All Research

Louise S.L. Teh · Lydia C.L.Teh · Gavin Jolis ·Marine Policy ·2018

This study quantifies the Total Economic Value (TEV) marine turtles contribute to the Semporna Priority Conservation Area in Sabah, Malaysia, based on field surveys conducted in May 2014 with marine stakeholders, including 60 fishing households, 9 resorts, and 7 government and academic institutions. The estimated TEV of marine turtles was USD 23 million per year, ranging from USD 21–25 million. The estimated non-consumptive value of marine turtles far exceeded the consumptive use value. Moreover, the protection of marine turtles could potentially generate 1146 tourism jobs, equivalent to USD 469,000 in employment income per year. Conservation could be partially funded from tourism, as tourists were willing to contribute USD 1.5 million for marine turtle protection and conservation annually. Scenario analysis showed that the discounted TEV of marine turtles could reach up to USD 716 million over 30 years if full protection of turtles was implemented now. This is more than double the discounted TEV of marine turtles under status quo conditions (USD 262 million). By showing the substantial economic value derived from marine turtles, this study not only provides an important incentive for protecting marine turtles in Semporna, but also for investing in conserving marine resources in the wider Coral Triangle and Asia Pacific region.

Richard Harrison · William Scheela · P. C. Lai · Sivapalan Vivekarajah ·Asia Pacific Journal of Management ·2018

Emerging economies are characterized by the presence of institutional voids which challenge and constrain the behavior of economic agents. In this paper we report on one set of agents, angel investors, in Malaysia, which investors fear is experiencing a middle-income trap whereby economic growth and new venture formation stalls due to persistent institutional voids. This research addresses this question through interviews with 19 Malaysian business angel investors in 2015, utilizing a mixed-methods approach. Results indicate that business angels in our sample generated strong returns, though they did find it a challenge to invest in and monitor new ventures in a highly uncertain and competitive environment where there is high political uncertainty, weak legal and financial support for investors and SMEs. In order to overcome weak institutional support, business angel investors develop informal institutions by co-investing and networking with family members and government officials. They also conduct careful due diligence before investing and closely monitor their investee companies after investing. This research provides several theory and practice contributions with respect to business-angel investing in emerging economies with weak formal institutional regimes.

Siew Yean Tham · Soo Khoon Goh · Koi Nyen Wong · Ahmad Fadhli ·Emerging Markets Finance and Trade ·2018 ·JEL: F21

In light of a change in the foreign direct investment (FDI) landscape such as the rapid growth of outward FDI from Malaysia since 2007, this article ascertains the possible impact of inward and outward FDI on Malaysia’s bilateral export trade at the sectoral level, using a dynamic gravity approach. The findings reveal that both inward and outward FDI are complementary to bilateral export trade in the services, mining, and manufacturing sectors. Furthermore, the distance elasticity and the real effective exchange rate have a different negative impact on different sectors. Overall, the sectoral bilateral exports could not insulate against external events.

Mongi Lassoued ·Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance ·2018 ·JEL: G18; G21; G32; G33

The study of credit risk is a great interest and the debate over the relative credit risk of Islamic banks remains open. The study aims at addressing this key question: Do Islamic banks (IBs) have higher credit risk than conventional banks (CBs) in Malaysia? Accordingly, some papers tried to answer this question but they were performed using cross-country data. The cross-country data should have been treated more cautiously since every country has its own developmental backgrounds and regional resulting in different characteristics of banking industry. Moreover, different financial systems that give support or limit the operation of Islamic banks will also make more difficult to compare the data of each country. For that reason, it is suggested to take suitable control for heterogeneity across countries to obtain consistently good conclusions about the credit risk. Different from the cross-country works, this study will focus on the country-level data of Malaysia. A panel data model was applied and it was used the generalized least squares (GLS) model and a yearly bank level data to evaluate the credit risk of 22 conventional banks and 17 Islamic banks in Malaysia. In addition, the study period, which lasted from 2005 to 2015, seems to be representative since it encompasses the period of the sub-prime crisis. This project is an extension of the study begun by Čihák and Hesse (2008) that used cross-country bank data such Malaysia. The results are particularly interesting and do not confirm the results generated by these researchers. The main contribution that this work will hopefully make is to show the reasons which account for the Islamic banks' higher degree of credit risk, and particularly to provide additional insights and complement the existing cross-country studies on Islamic bank stability.

