The Man Who Brings Water to Bath YTL Corporation's Francis Yeoh 英國人 都喝他的水 楊忠禮集團總經理 楊肅斌

One of Asia's 25 most powerful entrepreneurs, he controls electricity transmission in South Australia and water services in southwest England. But what's on his mind right now is some down-home cooking...

It's around lunchtime in the narrow corridors of Lot 10 Hutong, the "heritage food village" in the basement of Kuala Lumpur's upscale Lot 10 Mall. A man in his early fifties with a distinctly Chinese face is bent over his plate, his suit jacket hung over the back of the restaurant chair. He is eating a dish of dark, soy sauce-soaked char kway teow – a popular Malaysian take on fried rice noodles – which set him back the equivalent of NT$100.

"You don't have black bean soy sauce like this one in Taiwan," the man says in Hokkien, the language known as "Taiwanese" that originated in China's Fujian Province and is widely spoken by ethnic Chinese throughout Southeast Asia.

The noodle eater is billionaire Francis Yeoh, managing director of YTL Corporation, a highly profitable conglomerate spanning energy companies, luxury hotels, shopping malls and a 4G mobile network.

On Oct. 21, 2011, Yeoh took a private plane to visit the Taiwanese offshore island of Jinmen (also known as Quemoy) from which the Yeoh clan hails. After stepping off the aircraft, he knelt down to kiss the soil of his ancestral homeland.

Yeoh conceived of Lot 10 Hutong – which features the signature dishes of local eateries that have been around for at least two generations – with the culinary preferences of his parents in mind. He wanted them to have easy access to their favorite dishes and snacks such as prawn noodles, char kway teow, and roti, the South Asian grilled flatbread."All four generations in our family eat these.

The younger generation has stopped eating these dishes. I really fear they could vanish one day," he remarks.

Jinmen Island is the native land of Yeoh's grandparents. The dormitory, library and auditorium at National Quemoy University were all donated by the Yeoh clan. But in other parts of Taiwan, few people know about the clan's influence and largesse.

In terms of revenue, YTL Corporation is Malaysia's largest ethnic Chinese business. As the largest private infrastructure company and public utility business in Asia, YTL Corporation counts among only a handful of Malaysian multinationals. The conglomerate earns 85 percent of its revenue and profits overseas.

YTL group companies provide electricity to the entire state of South Australia, generate one third of Singapore's electricity, and supply 1.2 million households in the southwest of England with water and wastewater services.

Malaysia's Largest Ethnic Chinese Business

Also part of the YTL empire are two power plants in Malaysia, luxury hotels in France, Japan and other parts of Asia, two upscale department stores on Singapore's Orchard Road, the luxury retail malls Starhill Gallery and Lot 10 Mall, two five-star hotels and two holiday resorts in Kuala Lumpur.
Yeoh was the only entrepreneur in the entourage of Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak when he addressed the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in late January.

Less than a month later, on Feb. 19, Najib and Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong announced plans for a high-speed rail link between Singapore and Malaysia to be built under a BOT public-private partnership. The new rail link, expected to be operational by 2020, will shorten train travel time for the 315-kilometer distance between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore from six hours now to just 90 minutes, making daily commutes between the two metropolises possible.

In announcing the project at a joint news conference, Najib said: "It will change the way we do business, the way we look at each other, the way we interact." Getting the costly train link back on the drawing board (it was shelved during the Asian financial crisis) was the handiwork of Francis Yeoh, who began to lobby the two governments, raise funds and plan the project seven years ago.

Yeoh is not a newcomer to railway transport. YTL holds a 50-percent stake in two train services linking KL International Airport and the city's central station, and it operates the Eastern & Oriental Express luxury train, which services routes linking Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Laos.

The furniture and interior decoration of Yeoh's office in the YTL Headquarters are very British. Visibly relaxed Yeoh sits on an English sofa with his left leg crossed under the right knee, drinking English tea, as he takes time out for an exclusive interview with CommonWealth Magazine. Yeoh was born in 1954, the year of the horse in the Chinese zodiac, which explains the ubiquitous presence of horse figurines in his office.

