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Tag: Malaysia

  • AirAsia bullish on India market

    AirAsia bullish on India market

    Low-cost, long-haul carrier AirAsia X Bhd, which has started operating its Kuala Lumpur-Jaipur route, is hoping toincrease its services in and out of India, a market in which it sees potential.

    “We would love to put a lot more flights if regulators allow us to. Right now we are having trouble getting slots into India, with a lot of Malaysian carriers going into India as opposed to Indian carriers coming into Malaysia. That is the challenge,” said AirAsia Bhd executive chairman and AirAsia X group CEO Datuk Kamarudin Meranun.

    On top of that, he said, AirAsia X is looking to increase the frequency of the Kuala Lumpur-Jaipur route to daily from the current four times a week.

    With a potential annual seat capacity of over 156,800 seats, it is eyeing a load factor of 75-80% for the route this year.

    AirAsia X chairman Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz (fourth from left), Kamarudin (second from left), airline executives and other dignitaries, flanked by cabin crew, celebrating the successful inaugural flight to Jaipur from Kuala Lumpur.

    Kamarudin was speaking at the inaugural flight celebration ceremony. The Kuala Lumpur-Jaipur route is the second direct flight service connecting India and Malaysia offered by AirAsia X after the launch of the Kuala Lumpur-New Delhi direct service in February 2016.

    The Jaipur-Kuala Lumpur service brings the total weekly flights connecting India to Malaysia under AirAsia group to 110 times with a total capacity of 22,755 seats.

    AirAsia X Malaysia has carried over 184,000 passengers in and out of India since the introduction of the Kuala Lumpur-New Delhi route.

    AirAsia group, which comprises AirAsia X and short-haul arm AirAsia, currently serves a total of 19 cities.

    Recently, AirAsia Bhd group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes was quoted as saying that the group is looking to buy Boeing 787s to expand the fleet of its long-haul unit.

    On this, Kamarudin said it is “still under discussion”.

    “At this stage I think it’s premature to talk about it. We are evaluating from a technical aspect and pricing and all those. To confirm it is premature.”

  • JD Sports Malaysia expansion plans

    JD Sports Malaysia expansion plans

    JD Sports Malaysia has ventured into the provinces with its first Penang and Malacca stores.

    The Penang outlet is at Sunway Carnival, and the Malacca store at Mahkota Parade.

    This follows six other stores for the British sneaker and sportswear retailer in Malaysia, the latest opening in Putrajay’s IOI City Mall in November.

    Meanwhile, a JD Sports Singapore Instagram account has surfaced, indicating the retailer may open a store there.

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  • Latest telco Yoodo targets niche online shoppers segment

    Latest telco Yoodo targets niche online shoppers segment

    Yoodo, a new telco which made its debut in the Malaysian market today, is offering customised mobile plans via an online platform especially targeted at the digitally savvy population.

    The telco allows customers to customise their plans by choosing their preferred voice, data, messaging and content offerings–all of which can be done online via its mobile application which is currently available on Google Play Store and Apple App Store. It offers up to 100GB of data, 2,000 mins of voice and 2000 SMSes—from which customers can customise their plans according to their needs.

    A package with data, voice and sms ranges from between RM28 and RM182.

    “Traditional mobile operators design plans based on what they want to sell the customers, developing various plans and features that don’t fit most customer’s individual needs. We’ve flipped that on it’s head and enabled users to customise their own mobile plans, with everything done online to give our customers full control, because frankly, they would do it better,” said the telco’s head, Farid Yunus on Yoodo’s concept.

    With no brick and mortar outlets in place, customers will have to sign up, activate and authenticate their SIM cards via the mobile app, and the SIM will then be delivered to them for free in between one to three days.

    Meanwhile, customers who opt for premium delivery which costs RM15, will receive their SIM cards within two hours. The premium delivery is only available within the Klang Valley, at this juncture.

    As for payment options, bill payments will be auto deducted from customer’s registered credit and debit card.

    For its roaming services, Yoodo offers the Roam Like Home service which enables users to use their domestic data plan while roaming. The service is currently available in 12 countries which includes Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, the Philippines and Thailand.

    Yoodo is owned and operated by Celcom Axiata Bhd and leverages on Celcom’s network.

    “There is a distinction between Yoodo and Celcom. Yes, we are owned and operated by Celcom, but we really operate independently. Essentially we are like a start-up and they funded us… in a way we are a guinea pig to try something new… to try something different not just with a different technology, a different mindset, different rules, different governance even,” Farid explained on the connection between Yoodo and the country’s oldest mobile telecommunications provider.