Sallahuddin Hassan ·International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy ·2018 ·JEL: C53; O16; Q41

This study is aimed at exploring the impact of energy consumption, private investment, financial development and economic growth on carbon dioxide (CO2 ) emissions in Malaysia employing the autoregressive distributed lags model for the period 1976-2013. The result reveals the presence of long run association connecting the variables and established that private investment and energy consumption impact positively on CO2 emissions in Malaysia. For that reason, the study recommends the implementation of clean technology by private investors is essential in managing CO2 emissions in Malaysia.

Ali Saleh Alarussi · Sami Mohammed Alhaderi ·Managerial Auditing Journal ·2018

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors affecting profitability in Malaysian-listed companies. It has been argued that profitability is the main pillar for any company to survive in the long run. Although profitability is the primary goal of all business ventures, scant attention has been paid to the factors that affect profitability in developing countries. This study investigates the factors affecting profitability in Malaysian-listed companies. Design/methodology/approach This research is based on five independent variables that were empirically examined for their relationship with profitability. These variables are: firm size (as measured by total sales), working capital (WC), company efficiency (assets turnover ratio), liquidity (current ratio) and leverage (debt equity ratio and leverage ratio). Data of 120 companies listed on Bursa Malaysia covering the period from 2012 to 2014 were extracted from companies’ annual reports. Pooled ordinary least squares regression and fixed-effects were used to analyze the data. Findings The findings show a strong positive relationship between firm size (total sales), WC, company efficiency (assets turnover ratio) and profitability. The results also show a negative relationship between both debt equity ratio and leverage ratio and profitability. Liquidity (current ratio) has no significant relationship with profitability. Research limitations/implications Due to the time limitation, the data includes only 120 companies listed in bursa Malaysia and covers the period from 2012 to 2014. Practical implications These results benefit internal users (such as mangers, shareholders and employees). They can realize the determinants of enhancing the profitability of their company after the depreciation of the Malaysian currency and therefore concentrate more on the factors that enhance their companies’ profitability. On the other side, other external users (such as investors, creditors, new established companies, tax authority) also may get advantages of these results. It is clear that those users concern about the profitability of companies and the determinants of their profitability after the currency’s depreciation. Originality/value This study differs than previous studies in many ways: first, it focuses on non-financial listed companies in Malaysia. Previous studies have concentrated on companies in the financial sector, such as banking and financial institutions or on industrial organizations. Second, this study analyzes the data in companies’ annual reports for a three-year period from 2012 to 2014. During this period, the economy in Malaysia was fluctuating due to currency depreciation. Third, the study used both return on equity and earnings per share as indicators of profitability. Fourth, the results of the study provide empirical evidence that large size firms with efficiently managed assets can improve operating income and ultimately enhance profitability. Last but not least, this study applies the resource-based theory and the trade-off theory.

Habib Ahmed · Ili Rahilah Ibrahim ·Journal of Consumer Policy ·2018

This paper examines the status of the legal and regulatory framework for consumer protection in Malaysia, an emerging economy. Using leximetrics and notions of incomplete law, the paper explores the financial consumer protection regime in the country by examining two aspects of the legal framework: the legal infrastructure and typology of laws. The Malaysian legal framework for financial consumer protection is assessed in light of the good practices identified in international guidelines issued on the themes by OECD and the World Bank. The results highlight the complementary nature and different roles that laws, regulations, and supporting institutions play in achieving a comprehensive financial consumer protection framework in the country.

Chee-Hong Law ·Applied Economics Letters ·2018 ·JEL: F21; F31; F40

Some observations have suggested that international reserves contribute to trilemma policy convergence in emerging countries. Nonetheless, this hypothesis needs more solid empirical evidence to determine its validity. This article tests this hypothesis by examining the relationships among the index of policy dispersion, international reserves and trade openness in a threshold model in Malaysia. As a small open economy, Malaysia has accumulated a relatively large amount of international reserves since the mid-1990s. The results indicate that the positive impact of international reserves on reducing policy dispersion or achieving policy convergence is found only if the international reserves are above a threshold. Hence, this conclusion supports the need to hold a relatively high level of international reserves in Malaysia.

Zaharah binti Yahya · MarianiAriffin · Sabrina Ho Abdullah ·Resources Policy ·2018

The Malaysian State of Selangor has been blessed with an abundant reserve of granite rocks located in the districts of Kuala Langat, Hulu Selangor, Gombak, and Hulu Langat which supply raw materials to develop physical infrastructures including highway roads, building, airports, and townships particularly in Cyberjaya and Putrajaya and supply raw materials to the buildings of the Klang Valley. An active industry, however, comes with shortcomings related to the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere of the ecosystem. In 2009, there were 314 active quarries in Malaysia of which only 12 practiced the best greening effort. Quarry rehabilitation prevents pollution and leads to a cost-effective measure for sustainable quarrying. At present, there is a need to enhance the existing law and policy to ensure the rehabilitation of quarries. Quarry rehabilitation can strike a balance between the need for development, economic aspect, environment, and social aspects in the long term that produces a sustainable quarrying industry that can benefit the Selangor State Government as well as the Federal Government. Generally, this paper aims to identify factors hindering quarry rehabilitation in Selangor. The specific objective of this research is to identify the present status of quarry rehabilitation implementation and examine what the existing legislative framework provides on quarry rehabilitation. By using a qualitative approach, it focuses on Selangor as a case study. A Doctrinal Approach was used to analyze Primary Legal Documents based on the seven Parameters of Quarry Rehabilitation produced by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) established in 2011. The seven parameters are a vital tool to ensure legal frameworks and policies related to quarry rehabilitation are effective.

Sitraselvi Chandren · Ayoib Che Ahmad · Santhirasegaran Nadarajan ·International Journal of Supply Chain Management ·2018

The implementation of Goods Service Tax (GST) in business processes requires firm to revise their business policies and practices particularly on price setting and cash flow operation that may possibly influence the operating performance. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of GST on operating performance. This study investigated 265 Malaysian listed firms operating performance (profitability: sales growth –SG, profit after tax-PAT, return on asset (ROA), liquidity: operating cash flows (OCF) and current ratio –CR) from year 2014 (before), 2015 (during) and 2016 (after) GST implementation period using the paired t-test. The SG have shown decreased during the GST implementation period, subsequently improved after the GST implementation period. The CR has exhibited a remarkable improvement during and after GST implementation period. The SG and CR results validate the firms are able to maintain the operating performance even with minimal reduction is witnessed for PAT, ROA and OCF during and after GST implementation. This study contributes to all stakeholders that GST do not necessarily influence the firms negatively, but allows the management of the firm in making effective decision for the operating business processes and supply chain for sustaining the firm value. In sum, this study finds that GST is a business friendly tax system for firms with effective operating performance to support the country economic development.

Helena Varkkey · Adam Tyson · Shofwan Al Banna Choiruzzad ·Forest Policy and Economics ·2018

Intensification and expansion are two essential tenets of commercial agriculture. This paper analyses trends of intensification and expansion at the national level, particularly in the oil palm sector in Indonesia and Malaysia. Despite similar starting points and also comparable rates of increasing productivity and profit in this sector, both countries have developed almost opposite trajectories of land use. While both intensification and expansion has occurred in these countries, national indicators show that Malaysia has largely pursued intensification while Indonesia has overwhelmingly favoured expansion. Using the framework of the Jevons paradox, this paper contributes to the existing literature by arguing how and why political and social factors, rather than technology and market incentives, can better account for the differences between yield and land use efficiency in Indonesia and Malaysia today. The paper argues that expansion in Malaysia has been curtailed by the Malaysian government's pledge to maintain at least 50% forest cover in the late 1990s, coupled with a government supported corporate strategy of establishing plantations in Indonesia. Indonesia has made no such pledge, leading to expansionist policies focused on market creation and production goals with limited incentives for technology-driven intensification. It also notes however that in recent years, new socio-political developments in both countries may yet change this clear dichotomy of opposing land use strategies between these two countries, namely Sarawak's recent autonomous tendencies over land use and Indonesia's new leadership and international No Deforestation Peat and Exploitation (NDPE) commitments.

