14 theSun | WEDNESDAY JUNE 17 2009

business

Malaysia set to register Westports sets

positive growth in Q4
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia
is expected to register positive
growth in the fourth quarter of
this year and next year on the
back of visible signs of recov-
ery globally, Second Finance
Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad
Husni Mohamad Hanadzlah
said yesterday.
“We will start to improve in
the third quarter and I believe
the fourth quarter will record
positive growth and so will
next year. We should register
positive growth,” he told re-
porters after officiating at the
Malaysian Tax Conference
2009 here yesterday.
Ahmad Husni said in the
US, the origin of all these crises,
has already showed some signs
of recovery as well as expecta-
tions from the European and
German central bank, which
were optimistic about recovery
next year.
“It means that if the global
economic situation were to
remain or improve a bit, that
means our -4% to -5% will be
achievable this year,” he said.
On budget deficit, Ahmad
Husni said the government
would undertake its best efforts
to reduce it next year.
“We will not be getting the
same amount from petroleum
and from corporate sectors so
the revenue for next year will
be much lower than this year’s.
That means we’ve to cut cost.
“We are looking at what the
operating cost is over expendi-
ture and what we must reduce.
But in terms of government
expenditure, we will maintain
that,” he said.
He said reducing budget
deficit would help improve the
country’s rating.
Recently, Fitch Ratings cut
Malaysia’s long-term local-
currency rating to ‘A’ from ‘A+’
on concerns over the growing
budget deficit.
Fitch changed its outlook for
the debt to stable from negative
and said it was worried about
both the deficit and revenue
collection. It said Malaysia’s
budget deficit would increase to
7.7% of gross domestic product
this year. – Bernama
new record in
container ship
handling
KUALA LUMPUR: The CMA CGM
Andromeda has set a new record for the
largest container ship to ever be handled
at Westports, one of the world’s most
productive ports, located in Port Klang.
CMA CGM is France’s largest and the
world’s third largest container shipping
group.
The 11,400 TEU (twenty-foot equiva-
lent units) container ship arrived last
Thursday as part of an inaugural de-
ployment in the French Asia Line (FAL)
Westbound service between Asia and
Europe, CMA CGM and Westports said
in a joint statement yesterday.
The CMA CGM Andromeda is 131,000
gross tonnes and 363m in length.
It is the world’s first container ship
to be equipped with the state-of-the-art

SC orders Bestino to
“Fast Oil Recovery System” designed to
prevent marine pollution.
Other innovations include a waste
compactor instead of an incinerator to
process shipboard waste, an electronic
engine and cold ironing connections that
should eliminate exhaust smoke while