    Yoodo will also be leveraging on fellow overseas telco subsidiaries of Axiata such as Dialog, Ideas and others, for its roaming services.

    The telco is targeting the digital savvy segment, particularly online shoppers.

    “Well we did our initial research, there are about five million Malaysians who regularly shop online and this is our target market,” explained Farid.

    He said for starters, he “will be happy” if the telco could hit 200,000 subscribers by year end.

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  • QSR Brands to open 30 more KFC outlets nationwide this year

    QSR Brands to open 30 more KFC outlets nationwide this year

    QSR Brands Malaysia Holdings is investing more than RM100 million (US$25.6 million) into opening at least 35 KFC outlets this year.

    MD Datuk Mohamed Azahari Mohamed Kamil says the company will spend between RM3 million and RM4 million for each outlet, and also plans to enhance 200 restaurants.

    “We see the economic fundamentals growing well this year,” he said at the launch of the KFC Golden Egg Crunch product in Kuala Lumpur.

    “We believe there is a lot of potential in KFC and Pizza Hut, and that this will be a good year for us to capitalise on our growth for both chains.”

    QSR Brands restaurant division CEO Merrill Pereyra says that over the past five years the company has invested nearly RM1 billion for both KFC and Pizza Hut, with a focus on the Malaysian market. The company is the franchisee of more than 750 KFC restaurants in Brunei, Cambodia, Malaysia and Singapore, and also runs Pizza Hut in Malaysia (370 restaurants) and Singapore (75).

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  • COCA Restaurant returns to Malaysia after years of absence

    COCA Restaurant returns to Malaysia after years of absence

    Thai dining chain Coca Restaurant is returning to Malaysia with plans to open four outlets in the next three years.

    First up will be an outlet in the Bangsar Shopping Centre in Kuala Lumpur seating about 100 diners and serving an à la carte menu of Thai/Cantonese cuisine along with Coca’s signature hot pot, creative stock broths (including one being created exclusively for Malaysia) and suki sauce.

    Chefs will focus on freshness, including live seafood and premium beef.

    Absent from Malaysia for seven years after a 20-year stretch, Coca returns with a change of partnership and a new strategy to open in upmarket malls as well as introduce freestanding restaurants – a strategy it has used over the past seven years in Thailand, Singapore, Japan, Vietnam and Indonesia.

  • SK-II Boutique Spa Malaysia Opens

    SK-II Boutique Spa Malaysia Opens

    The SK-II Boutique Spa has opened at The Gardens mall in Kuala Lumpur – its second location after Singapore.

    A Singapore-based Malaysian, Calvin Ng worked for more than 20 years with Procter & Gamble (P&G), the brand owner of SK-II. He then founded Senze Salus, which introduced the SK-II Boutique Spa in 2004. The spa offers facial treatments using only SK-II products.

    Its Kuala Lumpur offshoot covers 213sqm and offers 12 soundproof treatment suites as well as a waiting lounge with refreshments, an SK-II beauty bar and a retail section.

    Signature treatments include the SK-II Senzational Facial that tackles multiple skin concerns and incorporates a 55-step facial massage technique. The Senze Oxygenated Facial features a stream of pressurised oxygen infused with SK-II Facial Treatment Essence being applied to the face.

    The SK-II Boutique Spa takes its name from the Japanese skincare brand.

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  • BAssets continues to up stake in 7-11 Malaysia

    BAssets continues to up stake in 7-11 Malaysia

    After rumblings that 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings is being targeted for privatisation, diversified group Berjaya Assets (BAssets) has taken steps to achieve this.

    BAssets is owned by businessman/investor Vincent Tan Chee Yioun, who has started mopping up 7-Eleven shares on the open market.

    “Something is brewing between 7-Eleven Malaysia and BAssets – a corporate exercise is being contemplated,” the newspaper says, quoting an unnamed source.

    BAssets last week surfaced as a substantial shareholder of 7-Eleven Malaysia. It has a 5.1 per cent stake after acquiring 5.1 million shares on the open market and through direct deals.

    Tan himself is already a major shareholder in 7-Eleven, along with Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar.

    Including BAssets’ stake, Tan has total equity interest of 42.46 per cent in the 24-hour convenience store chain. He also controls BAssets with a 59.36 per cent stake. Sultan Ibrahim is the second-largest individual shareholder of 7-Eleven Malaysia with a 15.52 per cent direct stake, and he also has a 9.38 per cent direct stake in BAssets.

