31.12.2021

We would like to wish our readers a Happy New Year. May 2022 bless us with good health, joy and happiness.

A dozen risks and opportunities await minority shareholders in 2022

In a nutshell, 2022 will mark the third successive year the world grapples with unsettled COVID-19 complications which first reared its ugly head at the outset of 2020.

Domestically, 2021 has continued to witness a large degree of socio-economic devastation from loss of livelihoods and business shutdowns due to the imposition of total lockdowns. This was done to contain a spike in COVID-19 infection with the national healthcare system occasionally being stretched to its limit amid high fatality rates.

As the world is anticipated to remain mired in uncertainties for a third year running, below are some scenarios of what Malaysians can expect in the year ahead:

ESG gains momentum as institutional investors look beyond profitability

Undoubtedly, the electronics manufacturing service (EMS) industry has become the latest testbed – after the glove and plantation sectors – for institutional investors in Malaysia to flex their muscles or to assert their rising concerns on ESG (environmental, social and governance)-related matters.

This ideally set the tone for 2022 on how, in a major way, fund managers will move forward. Fund managers will prioritise “in a bigger way” ESG considerations in their investment decisions – something which could ultimately outweigh their financial interest.