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| THE
PANELISTS |
Malaysia:
Back on the Radar Screen
May 23, 2000
After more than 18 months of
effective pariah standing in the eyes of the global investment
community, Malaysia once again regains pedigree status. |
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Ahmad Rejal Arbee
[RA], (Berita Harian Sdn Bhd)
An alumnus of the Malay College Kuala Kangsar, Berita Harian's Group Editor Rejal Arbee is a seasoned and decorated newsman. The former Editor-in-Chief of Bernama has also served in many capacities in an illustrious career that spans almost four decades. Among them: Editor of
Business Times, Group Editor of Berita Publishing, the publication arm of the New Straits Times Group and the Editor-in-Chief of the Sun Media Group. He has also served as chairman of the Malaysian Press Institute, secretary-general of the Organization of Asia Pacific News Agency and board member of the Manila-based Press Foundation of Asia. For his outstanding services in journalism, Rejal was awarded the South Korean press Koh Jai Wok Memorial Award. He is also the recipient of
the Johan Setia Mahkota, SSA (Selangor) and AMK (Kedah) awards.
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Melvyn Boey
[MB], (Pesaka Jardine Fleming Sdn Bhd)
Trained in the London School of Economics, Melvyn Boey joined Pesaka Jardine Fleming in May 1999 and covers the motor and gaming sectors. Prior to Jardine Fleming, Melvyn, a chartered financial analyst (CFA) worked with Schroders Investment Management. In his personal capacity Melvyn is a conservative investor and only puts money in stocks that have strong balance sheets. |
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Scott Lim
[SL], (CMS-Dresdner Asset Management Sdn Bhd)
U.S.-trained Scott Lim joined CMS Dresdner Asset Management Sdn Bhd in June 1998 as a fund manager. He has six years experience in managing Malaysian and regional equity portfolios, working previously for Dr Tan Chong Koay's boutique fund management firm Pheim Asset Management and Premier Capital Management. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, with distinction in Finance. |
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Tan Teng
Boo [TTB], (Capital Dynamics Sdn Bhd)
Tan Teng Boo, the founder and Managing Director of Malaysia's
first independent investment advisory firm Capital Dynamics calls
himself "the perpetual student of the stock market". The
reason: no matter how well one might think he has mastered the
market, there are always surprises. That may be true, but Tan who
has been involved with the market for the past 28 years has, over
the years, created a reputation for himself as being prudent, yet
ironically often able to outperform the Malaysian equity benchmark
of the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI). His weekly stock market
report - i-Capital - has been in circulation since 1989. Tan is also
founder and MD of Capital Dynamics Asset Management, a licensed fund
manager. He is an economics graduate from the University of Sussex. |
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| THE
MODERATORS |
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Rajen Devadason
[RD], (RD Book Projects)
Rajen Devadason is an award-winning journalist. As staff writer, of Malaysian Business magazine, he won the Malaysian Press Institute's award for best economic journalism in 1992 and the Citibank Pan-Asia business journalism award, which included a stint at New York's Columbia University and visits to the White House, World Bank and the US Federal Reserve. His first book
Your A-Z Guide to the Stock Market was published in 1997 and since then he has seen a new book out each year. Rajen holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) degree in Physics and Computing from King's College, University of London, and is a member of MENSA UK. He currently writes two distinct financial planning columns - a print column for
Malaysian Business magazine and an online one for zoomFinance - and is overworked as a financial planning trainer-cum-consultant. |
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Steven
K C Poh [SP], (I-2Media Sdn Bhd)
Ex-journalist Steven Poh is the Chief Executive of I-2Media Sdn Bhd,
an online content and electronic community developer. He was formerly
business correspondent for Asiaweek magazine and General
Manager/Senior Consultant (Virtual Communities) of a KLSE-listed
software development house. He won the 1992 Malaysian Press
Institute prize for best magazine writing while still at Malaysian
Business (where he started his journalism career). Also a former
Press Fellow of Wolfson College at the University of Cambridge,
Steven graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications (Journalism) from
Southeast Missouri State University. He completed his Master of
Science degree in Speech Communication from Southern Illinois
University at Carbondale.
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On May 23,
2000, approximately a week before Malaysia was
reinstated into the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Indices,
zoomFinance brought together a distinguished panel of industry experts to its head office in Kuala Lumpur's Golden Triangle to discuss the impact of the
reinclusion to the local capital market.
Malaysia is said to be currently in an "over sold" position and technically the market should rebound. Within the week, punters are hoping for a trend northward. Also, interest rates remain low, creating an environment favourable for investment in equities. The country's
economy, as measured by its gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate
is also expected to exceed the official forecast of 5.8 per cent. And analysts expect the large liquidity build-up and strong earnings momentum to support the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) as it
hopefully tests new highs.
Even so, foreign funds are unlikely to hop on the bandwagon immediately after the MSCI move. Among other things, Malaysia is said to be expensive relative to the rest of the region. Still,
many fund managers would need to take a position on the KLSE due to the weightage given to it with the
reinstatement. Just how the reinstatement will affect the local bourse remains to be seen.
Click here for the full transcript.
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