    Tan’s Berjaya Retail, the single largest shareholder of 7-Eleven Malaysia, has pared down its stake from 48.62 per cent as at January 9 last year to 31.61 per cent in October.

    According to the 7-Eleven corporate website, it has 17,799 stores in Japan, 8469 in Thailand, 5022 in Taiwan, and 477 in Singapore. In Malaysia, it has more than 2100 stores serving about 900,000 customers daily.

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  • Cotton On’s Factorie to step out from two markets

    Cotton On’s Factorie to step out from two markets

    Cotton On Group has confirmed it is withdrawing its fashion brand Factorie from Malaysia and Singapore.

    A spokesperson says the move impacts eight outlets, four in each country, but the company will seek to improve its store footprint across the markets. “We value the incredible contribution our team members have made to Factorie …they remain our number-one priority and we’re working closely with them to identify opportunities for their redeployment within the business.”

    The spokesperson would not comment on the reason behind the closure. While the stores are scheduled to shutter by the end of next month, Factorie products will still be available online on Zalora.

    Factorie entered the Asia Pacific market in 2013. Its latest move follows fashion brands such as Celio and New Look leaving the Singapore market.

    Meanwhile, the retail industry in Malaysia saw sales dip 1.1 per cent in the third quarter last year. According to a Retail Group Malaysia report, this was because of a drop in purchasing power among Malaysians.

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  • AirAsia, AirAsia X Malaysia log increase in passenger volume, load factor in Q4 2017

    AirAsia, AirAsia X Malaysia log increase in passenger volume, load factor in Q4 2017

    Budget airlines AirAsia Bhd and its long-haul carrier counterpart AirAsia X Bhd registered higher year-on-year passenger volume and load factor in the fourth quarter of 2017.

    Air Asia carried 10.44 million passengers between October and December 2017, which is a 17% increase from the previous year’s 8.25 million, in line with the 16% seat capacity increase to 11.93 million.

    The low-cost carrier, which saw an expansion to its fleet to 116 aircraft, also saw its load factor improve by 1% to 88% against the 87% registered in the same quarter in 2016.

    Meanwhile, its Malaysian operations reported a 15% increase in passenger volume to 7.79 million from 6.76 million in the quarter under review.

    AirAsia commenced 10 new routes, five originating from Malaysia, two from the Philippines and three from India, while AirAsia Japan commenced its first flight on October 29, 2017, flying between Nagoya and Sapporo.

    On another note, AirAsia X carried 1.54 million passengers in the last quarter of 2017, translating into a 12% increase from the fourth quarter of 2016. Load factor improved 2% to 83% while capacity expanded 10% to 1.87 million from 1.7 million.s

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  • Cypark awarded RM260.51 million solar plant project

    Cypark awarded RM260.51 million solar plant project

    Cypark Resources Bhd has bagged a RM260.51 million contract for the construction of a 30MW large scale solar photovoltaic plant at Empangan Kelinchi, Negeri Sembilan.

    The company told Bursa Malaysia it had on January 26 accepted the conditional letter of award dated January 26, 2018 from Cove Suria Sdn Bhd.

    The engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning of the plant is for a period of 24 months, while operation and maintenance will last for 21 years.

    At 2.31pm, Cypark’s share price was unchanged at RM2.52 on some 227,300 shares done.

  • Jaya Grocer to open five more outlets in 2018

    Jaya Grocer to open five more outlets in 2018

    Neighbourhood fresh grocer Jaya Grocer, which celebrates its 10th anniversity, plans to open five more outlets in the Klang Valley this year.

    Its operations director Daniel Teng said on Thursday the outlets would be at Eco Ardence at Setia Alam in February; Kuala Lumpur Eco City (KLEC) at Bangsar in June; Empire City Damansara in July; Kiara 163 at Mont Kiara in September, and Kuala Lumpur East at Taman Melati in December.

    Jaya Grocer has 22 outlets. The latest outlet opened at Sunway Iskandar Citrine Hub in Johor last week.

    As part of its anniversary celebrations, Jaya Grocer is offering 10 items on special promotional prices each week since the start of the year.

    During a briefing for the media at Starling Mall Jaya Grocer in Damansara Utama, he said the management team is led by retail veterans with a family heritage dating back to pre-Independence Malaya.

