The Year In Review

As usual The Edge came out with its year in review wrap edition. I will try to follow the publication's focus page by page with my take.

Corporate Malaysia's New DNA - This I think is worthy page 3 material. The ETP and the corporate moves over the last 3 months in particular have seen a strong willingness by GLCs to work with non GLCs, either in a joint venture capacity or even a merger. Naturally this directive has to come from the top. This is an important step to leverage on each side's weaknesses and strength. Its a loud acknowledgment of what is lacking and what needs to be done that is synergistic. Its about reaching a goal faster. It means stop running around in circles with same bunch of issues and problems and results.

The accelerated approval for the LRT/MRT in appointing MMC-Gamuda was a pleasant shocker. I think investors are under appreciating the flow on benefits, and this actually underpins a brilliant run for at least 1Q2011.

2010 Best Deals - This one is hard to agree as they always put the biggest deals as the best deals, maybe they "had to do it". The Parkway Holdings deal to me was a poor deal. The bad moves were created when Khazanah allowed the other side to control the board. Then its a matter of playing hard to get by one side, and having to keep upping the offer for the other side. Its a good deal for Khazanah over the longer term but the deal should have been better strategised a long time ago.

The best deal is not Tanjong but the privatisation of Astro. Its thinking 3 steps ahead on why Astro is better off being privatised. It is infinitely better to relist when regional ops are better aligned and growth path is clearer for each unit.

The most audacious deal has to be STT's invetsment into U-Mobile. Till this day I am still trying to figure the logic. Too esoteric for me to comprehend this deal.

Best IPO - The Edge put MMHE as the winner but it should be the Luckiest IPO, not the best. It was damn lucky to find a foreign party willing to accumulate a strategic block of shares in the open market, thus pushing up the post IPO performance. Sometimes you have to be lucky to be a winner though.

Worst IPO - JCY, The Edge struck the right chord by highlighting the high pricing and why the controlling shareholder was selling so much shares as part of IPO. Now we all know why.

Posted in: Eva Huang Sheng Yi