Bursa keeps 60 IPOs as goal despite uncertainty

KUALA LUMPUR: Amid global uncertainty, Bursa Malaysia Bhd is confident in achieving its target of 60 initial public offerings (IPOs) this year, with a combined market capitalisation of RM40.2bil. Chairman Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar said the local stock exchange witnessed the listing of 55 companies last year and is hopeful for the positive continuation of this momentum.

Last year’s total company listings marked a 72% increase from the previous year, the highest in the last 19 years. “So far, 15 companies have listed this year – two on the Main Market and 13 on the ACE Market. “There will be one more tomorrow, which will bring the total number to 16,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Bursa Malaysia-ECKL-CIMB Roundtable here yesterday.



Abdul Wahid said that while some companies have decided to hold off their listings due to market uncertainties, he does not consider this as a long-term issue. In this regard, Cuckoo International (M) Bhd had decided to postpone its listing for two months, which was originally scheduled for April 30, 2025. “Once the market stabilises and there is further clarity on global economic conditions, more companies will proceed with their IPO plans, I am sure,” he noted.

Alluding to Malaysia’s continued strengths, Abdul Wahid emphasised the importance of preserving economic integrity and resilience. “We must maintain a sound financial position by not over borrowing to ensure continual trade surplus, and when we do, it is best not to borrow from only one source. “Another factor is having a diversification policy within the structure of the economy, so we are not overly dependent on any particular stock market,” he said, adding that this will help prevent negative impacts on the local market in the event of prolonged international disputes.

On Malaysia’s current situation, Moody’s Analytics economic research director Katrina Ell said the agency initially projected the country’s gross domestic product growth at 4.8%. “This was estimated back in November last year.

Right now, we have lowered it slightly to 4.4% and this figure is predicated on the assumption that reciprocal tariff rates don’t come into status quo for a long time, or it would be even lower,” she told StarBiz. According to Ell, initial inflation expectations were around 2%, but these have since been revised down to 1.

6%. “There are two main drivers of monetary policy – what is happening with the economy and the ringgit. “So far, there has been a positive development on the ringgit, so there remains flexibility to shore up domestic demand,” she added.

Ell noted that with inflation remaining subdued, Bank Negara has room to ease interest rates if necessary. Meanwhile, American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) chief executive officer Datuk Siobhan Das said more work is needed to promote the narrative that Malaysia is indeed a strong nation with an equally robust ecosystem. AmCham represents about 300 American companies in the country, about half of all US companies based in Malaysia.

Siobhan pointed out that Malaysia is in a good place and there is a strong rationale for multinational companies to be here. “With the big companies come the buildup of small and medium enterprises. They’re not separate from each other.

“We need to understand locally what we are capable of here, only then can we bring this narrative overseas. “How do we make it easier and more competitive to be located in Malaysia, (that) is what we should be asking.” According to Siobhan, AmCham is currently in discussions with relevant government agencies on how to navigate the current situation, but she acknowledged that further action could be taken.

“We should be doing more, but we do have a very limited bandwidth here, especially with Malaysia taking the chairmanship of Asean,” she noted. As for the potential relocation of these US companies back to the United States, Siobhan said she has not heard of any company making that decision. “Supply chains have been moving anyway, so we will see how things develop.

“But we have not seen companies picking up and moving back to the United States.”.