He charms the interviewer with his witty humor and chats animatedly and eloquently, freely sprinkling his fluent British English with Malay, Mandarin and Hokkien expressions.

Forbes magazine lists Francis Yeoh's father Yeoh Tiong Lay as Malaysia's seventh richest man, worth US$2.8 billion, making him a member of the global billionaires' club. Fortune magazine ranked the son as one of Asia's 25 most powerful business personalities.

Yeoh's father, Yeoh Tiong Lay, founded YTL in 1955 as a construction firm. Before Francis took over in 1988, YTL Corporation only contracted small projects such as repairing military camps and building government projects such as armories, schools and clinics.

Under the stewardship of Francis, who has a civil engineering degree from Britain, YTL expanded over the last 25 years into a multinational cross-industry enterprise with seven listed companies and 12 million customers around the globe. The conglomerate is now active on three continents and boasts annual revenue in excess of NT$300 billion. Aside from the Kuala Lumpur stock exchange, stock market listings of YTL or one of its affiliates include Frankfurt, Tokyo, New York and Singapore.

While the rest of the world has caught "China fever," Yeoh has kept a cool head, and remains wary of investing in the utilities industry there.

"Why can't we do it in China? I cannot do it in India yet, nor Vietnam or Indonesia, but I can do it in Singapore, Britain and Australia where the regulatory framework is very transparent. Why am I in Australia, Singapore, and Britain in utilities? Because they have a regulatory framework, there is no black box, no corruption. Business is clear. Malaysia's regulatory framework is not as mature as that of Singapore or Britain or Australia," Yeoh states frankly.

It's not that Yeoh has not toyed with the idea of making it big in China. In the early 1990s he tried to tap the China market, like other entrepreneurs at the time, filled with enthusiasm over the huge opportunities there.

He signed an exclusive agreement with local government officials in Jiangxi Province for the construction of a power plant. However, not much later he found out that similar agreements had been inked with six other competitors. "They don't understand that regulations and contracts are inviolable," he comments.

Yeoh is generally known to be a prudent investor with a long-term outlook.

"What led to the economic disaster?" he muses. "The whole world, including the legal system, government, people, couldn't stop their short-term thinking. It was too good, too profitable, and nobody wanted to question it."

Yeoh's aversion to what he calls "short-termism" becomes apparent in his investment strategy. YTL buys up companies during economic downtimes and favors public utility concessions that guarantee stable returns over a long period. As a result, YTL's compound annual growth rate before taxes has averaged an astounding 55 percent for the past 15 years.

"If you invested in me US$1 million, today it'd be worth US$150 million. That's not too many years. In 30 years you have 150 times profit," Yeoh says.

Yet in the financial markets, the prevailing focus is on dividends and short-term gain, and his company's stocks remain unfashionable.

"Nobody likes to buy my stuff," he concedes. "They like to hear Enron stories. 'What's the next quarter?'"

American energy company Enron's once soaring profitability came derailed by an accounting scandal, and ultimately bankruptcy, in 2001.

Yeoh is also well aware of the importance of good service.

"I got 12 million customers in the world," he says. "I am not a politician. Politicians got five years to do something. I don't have. Because if my service is no good, my 12 million customers will become zero tomorrow."

A devout Christian, Yeoh suggests that business people think long term for the sake of bettering people's lives. "If you are given the privilege of being president of a company, you can make a difference," he says.

Yeoh's war chest is filled with cash in the order of NT$100 billion and he frankly admits that he eagerly awaits the next financial crisis to go on his next buying spree. He believes the bubble needs to burst to bring investors to their senses and restore discipline in the markets. The YTL business empire always expands when others are hit by crisis.

Thriving Amid Crises

In 1992 when Malaysia suffered a major blackout, Yeoh convinced the government to privatize the country's power industry. Subsequently, YTL was awarded the country's first independent power producer (IPP) license.

