Public finances may be boosted by authorities stepping up efforts to recoup billions from the 1MDB scandal.
Political risks and a weak earnings outlook have undercut appetite for local shares, which are heading toward a second year of losses, extending 2018’s worst showing since the global financial crisis. Global funds have yanked more than US$2 billion from Malaysian stocks in 2019, the biggest outflow among emerging Asian equity markets.
The share index’s price-to-book valuation of 1.5 times is near the lowest since 2009 and at a discount to the 10-year average. The market is 4% away from bear market levels. Speculation about Mahathir’s intention to honour a pledge to hand over to Anwar Ibrahim has dogged markets, with Minister of Economic Affairs Azmin Ali and Mukhriz Mahathir, the prime minister’s son, said to be in the running for the role as well.