Panel Session at the 3rd German-Malaysia Business Forum on ESG

On 12 April 2023, Segi Enam’s Khor Yu Leng moderated a panel session on "Building sustainable supply chain management in Malaysia - headwinds vs tailwinds" at the 3rd German-Malaysian Business Forum on ESG - organised by the Malaysian-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MGCC). The main focus of this forum was on ESG Supply Chain Management.

The list of panelists:

• Klaus Burkart, COO & Co-Founder of Cargodian GmbH;

• Vimala Arumugam, Managing Director of BASF (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd;

• Dr Meenachi Muniandy, Senior Director and Head of Industry ESG Division of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI); and

• Bilal Parvaiz, Executive Director & Head Islamic Corporate, Commercial & Institutional Banking of Standard Chartered Saadiq Berhad.

Here are some key points from this panel discussion. The panelists spoke about how net zero commitments drive scope 3 and supply chain efforts on ESG. The financial sector is helping to drive changes while offering some incentives, with a push from central banks in each country. The actions of large corporations have led the way, and buyers can help supply chain partners understand requirements. MITI and other government agencies are working to help smaller players confused by ESG needs.

New Malaysia ESG policy frameworks for the industry is coming out in 3Q this year, and carbon pricing scenarios for Malaysia are being assessed. The increasing availability of cost-effective solutions is a positive. The opportunity is in leveraging OPEX and CAPEX spending into billions for company bottom-lines. Moreover, new jobs in green and support sectors will be on the rise.   

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research@segi-enam.com | 13 April 2023

ASEAN makes big push to use local currencies - China Daily

Recently, during a meeting between the finance ministers and central banks of ASEAN countries, a decision was made to reduce reliance on the US dollar and to reinforce the use of local currencies in intraregional trade.

Segi Enam's Khor Yu Leng said to China Daily:

…the plan to shift to local currency-based transactions shows that the ASEAN has acknowledged changing commercial and geopolitical realities.

"A bifurcated or multipolar approach would reduce trade and currency-related risks."

This also aligns with Southeast Asia's "balancing role" in global geopolitics.

Read more about it here.