During the Asian financial crisis in 1997, Yeoh bought up several luxury department stores in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur at bargain prices. He also acquired PowerSeraya Ltd. from Singapore's state-owned investment firm Temasek Holdings. Now called YTL PowerSeraya, it supplies one third of the city state's power needs. In 2000, Yeoh bought a stake in ElectraNet Pty. Ltd., which owns and operates the power transmission grid for the state of South Australia under a 200-year concession.
He is also proud of having shown up Japanese competitors in the construction business.

"Japanese people at that time were competing against us. They lost to us all the time. 'How can a Japanese company lose to a local Malaysian company?'" Yeoh recalls triumphantly.

YTL had introduced slip forming systems which allow pouring concrete round-the-clock by continuously sliding the formwork vertically or horizontally. "We worked 24 hours. We scared them. They woke up the other day and the building was taller by two stories. Because we can do 24 feet in one night"

But YTL, then virtually unknown in the West, truly moved onto the international stage with a takeover bid in 2002.

Beating out formidable rivals such as Hong Kong property magnate Li Ka-shing and the Royal Bank of Scotland, YTL bought Wessex Water, a water and sewage services company in southwest England, from Enron's water utility company Azurix.

Britain's Daily Telegraph commented on the unexpected deal with the irreverent headline "Who the Hell are YTL?"

An opera lover, Yeoh came up with an ingenious idea for showing his clout and winning local customers' trust: He flew the world-known "Three Tenors" – Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti – to Bath in England for a free concert. The ensuing flood of thank-you letters showed that public misgivings had been dispelled.

A world in crisis is the best hunting grounds. When his prey is starving, Francis Yeoh is most likely to pounce on the market. Amid the current global economic downturn, Yeoh, sitting on hundreds of millions of cash on hand, is widely expected to go on another hunt for easy prey.

By Monique Hou
From CommonWealth Magazine
Published: March 06, 2013 (No.517)
Translated from the Chinese by Susanne Ganz

More : Corporate Princess 3 : Ruth Yeoh and siblings

 英國人　都喝他的水 楊忠禮集團總經理  楊肅斌

天下雜誌 517期       


馬來西亞「楊忠禮集團」第三代，楊恭耀父親為「楊忠禮集團」總經理楊肅斌，家族資產超過1千7百億台幣。整個澳洲南部的電力、新加坡三分之一的電力，和英格蘭西南部一二○萬人的用水，都由楊忠禮集團所供應。

馬來西亞第一華商「楊忠禮集團」總經理，掌握澳洲的電、英國的水，是亞洲最有權力的25位企業家之一。
  
中午時分，吉隆坡精華區「十號廣場」百貨公司的地下室，走道曲狹的「十號胡同」美食街裡，一名五十歲出頭、華人面孔的男子，西裝掛在椅背上，正低頭吃著一百元台幣一盤，黑呼呼的炒粿條。「這種黑豉油，你們台灣沒有，」他用閩南語說著。

他是楊肅斌，楊忠禮集團（Y TL）總經理，馬來西亞第一大華商，亞洲最有權力的二十五位企業家之一。
 

二○一一年十月二十一日，一架私人飛機降落在金門機場。艙門打開，楊肅斌步下飛機，仆地親吻金門土地。

十號胡同，是楊肅斌為方便父母品嘗，將蝦麵、炒粿條、烤餅等父母愛吃的小吃攤邀集一處。「我們一家四代都吃這些。年輕這一代突然都不吃了，我很怕它們哪天會消失。」

而金門，則是楊肅斌祖父母的故鄉。金門大學的宿舍、圖書館演講廳，都來自楊家的捐輸。但楊肅斌家族的顯赫，除了金門人之外，台灣少有人識得。

楊忠禮集團不但是馬來西亞營收最大的華商集團，且是馬來西亞少數世界級的企業、亞洲最大的民營基礎建設及公用事業公司。該公司八五％的營收和獲利，都來自海外。

整個澳洲南部的電力、新加坡三分之一的電力，和英格蘭西南部一二○萬人的用水，都由楊忠禮集團所供應。

ＹＴＬ 大馬第一華商

此外，該集團還擁有大馬兩座電廠，在法國、日本和馬來西亞擁有飯店，以及新加坡烏節路上的兩間百貨公司、吉隆坡頂級百貨公司升禧藝廊、十號廣場、兩家五星級飯店和兩個度假村。

