpur.
NEARLY 430 SICK HOUSING PROJECTS AS OF 31ST JANUARY 2023
The Star, 17/02/2023
There are 429 “sick” housing projects (70,727 housing units) involving 29,147 buyers nationwide as of 31st January 2023. Sick housing projects are defined as projects that were delayed by more than 30% compared to their scheduled progress or whose Sales and Purchase Agreements (SPA) have lapsed.
OSK LAUNCHES “ANYA” AT “SHOREA PARK”
StarProperty, 13/02/2023 & The Star, 16/02/2023
OSK Property launched “ANYA” (phase 2 of “Shorea Park”) on 11th February 2023 following the success of phase 1. Located in Puchong, the 3.9 acres freehold development comprises 750 units of serviced apartments in two 33-storey towers. The entire “Shorea Park” is a masterplan development that totals 27.7 acres. Priced from RM250,000 with the maintenance fee inclusive of sinking fund estimated at RM0.34 per sq. ft., “ANYA” offers four types of units. Type A is 560 sq. ft. with 1+1 bedroom and one bath, and comes with one parking bay. Type B is 915 sq. ft., has three bedrooms, two baths and at least two parking spots. Type C shares the same features as Type B and is 1,195 sq. ft. Finally, Type D is a 1,395 sq. ft., a dual-key unit with four bedrooms, three baths and three parking bays.
J SATINE SOHO A NEW DEVELOPMENT FOR INVESTORS
StarProperty, 13/02/2023 & The Edge Markets, 16/02/2023
Located on 0.92 acres of land in Setapak, “J Satine SOHO” was launched on 13th February 2023. Developed by Gandingan Jakel (a joint venture between Platinum Victory and Jakel Group), the mixed-use development comprises small-office home-office (SOHO) apartments and retail units. The 661 SOHO units offer four layouts with partial furnishing are sized ranging between 546 sq. ft. and 966 sq. ft. in a single block.
PESONA METRO SECURES RM948 MILLION CONSTRUCTION JOB IN CHERAS
The Edge Markets, 13/02/2023 & The Star, 14/02/2023
Pesona Metro Holdings Bhd has secured a RM948.13 million contract from Danau Lumayan Sdn Bhd to build a residential development project on Jalan Tasik Permaisuri, Cheras, Kuala Lumpur. Under the turnkey construction agreement, the project is split into two phases. Commenced on 13th February 2023 and scheduled to be completed within three years, the first phase involves a 43-storey building housing 922 units of Residensi Wilayah, while the second is to house another 2,516 units in two additional 52-storey buildings. Residensi Wilayah (previously known as Rumawip) is the Malaysian Government’s affordable home scheme to aid lower- to middle-income groups to become first-time homebuyers.
EQUATORIAL PLAZA ACHIEVES GBI GOLD CERTIFICATION
The Edge Market, 15/02/2023
Equatorial Plaza has received the Green Building Index (GBI) Gold certification. The 52-storey building comprises Grade A office spaces as well as the 5-star EQ Kuala Lumpur hotel. The assessment by the GBI consists of six criteria, including energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality, sustainable site planning and management, materials and resources, water efficiency, as well as innovation. The building also features passive design features and active design measures, such as a high-efficient chiller plant, efficient lighting system, waste heat recovery system, wastewater treatment system, rainwater harvesting, and sustainable construction materials.
BEST OSTEO TO GAIN FROM TCM POPULARITY
NST, 13/02/2023
BEST Osteo Sdn Bhd plans to open six to seven therapy centres in Malaysia as part of its five-year business expansion plan. The traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) company currently operating in Kota Damansara and plans to open a second location in Mont Kiara or Bukit Jalil by the end of 2023. The company plans to expand into Penang, Ipoh, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak in the future.
HEALTH AND BEAUTY RETAILER’S FIRST GREEN STORE OPENS ITS DOORS
The Star, 13/02/2023
Located at The Tropika, Bukit Jalil in Kuala Lumpur, the first sustainable green store by Watsons is offering more than 700 sustainable products that have been mindfully formulated with only safe and non-toxic ingredients. The 1,922 sq. ft. store itself features reused modular furniture plus eco-friendly air-conditioning and lighting systems.
IKEA MALAYSIA EXPECTS SINGLE-DIGIT GROWTH IN FY23
The Star, The Edge Markets & The Sun, 15/02/2023
Ikea Malaysia (a home furnishing retailer) expects a positive performance with a single-digit growth in FY23 after extraordinary success in FY22, during which it achieved a 35% increase in revenue to RM1.54 billion. In the long term, the company plans to increase the Ikea collection point nationwide in the next few years and a collection point in Melaka will be opened in March 2023.
