Winter Hits Malaysia___Who Might Be Affected

Although Malaysia maybe far removed from the bad winter conditions impacting most of the Northern Hemisphere, we are nonetheless not completely spared its effects. With temperatures at their lowest in over a decade, demand for fuel has sent oil and coal prices soaring while shipping and air travel have been disrupted. Given that these effects are generally expected to be short term, the impact to the fundamentals in the O&G, Transport and Plantation sectors should be minimal. However, there might be a short spike in positive sentiment for the O&G sector while airlines may see some weakness. Impact on the broader Malaysian market should be minimal. There maybe more impact to counters involved in the processing, distribution and usage of coal such as Tenaga (BUY), Sino Hua-an (BUY) and Scomi Marine (NOT RATED).