一月底，馬來西亞總理納吉，到瑞士「世界經濟論壇」發表演說，楊肅斌是唯一陪同前往的企業家。

二十幾天後，納吉和新加坡總理李顯龍，宣布以BOT方式，興建吉隆坡和新加坡之間的高鐵。七年後通車，六小時車程將縮短為九十分鐘，星馬一日生活圈即將形成。

「這鐵路網將會是一大變革，兩邊經商方式勢將隨之改變，」納吉在聯合記者會上說。
星馬高鐵的成形，正是因楊肅斌七年前便開始積極向兩國政府遊說，籌資及興建計劃均已備妥。

楊肅斌並非經營鐵路的生手。吉隆坡機場捷運，以及行駛於星、馬、泰和寮國之間的豪華火車——亞洲東方快車，就是他的。他還很喜歡講，他向亞洲富人推銷「搭火車進行家庭旅遊」的故事。

「我原本希望他們能夠了解旅行的浪漫，」楊肅斌哈哈大笑。「結果他們說，別鬧了，火車上沒賭場、沒情婦，要他們三天兩夜和太太在一起，又不能中途跳下車，給他們錢他們也不去。」

在YTL總部，辦公室的擺設流露著濃濃的英國味。喝著英國茶，楊肅斌左腳縮到英式沙發上，壓到右腿下面，放鬆地接受《天下》專訪。一九五四年出生的楊肅斌屬馬，辦公室裡到處都擺著馬的雕像。

他為人風趣，聊得興起便滔滔不絕，流利的英文裡夾雜著馬來文、中文和閩南語。
《Forbes》評楊忠禮為馬來西亞第七大富豪與世界華人富豪之一。《Fortune》則將他的兒子楊肅斌，列為亞洲二十五位最有權力的企業家之一。

一九五五年，楊忠禮創立YTL。

在楊肅斌於一九八八年接手前，YTL公司還只是一家承包地方性道路和軍營的小建築商。
到了有英國工程教育背景的楊肅斌手裡，二十五年間，已發展成七家上市公司、營業額逾三千億台幣、在三大洲擁有一千兩百萬客戶的世界級集團。股票掛牌的地點，包括法蘭克福、東京、紐約和新加坡。

然而，對於眾人皆染上的「中國熱」，楊肅斌冷眼以對。

「我為什麼不去中國，就跟我現在還不去印度、越南或印尼的原因一樣。我能在新加坡、英國和澳洲做生意，因為這些地方沒有黑盒子、沒有貪污，一切透明，這些國家都有相同的法治架構。但連馬來西亞在這方面都不成熟，」楊肅斌直言不諱。

楊肅斌並非沒有做過中國夢。九○年代初，他也跟很多企業家一樣，滿腔熱血進軍中國。
楊肅斌和江西地方政府簽訂排他性協議，準備在江西蓋電廠。後來卻發現，除了和他，當地政府還簽了六份類似的協議。「政府沒有完全理解法治和契約的神聖不可侵犯，」楊肅斌說。

「是什麼原因導致經濟災難？全世界包括政府、人民、企業，都是短期思考。因為短視太好賺，沒有人質疑它，所有規定，所有人都牽涉進去，我稱之為短視主義，」楊肅斌說。

過去十五年，YTL靠著購併和公用事業特許經營權及穩定利潤、公用事業長期合約，創造出每年稅前盈餘平均複合成長率，高達五五％的驚人戰績。

「如果你和我一樣著重長期績效，三十年前投資我一百萬，現在值一億五千萬，三十年一五○倍哦，」楊肅斌說。「但資本市場裡，沒有人喜歡我這種公司。他們要的是像安隆那種故事：下一季有什麼題材？」