COME JOIN THE JOM CHA SOCIE-TEA
The Star & NST, 17/02/2023
Farm Fresh Bhd (Malaysia’s dairy milk beverage group) is expanding into the food and beverage industry with its Jom Cha brand. The Farm Fresh dairy brand has introduced Jom Cha by Farm Fresh with boba (special seaweed-based pearl) at its outlet in IOI City Mall, Putrajaya. Jom Cha made its market debut in August 2022, with its first location in 1 Utama Shopping Centre in Petaling Jaya. As of present, Jom Cha has 22 stores around Malaysia. Some of its outlets are located at Genting Highlands Premium Outlets, Eco Hill Semenyih, Sunway Lagoon, Farm Fresh @ UPM, AEON BiG Wangsa Maju and Petronas Puncak Alam (Klang Valley), and AEON Mall Tebrau City, Bandar Baru Uda, Mydin Nusajaya and AEON Mall Kulai (Johor). Farm Fresh wants to open up to 300 Jom Cha stores across the nation over the next three years through its wholly-owned beverage entity Farm Fresh Jomcha Sdn Bhd.
TROPICANA REVISES MASTERPLAN FOR TROPICANA PARADISE
The Edge Markets, 11/02/2023
Tropicana Corp Bhd is revising the master plan for its 308-acre integrated hub, “Tropicana Paradise” in Genting Highlands, because of surrounding environmental factors as well as prevailing market demand. As part of this exercise, the Memorandum of Agreement signed in Feb 2022 between Tropicana Inspirasi Indah Sdn Bhd, Tropicana Inspirasi Impian Sdn Bhd, PowerChina International Group Ltd and Sinohydro Corp (M) Sdn Bhd will be called off.
MATANG ACQUIRES PROPERTY ASSETS FROM STAR MEDIA FOR RM33 MILLION
The Edge Property, 11/02/2023
Matang Bhd is acquiring two units of a double-storey semi-detached factory and warehouse annexed with a 1.5-storey office building and other ancillary buildings, which is located within the Star Business Hub, an industrial development project in Bukit Jelutong, Shah Alam from Star Media Group Bhd for RM33 million as part of its plan to diversify its business into property investment.
AMBANK SUPPORTS BASKIN-ROBBINS’ AUTOMATION AND EXPANSION PLAN
The Sun & NST, 14/02/2023
Golden Scoop Sdn Bhd (the master franchisee and operator of Baskin-Robbins Malaysia and Singapore) launched its new “One Stop Supply Chain Centre” in Bandar Serenia, Sepang. The RM30 million investment is being part-financed by AmBank Group and is set to consolidate the company’s storage, manufacturing and distribution functions allowing it to expand its capacity beyond its current 150 stores across Malaysia & Singapore. The new factory is well-equipped with an automatic storage retrieval system which will help automate repetitive processes, reduce manual labour, and improve the overall efficiency and quality of the product.
GAMUDA LAND OPENS SPLASHMANIA WATERPARK
The Sun, 13/02/2023
Gamuda Land officially held the soft launch ceremony for its 18 acres of “SplashMania Waterpark” located in “Gamuda Cove”, Dengkil, Selangor on 6th February 2023. The waterpark comprises the first-of-its-kind waterslides in Malaysia like the “Shaka Waka”, a 78m-long multimedia and audio waterslide fitted with various LED light effects, amongst others. Scheduled for the grand launch in 2Q23, the waterpark is projected to attract an annual visitorship of 800,000.
TAFI SECURES RM11 MILLION CONTRACT TO CONSTRUCT THEME PARK IN PERAK
The Edge Markets, 15/02/2023
Tafi Industries Bhd has secured an RM11 million contract from TT5 Theme Assets Sdn Bhd to build a theme park in Tanjong Tualang in Perak’s Kinta District for 8 months.
KL WELLNESS CITY SET TO CREATE 4,000 JOBS FOR MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS
The Edge Markets, 15/02/2023
KL Wellness City Sdn Bhd aims to provide more than 4,000 job opportunities for medical professionals at its healthcare-themed development. The Nobel Healthcare Park, which consists of the medical, business, wellness and retail suites, has a fully connected ecosystem of specialists and ancillary medical services interlinked with the adjacent International Hospital @ KL Wellness City, approved as a tertiary hospital with 624 beds and scalable to 1,000-bed capacity.
BIG STEP TOWARDS BUILDING A MORE VIBRANT PUTRAJAYA
The Star, 13/02/2023
Putrajaya Holdings’ “Residensi Sakura” offers 463 units with an attractive entry price point starting from RM350,000. Circa 50% of the units were snapped up during the soft launch recently. Located in Putrajaya, the freehold development has built-up sizes of 828 sq. ft., 957 sq. ft. and 2,120 sq. ft. (dual key).
