Malaysia

Change is in the air for Malaysia’s power sector, with recent developments including bids on new facilities and change of ownership for old ones. Government oversight has also been evolving, throwing up questions about what the sector’s make up will be in the near term.

The Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the country’s central bank, has put in place a series of new measures aimed at boosting the competitiveness of the national economy and in particular its financial sector. It is hoped this set of reforms will help ease the impact of the European debt crisis and the threat of a further bout of uncertainty in global markets.

The recent strengthening of bilateral ties between Malaysia and Singapore bodes well for their construction sectors, as several planned projects between the two countries should bring lucrative business opportunities to both. A foreseen labour shortage in Malaysia, however, could stymie some projects’ development.

Malaysia has launched a major overhaul of its vocational training programmes, aiming to both reform the educational system to ensure graduates are better equipped for employment in the country’s changing economy and to improve the appeal of trades as a profession for young Malaysians.

With many sectors of the economy having performed solidly over the past 12 months, Malaysia is hoping for more of the same in 2012. Indeed, foreign direct investment (FDI) is up, inflation well contained, and the financial sector steady. However, at least some impact from the European debt crisis is expected, with demand for exports widely predicted to ease in 2012.

As hypermarkets change Malaysia’s shopping landscape and economic pressures squeeze profits, the country’s retail sector should continue to maintain a healthy growth rate and become increasingly competitive.