美國能源公司——安隆，因爆發假帳醜聞，最終宣告破產。

「靠政治、靠短視，是無法持久的。政治人物有五年時間，我可沒有。如果我的服務做得不好，我一千兩百萬客戶會轉眼變成零，」楊肅斌說。

他建議，企業家和政治人物應做長期思考。「如果你被賦予做總統或經營企業的特權，你就能讓世界變得更好。這是上天給你的機會，要好好珍惜。」

馬來西亞第一華商「楊忠禮集團」總經理，掌握澳洲的電、英國的水，是亞洲最有權力的25位企業家之一。

儘管感嘆世人短視導致災難，手握千億台幣現金部位的楊肅斌承認，他其實「熱切盼望每次金融危機的到來。泡沫就該讓它破滅，這樣大家才會更自律。」

楊忠禮集團每次變大，都正好是別人遭逢危機的時候。

最歡迎金融危機的企業

一九九二年，馬來西亞大停電，楊肅斌說服政府，成為馬來西亞第一家民營電廠。

九七年亞洲金融風暴後，楊肅斌趁機低價掃進吉隆坡和新加坡的頂級百貨公司，並從淡馬錫控股公司手裡，買下供應新加坡三分之一電力的西拉雅能源公司。

二○○○年，楊肅斌買進擁有兩百年經營權、供應南澳全部電力的電網營運商——耐特電力公司。

「當時日本人跟我們搶，怎麼也想不到會敗給一家馬來西亞公司，」楊肅斌回憶。

「那時，我們已使用最先進的連續循環式滑動模板工程，二十四小時不停工。日本人一覺醒來，我們的樓已經長高兩層，把他們嚇壞了，」工程師出身的楊肅斌，談起這一段，興奮之情溢於言表。

真正讓楊肅斌威震國際的，是二○○二年的一場戰役。

當時安隆倒閉，楊肅斌擊敗李嘉誠和蘇格蘭皇家銀行，從安隆手中買下英格蘭區域性水力公司——韋塞克斯，震驚歐美。

媒體都在問，「YTL是誰？英國人喝的水，怎會是馬來西亞人供應？」

為了除卻輿論的質疑，和拉近與韋塞克斯區民眾的距離，楊肅斌請出好友——三大男高音帕華洛帝、卡列拉斯和多明哥，在英格蘭南部舉辦免費演唱會。事後，民眾道謝信件如雪片般飛來。

危機中的世界是最好的獵場。獵物饑腸轆轆的時候，就是楊肅斌大發利市的時候。一般相信，手上現金超過千億台幣的楊肅斌，一定會趁此波全球經濟低迷之際，尋覓獵物再度出手。

楊忠禮集團
■成立時間―1955年
■旗下事業―
水力：英國韋塞克斯（Wessex）水力公司
電力：澳洲耐特（ElectraNet）電力公司、新加坡西拉雅（PowerSeraya）能源公司、馬來西亞兩座電場
交通：亞洲東方快車、吉隆坡國際機場捷運及廉價機場捷運

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Thailand and Malaysia Hit Their Stride 1 撈油元、賺綠金 東盟雙雄馬泰爭鋒 1

While recession continues to hobble Europe and North America, and economic growth is slowing in China and India, business is still brisk in Southeast Asia. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the world's second largest unified market, is growing faster than any other region in the world and boasts the youngest consumers. That is why ASEAN members Thailand and Malaysia have become hugely attractive investment destinations. The countdown is on. Who will be able to cash in on lucrative business opportunities on the Thai-Malay peninsula?

Malaysia, the Petrodollar Magnet

In late January, Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak proudly told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that his government believes that Malaysia can post a growth rate of above 5 percent per year and that the goal of annual per capita income of US$15,000 by 2020, which would turn Malaysia into a high-income nation, is achievable.