Rosnani Mohamad · Suhaiza Ismail · Julia Mohd Said ·Journal of Asia Business Studies ·2018

Purpose The objectives of this present study are twofold. First, it aims to investigate the performance objectives of PPP implementation in Malaysia. Second, it aims to examine the differences in the perceptions of two PPP key players – the public and private sectors – pertaining to the performance objectives. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was used to elicit the perceptions of the public and private sectors concerning the performance objectives of PPP projects in Malaysia; 237 usable responses were obtained and analysed using SPSS to rank the importance of the performance objectives and to examine the differences in the perceptions between the government and private sectors. Findings The results reveal that the five most important performance objectives for PPP implementation in Malaysia based on overall respondents’ perceptions are “High-quality public service”, “Provide convenient service for society”, “Within or under budget”, “On-time or earlier” and “Satisfy the need for more public facilities”. As for differences in the perceptions of the two key players, only one objective was perceived as statistically more important by the public sector respondents than by their private sector counterparts. Originality/value The contribution of this paper is that it not only provides empirical evidence for the performance objectives for PPP implementation in Malaysia, but also offers evidence concerning the differences in the perceptions of the public and private sectors pertaining to the performance objectives.

Christopher Richardson · Guat-Hoon Tan · Shaian Kiumarsi ·Journal of Asia Business Studies ·2018

Purpose This paper aims to investigate and reflect upon the effects of personality traits on expatriate adjustment within the context of Malaysia’s multicultural society. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the multicultural personality questionnaire (MPQ) and extrapolating from the literature on expatriate adjustment, the authors introduce five hypotheses, which are then tested based on data derived from 101 expatriates working in Malaysia. Findings The results indicate a positive relationship between both open-mindedness and adjustment as well as between flexibility and adjustment. However, the authors did not observe any significant positive relationship between the three remaining MPQ personality traits and expatriate adjustment. Originality/value While various studies have investigated the relationship between personality and expatriate adjustment in an Asian context, the majority have been conducted in largely monocultural settings, or at least on the implicit assumption of a single societal culture within the host country. This paper contributes to the literature by exploring the relationship in the context of a multicultural Asian host country.

Chwee Ming Tee ·Journal of Multinational Financial Management ·2018 ·JEL: G30; G32; G34; P26

This study extends prior work on the relationship between politically connected firms (PCFs) and the cost of debt in Malaysia. Motivated by the results of Bliss and Gul (2012), this study employs a longer and comprehensive dataset to re-examine the association between PCFs and the cost of debt. First, political connections are associated with lower cost of debt. Second, CEO duality is associated with higher cost of debt. Third, higher audit committee independence leads to lower cost of debt. Although the results are intuitive and in line with established theories and prior evidence, they differ from the findings of Bliss and Gul (2012). Overall, we provide further evidence that studies examining the influence of political connections on firm outcomes should employ a longer period of study in order to capture the dynamic changes in leadership.

Mohammad Sharif Karimi ·International Economic Journal ·2018 ·JEL: C22; O11

In this study, we examine the nonlinear relationship between international tourism arrival and economic growth of Malaysia by using asymmetric models over the periods 2000:1–2015:4. The results show that the tourism arrival is positively related to Malaysia’s economic growth in the long run, but there is no short-run relationship and other traditional growth factors such as trade, exchange rate and Consumer Price Index are important for economic growth in the case of Malaysia. This implies that tourism can be one of the important factors for Malaysia’s economic growth in the long run and development and can be used to stimulate the overall economic growth and hence, policy-makers should pay greater attention towards promoting inbound tourism.