KFC's return to Malaysian bourse heralds rebound in deal volumes

Kuala Lumpur

FUNDRAISING from Malaysian initial public offerings is poised to rebound from the lowest in 16 years, led by a planned relisting of the local KFC operator, as receding uncertainty and commodity price gains help rekindle demand for riskier assets.

First-time share sales in Malaysia, South-east Asia's top destination for new listings less than five years ago, fell to US$305 million in 2016, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The figure was the lowest since 2000 and trailed other regional exchanges including Singapore, which hosted US$1.7 billion of IPOs, and Thailand, where US$1.5 billion was raised, the data shows.

While a volatile ringgit and slower economic growth hurt IPO volumes last year, fundraising could jump to at least US$2 billion in 2017, acco…