Malaysia's economic transformation has not really followed the government's script, which focused on the development of the biotech and electronics industries. Instead, the predominantly Muslim country rather unwittingly turned into the favored investment destination for "petrodollars" from the oil-producing Middle East thanks to its huge advantage resulting from the country's ethnic mix, dominant religion, languages and culinary tradition.

The most striking experience when visiting the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur is the highly visible presence of people from the Middle East. At least five of the nine core industries that are the focus of Malaysia's Economic Transformation Program depend on the influx of petrodollars from wealthy Arab investors. So it is only natural for Malaysia to play the role of "petrodollar catcher."
The five petrodollar-hungry industries are: financial services, tourism, education and medical care, food and agricultural products processing, and fairs and exhibitions. The other four industries singled out for priority development are electrical and electronics manufacturing, petrochemicals and oleochemicals, the creative industries, and logistics.

Devout Muslims follow a distinct lifestyle that includes all areas of life including dress, diet, entertainment and travel. Products and services that do not comply with Islamic doctrine are therefore not marketable to Muslim communities.

Last year, a tour group from the Middle East nearly went without eating during a trip to Taiwan because halal restaurants and foodstuffs – certified as permissible to eat under Islamic dietary guidelines – proved hard to find.

"If they don't see a halal certification sign, Muslims won't step into a restaurant," explains Ho Yoke Ping, general manager for sales and marketing at Malaysia Convention and Exhibition Bureau.
Arab tourists already account for 40 percent of Malaysia's foreign visitors. And 66 percent of the local population is Muslim.

A Trade and Travel Hub for 1.8 Billion Muslims

In late November last year, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center (KLCC) hosted Intrade Malaysia, an exhibition for exporters. Almost half of the visitors wore traditional Islamic clothing – head scarves and long, flowing robes.

Aside from the Arab countries, Malaysia is the only nation in the world where the government controls Muslim affairs. Foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals can only be imported into the country if they have been certified as halal by one of fifteen government-authorized institutions.

Once a product obtains certification in Malaysia, Muslim markets around the world recognize it as halal, notes Abdullah Fahim, chairman of the Islamic Food Research Center (IFRC) in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia issues the largest number of halal certificates in the world.

Multinational food giant Nestle has chosen Malaysia as production base for its halal products. Revenue in the Muslim food segment has been growing at a double-digit rate for several years in a row.

While Arabs account for 40 percent of Malaysia's recreational tourists, more or less the same Arabic presence is found at conferences, exhibitions and in medical tourism, notes Australian Peter Brokenshire, KLCC general manager. "In these sectors, Malaysia has no competitor," he asserts.

The Face of Modern Islam

Kuala Lumpur's glitzy department stores swarm with Muslim customers wearing colorful, stylish head scarves and lavishly spend their money.

City Center Park right next to the Petronas Twin Towers is packed with Muslim families enjoying the day. Fathers take snapshots of their frolicking children, watched over by mothers in head scarves, plucking up the hems of their long flowing dresses.

"In their own countries they probably wouldn't be able to dress that way," remarks Ho Chia-chun, a Taiwanese physician living in Kuala Lumpur. Suddenly he breaks into laughter, noting that Malaysia, as a less strict Muslim society, has certain unspoken incentives for Arab visitors. Since the weather is hot in Malaysia, the local women dress lightly and fashionably. "Haven't you noticed the Arab people sitting around in department stores, watching people come and go?" Ho asks rhetorically.

KLCC communications manager Kuzalmah Idris frankly admits that Malaysian women dress differently, in a more Westernized manner. "Right, we are modern Muslims," she quips. Idris wears a short skirt and her face is carefully made up.

At the time of the reporter's visit in late November it was not yet high season in Malaysia, yet occupancy in big hotels and smaller pensions invariably exceeded 90 percent. "We are booked that full during the whole year, it's been like that for a few years now," confirms the receptionist at our hotel.

During breakfast time, children with curly black hair and full dark eyelashes run around the hotel restaurant.

