Manulife Investment Management (M) Bhd had one of its best years at the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023. The firm clinched three group awards — Best Equity Group (Malaysia), Best Mixed Assets Group (Islamic) and Best Bond Group (Provident) — and bagged five fund awards.

Manulife wins the most group awards

The last couple of years have been a roller-coaster ride for most fund managers because of global uncertainties. According to Xav Feng, director of Lipper Asia Pacific Research, most funds of various asset classes experienced outflows in 2022, compared with conservative net inflows in 2021.

Money market funds suffered highest outflows in 2022

Under the leadership of its founder and chief strategist Dr Tan Chong Koay, Pheim Asset Management Sdn Bhd took home four awards at the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023.

Pheim wins Mixed Asset awards for eighth year in a row

RHB Asset Management Sdn Bhd (RHBAM) swept the awards for Best Bond MYR in the three-, five- and 10-year categories in the Provident universe. Chief investment officer Michael Chang attributes its success to the firm’s structured investment management process.

RHB Asset Management dominates Bond MYR (Provident) space

Maybank Asset Management Sdn Bhd bagged a trophy at the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023 through its Maybank Malaysia Income (MMI) fund, which clinched the Best Bond MYR — Malaysia award in the 10-year category.

Maybank bags Bond Fund award

Inter-Pacific Asset Management (IPAM) continues its winning streak. For the second year in a row, the InterPac Dana Safi won the Best Mixed Asset MYR Flexible (Islamic) Fund award for the three-year category.

Inter-Pacific Asset Management wins Best Mixed Asset awards again

Eastspring Investments (EI) Bhd bagged four Refinifiv Lipper Fund 2023 awards for their equity and fixed income funds.The Eastspring Investments Asia Select Income Fund won Best Mixed Asset MYR Balanced - Global (Malaysia) in the 10-year category; the Eastspring Investments Balanced Fund won Best Mixed Asset MYR Balanced - Malaysia (Malaysia) in the three- and 10-year categories; and the Eastspring Investments Islamic Equity Income Fund won Best Equity Malaysia Income (Islamic) in the three-year category.

Eastspring Investments takes home four awards 

Areca Capital Sdn Bhd bagged four awards at the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023. This is the sixth year in a row that the fund house has walked away with the Best Equity Malaysia awards in the five- and 10-year categories. It also won the Best Equity Malaysia Income awards in the three- and five-year categories.

Areca Capital on six-year winning streak

Principal Asset Management Bhd clinched five awards in the Asia Pacific ex-Japan space and another award in the Equity Global category at the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023.

Principal Asset Management leads in Asia Pacific ex-Japan space

KAF Investment Funds Bhd won five fund awards at the Refinitiv Lipper Funds Awards 2023. It won the Best Equity Malaysia Small & Mid Cap (Provident) and Best Equity Asia Pacific (Malaysia) awards.

KAF Investment Funds shines with five awards

Hong Leong Asset Management Bhd (HLAM) maintained last year’s record, winning 15 fund awards at the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023.

HLAM continues winning streak with 15 fund awards

Despite the challenging and volatile market conditions in 2022, Public Mutual Bhd bagged 19 fund awards at the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023.

Public Mutual biggest winner with 19 awards

Last year was challenging for most asset classes. For the most part, the key challenge was to keep the investment portfolios defensive while seeking to deliver income targets. The high inflationary pressure and corresponding interest rate hikes scenario were a bad recipe for bonds.

AmInvest takes home Best Bond Group (Malaysia) award

For the second year running, AHAM Asset Management Bhd (previously known as Affin Hwang Asset Management Bhd) has clinched the Best Equity Group (Islamic) award in the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023.

AHAM Asset Management retains Islamic group award

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is confident that Parliament will approve the public service salary hike of more than 13% when it is tabled in Budget 2025 this October.

PM confident Parliament will approve wage hike for public servants

Protasco Bhd, which has businesses ranging from hotel to engineering, said on Thursday it has received an offer to buy its unit Ikram Education Sdn Bhd which owns the Infrastructure University Kuala Lumpur (IUKL).

Protasco gets offer from HK firm to buy its university unit

Smart Asia Chemical Bhd, en route to Bursa Malaysia’s ACE Market, expects its new plant in Perak to triple its production capacity while allowing the paint and coating manufacturer to be closer to its clients.

Smart Asia Chemical to triple capacity with new plant from IPO proceeds

PARIS (May 2): The global economy is growing faster than expected only a few months ago thanks to resilient US activity while inflation is converging more quickly than expected with central banks' targets, the OECD said on Thursday, upgrading its outlook.

The global economy would mainta...

OECD upgrades global growth outlook as US outperforms

India's food safety regulator said on Thursday it had ordered nationwide testing and inspections at all companies making spice mixes, widening a crackdown on the sector as global regulators investigate contamination issues with two popular local brands.

India widens spices crackdown with nationwide checks on all manufacturers

IT will be a busy year for the energy sector. Over the past month, there has been a slew of announcements, with the latest being the establishment of the Energy Exchange Malaysia (Enegem).

The Enegem programme will start with a project with a pilot auction of 100mw of renewable energy (...

Cover Story: A busy year for RE players

Standard Chartered beat forecasts on Thursday with a 5.5% rise in its first-quarter pretax profit, as the income boost from higher interest rates and a robust performance from its markets trading business offset a surge in credit losses.

StanChart profit beats forecasts as income boost outweighs credit losses

The additional investment by Microsoft amounting to US$2.2 billion or RM10.5 billion in the country over the next four years is the largest single investment by the company in its 32 years in Malaysia.