stop issuing securities tied up at berth.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Securities
Commission Malaysia (SC) yesterday
ordered Bestino Group Bhd to stop
issuing preference shares or securities
of any kind to the public with immediate
effect.
Bestino Group had failed to seek the
SC’s approval for the offering of their
preference shares to the public and
to register a prospectus with the SC
as required under Section 232 of the
Capital Markets and Services Act 2007
(CMSA), SC said in a press release.
Through a scheme it marketed,
What Bestino Group claimed to be involved
in gold investments and the issuance of
a long, redeemable preference shares, promis-
strange ing monthly returns of 3% in dividend
trip it has payments.
Listed and unlisted public compa-
been for
Tiger
nies wishing to issue securities of any
kind to the public must comply with
pg 28 Section 232 of the CMSA, which makes
it mandatory to obtain the SC’s prior ap-
proval as well as register a prospectus
that complies with the CMSA and the
SC’s Prospectus Guidelines.
These requirements aim to ensure
that investors are provided with all the
relevant information on a company,
the investment scheme it offers, and
the risks involved in order for them
to make informed decisions on their
investments.
SC said these disclosures form part of
the protection required by law for inves-
tors and investors must always ensure
they have the benefit of this protection
by asking for a copy of the prospectus
if they have not been provided one by
the company.
It reminded investors to be wary of
investment schemes promising extraor-
dinarily high returns within a short
investment period.
Investors must always check to see if
the activity undertaken by the company
is legal, and where it requires regula-
tory approval for the activity, to ensure
that the company has the appropriate
approvals or licences, it said.
The public may refer to the list of
licensed institutions authorised to accept
deposits which is available on BNM’s
website (www.bnm.gov.my) and the list
of licensed intermediaries authorised
to conduct regulated activities which
is available on the SC’s website (www.
sc.com.my).
Members of the public with informa-
tion on illegal investments schemes or
suspected scams involving securities of
any kind are encouraged to contact the
SC via email address aduan@seccom.
com.my or via 03-6204 8999/8777.
Following complaints from the
public, the SC and BNM raided Bestino
Group and its related companies at
their premises in Ipoh and Petaling Jaya
yesterday.
The statement said CMA CGM has
made Westports its transshipment hub for
South East Asia, with throughput expected
to reach about 2.0 million TEUs this year.
“The arrival of the CMA CGM An-
dromeda is not only a commitment by
the French Liner to Westports, but also
an expression of confidence in the termi-
nal’s ability to perform on this mega size
vessel,” the companies said.
In November last year, the CMA CGM
Vela with a 11,000 TEU was the long-
est and biggest-ever vessel to call in at
Westports, it said.
“The vessel is 4m longer than the
CMA CGM Andromeda but has less car-
rying capacity,” it said.
CMA CGM Malaysia said the arrival
of the CMA CGM Andromeda showed the
group’s commitment to strengthening its
services and volume at Westports.
Currently, most of the large mainline
container ships at Westports stand in the
8,000 to 10,000 TEU range. – Bernama
‘Not possible
for TNB to cut
tariff further’
PORT DICKSON: It is not possible for
Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) to reduce
the electricity tariff further, said its
president/chief executive officer Datuk
Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh.
“I also need to stress that whatever
TNB collects today, almost 50% goes
to the independent power produc-
ers (IPPs). What is there to reduce
anymore? If you want us to reduce it,
I think you should also ask the IPPs to
do it,” he said.

‘No plans to implement GST’ He said this to reporters after the

KUALA LUMPUR: The govern-
ment has no plans to implement
the goods and services tax
(GST) system in the near future
although it is facing a reduction
in tax collection due to the global
economic crisis, said Second
Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad
Husni Mohamad Hanadzlah.
“We do not want to burden the
rakyat with any more payment
than necessary. So at this stage,
we are still studying and have no
plans to implement it as we are
not prepared,” he told reporters
after launching the Malaysian Tax
Conference 2009 yesterday.
He said the government has
yet to fix any deadline as suited
for the implementation of GST
having taken into consideration
the people’s interest.
The GST, which was originally
scheduled for implementation in
2007, is aimed at diversifying the
sources of revenue for the coun-
try. The country’s major revenue
now comes from the sales of
petroleum.
On the new economic model
for the country, Ahmad Husni said
the model will cover all sectors of
economy and at the same time
give special attention to develop-
ing the niche market for all the
sectors.
“We want to create a niche
market for our products.”
For example, in the services
sector, there needs to be an iden-
tification of the niche market for
the country’s products, he said.
“We need to know our niche
market ... and how many niche
markets?” he said.
In the manufacturing sector,
the government is looking into
several high quality investments
which are based on innovation,
creativity and value-added
economy, he said.
Asked on when the new eco-
nomic model will be ready, Ahmad
Husni said it would depend on the
economic specialists in the Na-
tional Economic Advisory Council
(MPEN) which has been given the
task to formulate the model.
“At this juncture, I do not know
about the timeline for that but we
would want to see it as soon as
possible,” he added.
The new model is aimed at
lifting Malaysia from being an
average income earner to high
income earner. – Bernama
ceremony to mark the completion of
the second phase of its 750-megawatt
Tuanku Jaafar power station rehabilita-
tion project here yesterday.
He said as far as TNB was con-
cerned, it would ensure that it did not
over-charge or burden the customers.
“Considering the problem we have
today, our rate is still cheaper compare
to Thailand and Singapore,” he said.
Che Khalib said industrial users
should also play a role by being energy-
efficient and undertake energy-saving
exercise rather than to continuously
ask TNB to lower the tariff.
“There is no way for the country to
continue to provide cheap electricity
just to make sure that the manufactur-
ing sector can survive.
“I think it is a misleading economic
model. The country as a whole must
start to look into ways to save energy.
If the energy continues to be cheap,
people will continue to waste it,” he
said. – Bernama