In disbelief, the reporter looks at a young couple from Abu Dhabi with their seven-year-old daughter in tow when she hears that they are visiting Kuala Lumpur for the ninth time this year.

Malaysia's popularity in the Muslim world seems unchallenged. The Global Islamic Finance Report 2012, published by Edbiz Consulting in cooperation with CIMB Islamic Bank, names Malaysia, not Singapore or Indonesia, as the gateway to the world's 1.8 billion Muslims.

Islamic Banks Post Fastest Growth

U.S. ratings agency Standard and Poor's also confirms that Malaysia controls the second largest amount of Islamic financial assets, right behind Saudi Arabia, and serves as the true transaction center of the Muslim world, issuing seventy percent of Sukuk Islamic bonds.

Standard and Poor's points out that global Islamic financial assets are worth US$5 trillion, about ten times Taiwan's GDP, and growing at the pace of 17 percent per year. In the past seven years, the average growth rate of the Islamic wealth management market reached 36 percent, making it the fastest growing financial service market worldwide.

Asian countries are competing for the petrodollar-based fortunes of wealthy Muslims. In addition to Singapore and Malaysia, China and Hong Kong have begun to aggressively enter the Islamic finance business. China has already designed a training program for Islamic wealth management planners.
Taiwan, however, seems to sit on the sidelines as others seize the business opportunity of Islamic finance.

Liu Tsung-sheng, president of Yuanta Securities Investment Trust Co., recently attended a seminar on Islamic finance in Kuala Lumpur. To his surprise, "the financial supervisory officials from Hong Kong and China were all there, but I didn't see anyone from Taiwan."

Mah Siew Keong, chairman of the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE), notes that although Taiwan is Malaysia's eighth largest trade partner and investor, both trade and investment between the two countries have stagnated in recent years. "Taiwanese businesses should not miss out on the new direction Malaysia is going in development," Mah warns.

By Monique Hou
From Taiwan CommonWealth Magazine
Published: March 06, 2013 (No.517)

Translated from the Chinese by Susanne Ganz

撈油元、賺綠金 東盟雙雄馬泰爭鋒 1

投資未來，你不能不知道的東協雙子星

東盟——世界第二大、成長第一快的市場。最火熱的投資標的，正是馬來西亞、泰國。
　　馬來西亞掌控全球第二多伊斯蘭金融資産，成為18億伊斯蘭人口的門戶。

　　泰國點綠成金，已成亞洲綠能生産國第一，經濟、外資成長，雙雙創下東盟之冠。

　　搶進馬泰商機，就是現在！

　　“星馬之間要建高鐵，兩國繁榮接軌，馬來西亞一定更加火紅！”

　　嗅覺靈敏的日商、歐商、韓商、陸商、台商、以及動作慢半拍的美商，都已悄悄從中國大陸和和日本，轉往馬來西亞和泰國。

　　各項數據和發展都顯示，馬泰兩國，才是真正走在“東盟熱”紅地毯上的明星。

　　管理顧問公司埃森哲（Accenture）指出，泰國和馬來西亞遠比印尼先進、守法及強健，同時步上經濟轉型、動能驚人的黃金髮展期，“是投資未來最多的兩國。”

　　油元捕手——馬來西亞

　　1月底，馬來西亞首相納吉，在瑞士“世界經濟論壇”發表演說，矢言以每年5%的成長率，在2020年，晉升人均1萬5000美元的高收入國家。

　　馬國的經濟轉型，沒有真正轉向曾鎖定重點發展的生技和電子産業。反而因種族、宗教、語言和飲食的紅利，無心插柳，讓“油元”變成馬來西亞通往富國之鎖。

　　到大馬首都吉隆坡，最強烈的感受便是：“好多中東人啊！”

