KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia Bhd
will implement initiatives that will improve operational and cost efficiency, while the strengthening market ecosystem by introducing new offerings to enhance market vibrancy and attractiveness, says chief executive officer Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift.
“Bank Negara’s recent gross domestic growth (GDP) forecast of 4% to 5% for 2023 reinforces our optimism for Malaysia’s economic prospects, given the expectation that strong domestic demand will help anchor economic growth amid external volatility.“However, continued concerns over elevated cost of living and input costs might have an impact on consumer and business sentiment, which in turn could influence trading volume in the capital market,” he said in a statement.
Umar said the exchange is cautiously optimistic in meeting all five headline key performance indicators (KPIs), as announced in January, provided that no unforeseen circumstances arise during the year.Bursa Malaysia has set KPIs covering targets for profit before tax of RM295mil to RM326mil, non-trading revenue growth of 5% to 7%, 39 initial public offerings, product launches including the Bursa Gold Dinar, and reduction in its organisation’s emissions.
In the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 (1Q23), Bursa Malaysia posted a 17.4% lower profit after tax and zakat (PAT) of RM56.2mil, or earnings per share of 6.9 sen from RM68mil, or 8.4 sen in the previous year.The decline in PAT was primarily due to a 13.4% decrease in the securities market’s operating revenue to RM100mil in 1Q23 from RM115.6mil in 1Q22.
Meanwhile, total operating expenses increased by 10.6% to RM80.2mil from RM72.5mil in 1Q22 due to higher marketing and developmental expenses, technology costs, and depreciation expenses.
Revenue for the quarter stood at RM156.5mil, down from RM165.3mil.
For the current quarter under review, the lower operating revenue in the securities market was primarily due to a decrease in trading revenue with the average daily trading value for on-market trades and direct business trades recording RM2.3bil against RM2.7bil in 1Q22.