SIEMENS ENERGY SECURES MALAYSIAN DIGITAL STATUS
The Sun 16/02/2023
Siemens Energy was awarded Malaysian Digital (MD) status at the soft opening of the Siemens Energy Cyber Security Operations Center Asia Pacific in Cyberjaya, Selangor. As a mark of the highest distinction for digital infrastructure companies, it comes with the opening of the region’s first MDR (Manage Detection Response) OT (operational technology) cyber security operations centre (CSOC), which is the only built-for-purpose facility engineered to monitor, detect and mitigate cyber threats on critical infrastructure such as energy and utilities. This innovative centre harnesses artificial intelligence (AI) and a dedicated team of cybersecurity experts to provide monitoring, detection, and timely crisis support to secure businesses’ operating environment 24/7 and ensure operational continuity.
PNB’S UNIT DISPOSES LAND TO LAGENDA PROPERTIES FOR RM398 MILLION
The Edge Market, 13/02/2023; The Star, 14/02/2023 & The Sun, 16/02/2023
Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB)’s unit, Seriemas Development Sdn Bhd is disposing of two parcels of freehold lands in Kulai, Johor, spanning 1,075 acres, to Lagenda Properties Bhd’s 70%-owned subsidiary, Lagenda Mersing Sdn Bhd, for RM398.21 million. Lagenda Mersing Sdn Bhd intends to use the newly acquired asset to develop a large-scale affordable township that encompasses 12,000 residential units and a mix of commercial development.
AME ELITE TO BUILD BUCHER EMHART GLASS’S MANUFACTURING FACILITY IN JOHOR
The Edge Markets, 16/02/2023; The Star, NST & The Sun, 17/02/2023
AME Elite Consortium Bhd will be building a new manufacturing facility in i-Park@Senai Airport City, Johor for Emhart Glass Sdn Bhd (Bucher Emhart Glass), worth RM108 million. The new building facility will have a built-up area of approximately 300,000 sq. ft., which will replace the existing factory at another site in Johor Bahru to increase production capacity. The construction of the project will commence in 2Q23 and is scheduled to be completed in 2024.
4,000 AFFORDABLE HOMES COMING UP
The Star, 17/02/2023
Perbadanan PR1MA Malaysia (PR1MA) under the Ministry of Local Government Development Malaysia will be building approximately 4,000 high rise homes in Penang over the next five years. The agency will carry out residential and mixed-use development projects on its two plots of land measuring 300 acres in the State. There are currently three PR1MA projects in Penang comprising 3,867 units. The Residensi Pauh Permai project in Permatang Pauh, which has 1,017 units, was completed in September 2021. Residensi Bukit Gelugor Phase 1 is slated for completion in 3Q25 and Phase 2 in 3Q26.
MUHIBBAH SECURES CONSTRUCTION AWARD FROM PENANG DEVELOPMENT CORP
The Edge Markets, 13/02/2023 & The Star, 14/02/2023
Muhibbah Engineering (M) Bhd has secured a RM172.6 million construction contract from Penang Development Corp for a proposed development involving a nine-storey office building and factory, a six-storey parking building with a TNB sub-station and mechanical requirements, and one unit of the normal waste depot, office waste depot and recycling room in the Technoplex industrial area located in Bayan Lepas, Penang. The contract is scheduled to commence on 13th February 2023 and is expected to be completed within 14 months from the commencement date.
PENANG ANTICIPATING MEDICAL TOURISM BOOST
The Sun 17/02/2023
Penang is anticipating a boost in the medical tourism sector through a strategic collaboration between the Penang Adventist Hospital and Firefly Airlines. The collaboration between the hospital and the airline aims to fly in medical tourists from abroad to receive treatment in the State. As part of this collaboration, Firefly will be launching direct flights from Penang to Medan in Indonesia and vice-versa from 16th February 2023.
PHASE ONE OF GURNEY WHARF PROJECT READY IN MAY 2023
The Star, 14/02/2023
Works on Priority One (Phase One) of the Gurney Wharf project are scheduled for completion in May 2023, the project’s construction had reached the 50% mark. Once it is ready, Priority One will have facilities including a children’s playground, skate park, viewing deck (south vantage point), public toilets, pedestrian promenade, traders’ kiosks, recreational park, landscaped areas and open carpark. Scheduled to complete in 2025, the whole project has two phases namely Priority One and Priority Two are going on at the same time. The laying of topsoil is almost done in some areas in Priority One. Under Priority Two, the features include additional landscaped areas, recreational parks, kiosks, a hawker centre, a viewing deck (north vantage point), public toilets, multi-storey carparks, open parking lots, a beach area and a boardwalk plus a water garden.