　　“馬來西亞經濟轉型計劃”，鎖定的9大産業，至少有5項依賴油元滿口袋的中東人。“油元捕手”這角色，非馬來西亞莫屬。

　　這5項産業是：金融顧問、觀光、教育與醫療、食品與農産品加工、會展。其余四大，則是電氣與電子製造、石化與油脂化學、創新産業、物流。

　　穆斯林的食衣住行娛樂，自成一格。不符教義的産品和服務，完全做不到他們的生意。

　　去年，一團中東觀光客到台灣旅遊，差點餓肚子，几乎找不到獲得認證的清真餐館和食品。

　　“沒看到清真認證的標誌，穆斯林是不會走進去的，”負責推廣獎勵旅遊及會展産業發展，馬來西亞會展局總經理何玉萍指出。

　　中東旅客已占馬來西亞外國旅客的四成。而占66%人口的馬來人，全是穆斯林。

　　去年11月底，吉隆坡國際會議中心舉辦馬來西亞出口商品展。由上往下俯看，觀展人潮近半穿着頭巾、長袍。

　　馬來西亞是中東之外，全球唯一由政府主管伊斯蘭事務的國家。食品、化妝品、藥品，都須經由政府認可的15家機構認證，才能進口。

　　“拿到馬來西亞的認證，全球伊斯蘭教市場都承認你，”認證機構IFRC總經理法信（Abdullah Fahim）指出，馬來西亞已成全球第一大清真商品認證國。

　　以馬來西亞為清真食品産銷基地的雀巢，營收連年以兩位數成長。

　　馬來西亞不只四成觀光客是中東人，會議、展覽、觀光醫療，“中東人的生意也占差不多的比例，”吉隆坡國際會議中心，澳洲籍CEO柏肯夏爾（Peter Brokenshire）指出，“這幾塊，沒有人拚得過馬來西亞。”

　　全球18億穆斯林門戶

　　吉隆坡的精品百貨公司，放眼望去，有六、七成都是戴着美麗頭巾、出手闊綽的穆斯林消費者。

　　“全世界18億回教人口的門戶，不是新加坡，不是印尼，是馬來西亞，”馬來西亞聯昌銀行《2012全球伊斯蘭金融報告》指出。

　　美國評等機構，標準普爾公司也證實，手握最多伊斯蘭金融資産的國家，除了沙地阿拉伯之外，就是馬來西亞。且真正的交易中心，非馬來西亞莫屬。七成伊斯蘭債券，都在馬來西亞發行。

　　標普指出，全球伊斯蘭金融資産規模已達5兆美元，相當於台灣GDP的10倍，且正以每年17%的速度成長。而過去7年，伊斯蘭財富管理市場的平均成長率，高達36%，是全球成長最快的金融服務。

　　亞洲垂涎以“油元”為主的伊斯蘭財富，除了星馬，中國和香港近年也積極經營伊斯蘭金融。中國已有伊斯蘭財富管理規劃師的訓練課程。

光华日报   

Taiwan goes on a property shopping spree in Malaysia and Thailand 搶進東協 馬泰 台灣包租公跨海炒房

Property, equities, bonds, currencies... the bull is roaming the markets of Southeast Asia, and ASEAN has taken the place of the U.S. and Europe in the hearts of Taiwanese investors.

During the Lunar New Year holiday, two large tour buses pulled up in front of Malaysia's premier address, Kuala Lumpur's tourist landmark the Petronas Twin Towers ( KLCC ). The more than 50 nattily attired Taiwanese tourists that alighted, however, were not there to take in the sights but to be guided through model units at a luxury housing project under construction in the area accompanied by local lawyers and bankers.

Each luxury apartment has usable floor space of 25 pings (about 82.5 sq. meters), is fully furnished and comes with a parking space all for one million Malaysian ringgit (about NT$9.6 million). More than a few of the Taiwanese guests signed on the spot, paying deposits with credit cards. Some even bought four or five units.

"In Taiwan, a rate NT$400,000-plus per ping would only get you something in a non-exclusive area on the outskirts of Taipei, but here you can buy in the capital city's most exclusive area. You not only get rental income, but the potential for future property value increase is even greater," says 37 year-old Ms. