Outcome reflects growing political maturity: Aberdeen

KUALA LUMPUR: The outcome of Malaysia’s 14th general election reflects a growing level of political maturity and respect for democracy that would be beneficial for the country’s appeal to foreign investors and economic prospects over the medium to longer term.

In a statement issued yesterday, Aberdeen Standard Investments Malaysia CEO Gerald Ambrose said this is a new political dawn for Malaysia, which sees the first ever change of government since the country gained independence from the British in 1957.

“This was a stunning election outcome that few would have predicted. We would expect some market volatility from the election result and possibly some spillover impact on investments,” he said.

Ambrose said it is likely that the larger companies, many of which are government linked, will bear the brunt of any index-linked selling which may take place in the near term.

“More broadly, some of Pakatan Harapan’s election pledges may have diverging impacts on the share prices of specific sectors over the short term,” he said.

Pakatan Harapan’s intention to review all mega infrastructure projects may lead to some initial selling in the construction and cement sectors, while its agenda to mitigate high living costs may enhance consumer sector stocks, such as food manufacturers, consumer staples and retail plays,” Ambrose added. – Bernama