Latest news with #AnisahShukry
Vancouver Sun
11 hours ago
- Business
- Vancouver Sun
Petronas is said to explore sale of $7 billion Canadian business
Petroliam Nasional Bhd. is considering options for its Canadian company formerly known as Progress Energy Resources Corp., including a sale, according to people familiar with the matter. Petronas, as the Malaysian state energy firm is known, is working with a financial adviser on a potential disposal, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deliberations are private. A transaction could value the Canadian business at $6 billion to $7 billion, they said. Petronas may also consider selling a minority stake in the business, depending on valuation, the people said. The company has started sounding out preliminary interest from prospective buyers, they said. Stay on top of the latest real estate news and home design trends. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Westcoast Homes will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Considerations are continuing and no final decisions have been made, they added. A representative for Petronas couldn't immediately respond to a request seeking comment. Petronas Canada operates in the North Montney basin in northeast B.C. and, together with joint venture partners, owns more than 3,200 square kilometres of mineral rights with 53 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves, its website shows. Petronas bought Progress Energy for about $5.3 billion in 2012, boosting the Kuala Lumpur-based firm's shale-gas assets and gas supplies. Petronas also holds a 25 per cent stake in the LNG Canada project in Kitimat, a joint venture for liquefied natural gas in which Shell Plc, PetroChina Co. Ltd., Mitsubishi Corp., and Korea Gas Corp. also participate. Lower oil prices have hit Petronas, which reported a slide of more than 30 per cent in net income in 2024 and announced job cuts that will start taking place this year. With files from Vinicy Chan and Anisah Shukry
Mint
3 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Petronas Is Said to Explore Sale of $7 Billion Canadian Business
(Bloomberg) -- Petroliam Nasional Bhd. is considering options for its Canadian company formerly known as Progress Energy Resources Corp., including a sale, according to people familiar with the matter. Petronas, as the Malaysian state energy firm is known, is working with a financial adviser on a potential disposal, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deliberations are private. A transaction could value the Canadian business at $6 billion to $7 billion, they said. Petronas may also consider selling a minority stake in the business, depending on valuation, the people said. The company has started sounding out preliminary interest from prospective buyers, they said. Considerations are ongoing and no final decisions have been made, they added. A representative for Petronas couldn't immediately respond to a request seeking comment. Petronas bought Progress Energy for about $5.3 billion in 2012, boosting the Kuala Lumpur-based firm's shale-gas assets and gas supplies. Petronas also holds a 25% stake in the LNG Canada project, a joint venture for liquefied natural gas in which Shell Plc, PetroChina Co. Ltd., Mitsubishi Corp. and Korea Gas Corp. also participate. Lower oil prices have hit Petronas, which reported a slide of more than 30% in net income in 2024 and announced job cuts that will start taking place this year. Petronas Canada operates in the North Montney basin in northeast British Columbia and, together with joint venture partners, owns more than 800,000 gross acres of mineral rights with 53 trillion cubic feet of reserves and contingent resources, its website shows. --With assistance from Vinicy Chan and Anisah Shukry. More stories like this are available on
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Maybank facilitates US$545M investments into Economic Zone
By Anisah Shukry (Bloomberg) – Malaysia's largest lender Malayan Banking facilitated as much as 2.35 billion ringgit (US$545 million) in client investments into the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone as part of efforts to promote the region. Maybank facilitated the submission of Letter of Intents by Singapore-headquartered clients Alpine Renewables and Edible Oils, Centurion and Thomson Medical Group into the SEZ, according to a statement Monday. Leaders of Singapore and Malaysia in January launched the zone that links the border region of both countries. The SEZ is nearly twice the size of China's Shenzhen – the city bordering Hong Kong whose success Malaysia is hoping to emulate with the SEZ. Maybank also said it signed a Letter of Intent with the Economy Ministry that outlines interests in joint efforts to promote the SEZ. The bank would facilitate financing for critical new technologies and infrastructure development, and provide trade finance solutions, investment guarantees and credit facilities to attract foreign direct investments. More stories like this are available on ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Malaysia central bank sees significant growth hurdles ahead
By Anisah Shukry (Bloomberg) – Malaysia's central bank said growth risks loom large in its monetary policy considerations, as brewing global trade disputes and geopolitical tensions threaten exports. Bank Negara Malaysia Governor Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said he expects an increasingly challenging external environment in 2025, even as he reaffirmed the government's annual growth forecast of 4.5% to 5.5%. He's counting on domestic sources of growth and a diversified export structure to help the economy withstand the challenges, after a 5.1% expansion last year. 'Whilst we benefit from the positive momentum of 2024, it is clear there are significant hurdles ahead,' he said in a foreword of the bank's annual economic and monetary review released Monday. 'The external environment is highly fluid and unpredictable, and we cannot rest on our laurels.' Malaysia, a major technology and commodity exporter, is seeking to avoid either being caught in the cross-hairs of the global trade war or suffering indirect effects from higher US tariffs on China, its biggest trade partner. Exports to China declined 8.1% from a year ago in February. 'The statement is an acknowledgement of global uncertainties and downside risks to growth,' said Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp economist Lavanya Venkateswaran. 'It seems that BNM is prioritising growth risks over inflation risks.' Many in Malaysia are concerned the economy would be directly affected if US President Donald Trump follows through with a plan to impose tariffs on semiconductors. The Southeast Asian nation is the sixth-largest exporter of semiconductors globally, with the US being its third-biggest market for chip shipments. That may hamper Malaysia's plans to expand into more valuable semiconductor production. 'Heightened uncertainties surrounding the resurgence of protectionist actions, alongside continuing geopolitical conflicts, pose headwinds to Malaysia as a small and open economy,' Abdul Rasheed added. Narrowing interest rate differentials between the US and other economies will lend support to the ringgit, said Abdul Rasheed. In the longer term, Malaysia's solid economic prospects and ongoing reforms will provide more enduring support to the currency, he added. The ringgit was 0.3% lower at 4.4350 against the dollar, seeing little reaction to the report. There are 'mounting risks' in the second half of 2025 as 'supply chain realignments, rising input costs, and weaker external demand could further strain Malaysia's export outlook,' Sabrina Edora, an analyst at Public Investment Bank, wrote in a note published Friday. The government has been tempering expectations for trade growth, and BNM on Monday forecast Malaysia's gross exports to grow by 5.2% in 2025, from 5.7% the previous year. Abdul Rasheed said BNM will continue to stand firm on its mandate of maintaining price stability conducive to sustainable growth when deciding on policy. The central bank last adjusted its overnight policy rate in May 2023, with a 25-basis-point hike. 'Towards this end, we will keep a close watch on global developments and potential spillovers of ongoing domestic policy reforms,' he said. 'This entails continuous assessments on the persistence and pervasiveness of inflation, while considering external shocks and the overall trajectory of the Malaysian economy.' Malaysia plans to reduce subsidies on its most popular gasoline RON95 by the middle of the year to reduce spending and improve fiscal health, though authorities have acknowledged that the move could stoke price pressures. The effects of subsidy rationalisations, as well as the expansion of a sales and services tax, are anticipated to result in some short-term price increases, said Abdul Rasheed. 'Ultimately, if inflation is well contained even after RON95 rationalisation, BNM will likely have some room to manoeuvre in supporting growth in late 2H25 or early 2026,' OCBC's Venkateswaran said. These effects on underlying inflation will be 'limited and temporary,' Abdul Rasheed said. The central bank expects annual inflation to stay between 2% to 3.5%, affirming the government's forecast, before later reverting lower as policy effects fade. Monetary policy will be guided 'by the evolving balance of risks surrounding the outlook on Malaysia's inflation and growth,' the economic review stated. Abdul Rasheed said the ringgit, which was Asia's top performing currency last year, would continue to be influenced by external developments, particularly from potential policy shifts in major economies. (Adds analyst comments from fifth paragraph, currency in ninth, export projections in 11th.) More stories like this are available on ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Anwar denies Malaysia bailing out Sapura Energy with investment
By Anisah Shukry (Bloomberg) – Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said he had ordered an audit of Sapura Energy and a change of management before approving a controversial 1.1 billion ringgit ($248.2 million) injection into the cash-strapped oil and gas firm. Anwar acknowledged that the investment had become a politically sensitive issue and denied it was a bailout. He said the funds would be used solely to repay vendors of the company. 'This is not a bailout like the ones in the past,' Anwar said at the Finance Ministry's monthly assembly in Putrajaya on Thursday. 'We began with a forensic audit to identify the problem.' Sapura Energy, a financially distressed firm with a Practice Note 17 status, announced late Tuesday that it secured up to 1.1 billion ringgit in investment from the Finance Ministry. Its shares jumped as much as 28.6% on Wednesday on the news before paring back gains. It was trading 12.5% higher on Thursday morning. The investment drew criticism from the opposition, who noted that Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli had in 2022 shut down a suggestion from former Prime Minister Najib Razak to bail out Sapura Energy. Anwar said it was a difficult choice for him to make given his long opposition toward government bailouts of private firms. However, he said the situation was different and that he expected Sapura Energy's new management to eventually repay the government in full. 'This is not a bailout where we save a big company and its management. The chairman, the senior management must all leave, that's our condition. They must be replaced by new management, and if there are any problems that require investigation, that will go on,' said Anwar. State-owned investment management firm Permodalan Nasional Berhad had similarly denied the funds were a form of bailout in a statement late Wednesday. Permodalan Nasional Berhad is a significant shareholder of Sapura Energy. It said the funding was crucial for the financial survival of Malaysian service providers within the oil and gas ecosystem, noting that Sapura Energy has more than 2,000 vendors. The firm is also a critical service provider for the Malaysian oil and gas industry, it added. More stories like this are available on ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