Microsoft’s new US$2.2b outlay is company’s largest single investment in Malaysia, says Anwar

Shares of Ge-Shen Corp Bhd rose as much as 14.91% to a new record high of RM4.47 on Thursday, following the emergence of Chin Hin Group’s Chiau family as its second largest shareholder.

Ge-Shen shares hit new high on emergence of new substantial shareholder

Malaysia’s biggest port operator Westports Holdings Bhd said on Thursday its net profit rose 11.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the first quarter, thanks to higher container revenue, coupled with higher finance income and share of results of a joint venture (JV).

Westports' 1Q net profit up 11% on higher container revenue, finance income and share of results of JV

US software giant Microsoft Corp said on Thursday it would invest US$2.2 billion (RM10.5 billion) over the next four years in cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure in Malaysia.

Microsoft to invest US$2.2 bil in Malaysia over next four years on cloud, AI

Shares of Bursa Malaysia Bhd climbed to its highest in more than three years after the stock exchange operator reported better-than-expected results that prompted at least two analyst upgrades.

Bursa Malaysia climbs to over three-year high after above-view 1Q

Apex Securities Bhd has recommended investors to “subscribe” to ACE Market-bound Farm Price Holdings Bhd at an initial public offering (IPO) price of 24 sen and a fair value of 42 sen by pegging financial year 2025 (FY2025) forecast core earnings per share of 3.2 sen to price-earnings (PE) of 13 times (75% potential upside from IPO price).

Apex Securities advises investors to subscribe to ACE Market-bound Farm Price with fair value of 42 sen

Luno, a digital asset exchange (DAX) licensed by the Securities Commission Malaysia, expands its coin offerings with the launch of Cosmos (ATOM) and Polkadot (DOT).

Luno launches two new digital assets

Feytech Holdings Bhd's initial public offer (IPO) on Main Market of Bursa Malaysia is offering&nbsp;252.94 million shares at 80 sen apiece.&nbsp;

Feytech's Main Market IPO to raise over RM201m

Elon Musk’s latest cost-cutting victims: Summer interns.

Tesla Inc is rescinding offers just weeks before internships were set to start, prompting aspiring employees to take to LinkedIn to appeal to other employers to take them in.

Tesla interns say offers are getting revoked weeks before their start date

Shares of Duopharma Biotech Bhd surged more than 9% during early trade on Thursday following news of the pharmaceutical company securing supply contracts worth RM578.09 million in total.

Duopharma Biotech surges over 9% after RM578m contract news

US stocks closed mixed on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve (Fed) left its key interest rate unchanged, as expected, and indicated that while its next move will likely be a rate cut, continued progress on inflation is not assured.

S&P 500, Nasdaq end lower after Fed rate decision, Powell press conference

Protasco Bhd, which has businesses ranging from hotel to engineering, said on Thursday it has received an offer to buy its unit Ikram Education Sdn Bhd which owns the Infrastructure University Kuala Lumpur (IUKL).

Smart Asia Chemical Bhd, an industrial paint and coating manufacturer, on Thursday has begun taking orders from investors for its ACE Market initial public offering (IPO) that would raise up to RM37.4 million.&nbsp;

Smart Asia Chemical starts taking orders for ACE Market IPO to raise RM37.4 mil

Latest data signalled further downbeat trends across the Malaysian manufacturing sector at the start of the second quarter of 2024.

In a statement on Thursday, S&amp;P Global Market Intelligence said that while demand remained generally subdued, there were slight indications that firms were on an upward trajectory, as firms scaled back production at a softer rate amid a slower reduction in new order inflows.

Overall manufacturing conditions in Malaysia ease to lesser extent, says S&P Global

Asian stocks and US futures rose on Thursday after the Federal Reserve downplayed risks of an interest rate hike, while the yen was bumpy after another burst of suspected intervention from Japan.

Asian stocks rise as Fed tamps down hike fears; yen leaps

Malaysia’s biggest port operator Westports Holdings Bhd said on Thursday its net profit rose 11.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the first quarter, thanks to higher container revenue, coupled with higher finance income and share of results of a joint venture (JV).

The additional investment by Microsoft amounting to US$2.2 billion or RM10.5 billion in the country over the next four years is the largest single investment by the company in its 32 years in Malaysia.

Subang Airport, officially known as Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, will likely be able to handle jet aircraft by the third quarter this year, according to Transport Minister Anthony Loke.

Subang Airport’s jet ops likely to start in 3Q, also eyes business jets — Loke

DBS Group Holdings Ltd’s chief executive officer Piyush Gupta expects another year of record profit after Singapore’s biggest lender delivered better-than-expected results thanks to strong lending and wealth fees.

DBS CEO Gupta sees another record year after posting better than expected 1Q earnings 

Yinson Production, the offshore production business unit of Yinson Holdings Bhd, has closed the limited recourse term loan facility of up to US$1.3 billion (RM6.2 billion) for the pre- and post-delivery financing of the Agogo floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which will be deployed in Angola.

Yinson unit secures single largest term loan of US$1.3b to finance Agogo FPSO delivery

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is moving to prevent Huawei, ZTE and other foreign companies deemed to pose US national security concerns from certifying wireless equipment, officials told Reuters on Wednesday.

US moves to bar Huawei, other Chinese telecoms from certifying wireless equipment

Governments rarely correct deteriorating public finances until they meet some form of debt market disturbance, but the retreat of central banks from sovereign bond markets may eventually set the scene for a showdown.

Bond markets face struggle to surf 'Treasury tsunami'

Former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng’s undersea tunnel graft trial on Thursday did not proceed as scheduled because star witness Datuk Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli is down with vertigo.

Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards 2023

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