Media Centre

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia remains a preferred location for business operations, especially in the petrochemical and oil & gas (O&G) related industries.

Maintain “buy” with an unchanged target price (TP) of RM2.95: Muhibbah Engineering (M) Bhd’s core net earnings of RM163 million (up 75% year-on-year) for financial year 2015 came in above our and consensus expectations, accounting for 158% and 164% of full-year estimates respectively. The construction segment, especially in the engineering, procurement construction and commissioning (EPCC) segment for downstream oil and gas infrastructure, contributed to the surge in earnings.

Maintain neutral: Petroliam Nasional Bhd’s (Petronas) fourth quarter of financial year 2015 (4QFY15) profit after tax excluding identified items came in at RM9.9 million, down 21% year-on-year (y-o-y) due to lower upstream earnings in conjunction with a crude oil price plunge. Crude oil, condensate and natural gas production volumes dropped 1.4% y-o-y to 2.326 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day from 2.359 million boe per day due to lower production entitlement from Iraq and natural declines.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia kekal sebagai lokasi pilihan bagi operasi perniagaan, terutama industri berkaitan petrokimia, minyak dan gas, meskipun berhadapan cabaran global.