    “We are proud of our heritage and are yet humbled by the overwhelming support shown by our loyal customers through the decades,” Teng said.

    On the opening of its Bangsar Market by Jaya Grocer, he said it would be one of the largest “urban fresh grocers” in the country.

    This would be located at the KLEC, a strategic and synergistic public-partnership between developer SP Setia Bhd and Kuala Lumpur City Hall.

    “The concept of Bangsar Market by Jaya Grocer is to bring back the feeling of shopping in a fresh wet market which is clean and well laid out. We hope to meet the discerning demands of sophisticated modern day shoppers in the city,” Teng said.

    Bangsar Market will occupy 54,000 sq ft or the entire second level of the mall.

    On Jaya Grocer’s online delivery service, Teng said it would be gradually expanded to cover more areas in the Klang Valley, beginning with its Pearl Point Outlet in Jalan Klang Lama.

    “Since we started at the end of 2016, our online segment has grown by 30%,” said Teng.

    “It has certainly helped to meet a need among modern consumers with a hectic city lifestyle or busy mothers with young children who cannot spare time to shop in person.

    “We provide same day delivery, with the quickest delivery time being within two hours. Furthermore, we only charge a token for the delivery service and prices remain the same as in-store, including promotional items,” he said.

    Jaya Grocer plans to set up a new distribution centre in Puchong that will help improve the overall supply chain management, Teng said.

    Jaya Grocer is operated by Trendcell Sdn Bhd, which is 45% owned by the Asean Industrial Growth Fund (AIGF). The other 55% being held by the founding Teng family which continues to manage the business.

    AIGF, a private equity fund, is 45% owned by CIMB Private Equity, 45% by Mitsubishi and 10% by the Development Bank of Japan.

    Jaya Grocer started in 2007 with its first outlet in Jaya 33 in Petaling Jaya. Jaya Grocer was set up by the Teng family, who are the founding family of Giant Hypermarket and the TMC (Teng MiniMarket Centre) in Bangsar.

    The family sold the Giant chain to Hong Kong-based Dairy Farm group in 1999 for an undisclosed sum. Meanwhile, TMC Store Bangsar has been wholly owned and operated by GCH Retail (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd since November 1980.

  • Malaysia’s local telco industry needs consolidation

    Malaysia’s local telco industry needs consolidation

    Celcom Axiata Bhd CEO Michael Kuehner, while welcoming the expected entry of a new player in the local telco scene next week, pointed out that what the industry needs is consolidation and not another player.

    Yodoo is expected to launch its mobile data plan next Tuesday.

    “The market has too many (telcos) than too few. Customers have ample choice in Malaysia, from all price range, from all types of network experience, there is enough to choose from. There is no need for another one coming in.

    “No worries about competition. Very happy with competition. We’re strong enough to stay in competition and be successful. Of course there is always the element of competition when it comes to pricing, which possibly has an impact on revenue, but it’s about how strong you are, how much value you deliver to customers and that makes you successful,” Kuehner said after signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) to collaborate in enhancing digital lifestyle for travellers today.

    He expects industry growth for 2019 to be flattish after industry revenue fell for the last three years.

    “After three years of shrinking revenue for telcos, maybe a bit of stabilisation possibly on telcos’ revenue side next year, so we’re slightly positive,” Kuehner said.

    Earlier, Celcom Axiata and Malaysia Airlines inked an MoU to provide benefits spanning multiple areas across both companies, including Enrich rewards, flight discounts for Celcom customers, attractive roaming plans and more.

    Kuehner said both Celcom and Enrich customers will enjoy innovative digital offerings and rewards, starting Feb 1. Both companies are still in the exploratory stage to discuss the details.

    On anotehr matter, Kuehner said a merger between Axiata Group Bhd and Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) makes sense in terms of scale , delivery and network perspectives.
    He said fixed mobile convergence is a trend worldwide and it is also relevant in Malaysia, adding that TM is strong on the fixed line side while Axiata is strong on the mobile side.

    “It (the merger) makes sense and this is where rumours come from, because a lot of people are talking about it. But not everything that makes sense will always happen. It’s difficult to predict,” Kuehner

    “It (merger) is up to the shareholders. I don’t have an opinion. I’m not the one calling the shots,” said Kuehner, adding that there is no indication on the merger from parent Axiata Group.

    News of a possible merger between the two emerged some nine months ago, with both companies deniying news of a reunion after a demerger in 2008. Analysts are still banking on the merger to set the tone for an industry consolidation, which is deemed as the logical route forward.

  • Ringgit marches higher against US dollar

    Ringgit marches higher against US dollar

    The ringgit marched higher against the US dollar today, appreciating by 59% since it was last seen in April 2016, said Oanda Head of Trading for Asia Pacific, Stephen Innes.

    At 6pm, the local note ended at 3.8840/8870 against the greenback from 3.9110/9140 on Wednesday.

    Innes said the ringgit touched the 3.8 level, rising 15% from its weakest point in early 2017.

    It strengthened against the US dollar as it continued its depreciation amid the increase on the overnight policy rate by 25 basis points to 3.25% by Bank Negara Malaysia today.

    He said the increase did not have much impact on the ringgit as the markets had fully priced in the move.

    “However, we think the market found itself a little oversold and with what amounted to be a dovish rate increase by BNM, traders booked profits.

    “If we consider that we could be entering extended cyclical downtrend on the US dollar, the ringgit could still rally below 3.80 level in near term,” he told Bernama.

    On another note, Innes also said that oil prices, which has come off their highs, would remain above the budget’s forecast and continue to support ringgit’s strength.

    The ringgit was traded mixed against a basket of major currencies.

    It rose against the Singapore dollar to 2.9746/9781 from Wednesday’s 2.9803/9832 and gained versus the yen to 3.5630/5661 from 3.5658/5695 yesterday.

    It declined against the euro to 4.8286/8327 from 4.8242/8295 on Wednesday and went down against the British pound to 5.5491/5537 from 5.5110/5168 yesterday.

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  • Aeon plans foray into on-demand delivery services

    Aeon plans foray into on-demand delivery services

    Aeon Co (M) Bhd signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Singapore-based online concierge and delivery service, honestbee, to venture into on-demand delivery services.

    This new delivery option, which uses personal shoppers to pick up and deliver orders, will enable Aeon customers to make their purchases online, via honestbee mobile app or website.

    Speaking at the signing ceremony, Aeon executive director Poh Ying Loo said the alliance is part of the group’s strategy to speed up its e-commerce business and at the same time add value to its outlets.

    Aeon joined the e-commerce bandwagon in late 2015 through its online website called shoppu.com.my, offering various product categories including electronics, fashion and household items.

    Asked on how this new service will help to elevate its e-commerce sales growth, Poh said at this point of time, it is still early to determine. It was reported that the group’s online website shoppu.com.my contribution in financial year 2016 (FY16) remained marginal.

    For now, Poh said the new online marketplace platform will only offer delivery service for grocery items at its flagship store, Aeon Mid Valley. He said customer who live within 17km radius from the store will enjoy a minimum one-hour delivery service.

    Commenting on its future plans for e-commerce segment, Aeon managing director Shinobu Washizawa said going forward, the group will have more such innovations in the pipeline.

    “In order to enhance the value for our customers by moving towards an omni-channel retailer, we want to combine our strengths with honestbee’s expertise to digitalise our customer’s shopping experience.”

    “We will closely monitor the feedback and demands from our customers, and consider to expand this service both in terms of regional and in merchandise offering,” Washizawa added.

    At present, Aeon has 26 malls, 33 Aeon outlets and two Maxvalu prime supermarkets across the country.

    Launched in 2015, honestbee currently has presence in eight markets including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. To date, it has 112 partners, providing more than 90,000 products across the markets.

  • Malaysia Inflation rises 3.5% in Dec 2017, full year 3.7%

    Malaysia Inflation rises 3.5% in Dec 2017, full year 3.7%

    Malaysia’s consumer price index (CPI) expanded 3.5% to 120.9 in December 2017 from 116.8 in the corresponding month of 2016, mainly driven by the transport segment, which was up 11.5%.

    For the full year of 2017, CPI rose 3.7% compared with the same period in 2016.

    According to the Department of Statistics, other major groups which recorded increases in December 2017 were food & non-alcoholic beverages (+4.1%), restaurants and hotels (+2.6%), furnishings, household equipment & routine household maintenance (+2.4%), health (+2.3%) and housing, water, electricity, gas & other fuels (+2.2%).

    On a month-on-month basis, CPI increased 0.1% in December 2017. Core inflation, which excludes most volatile items of fresh food, as well as administered prices of goods and services, rose 2.2% in December 2017 compared with the same month of the previous year.

    MIDF Research expects the headline inflation rate to average at 2.6% in 2018 amid unfavourable base effects.

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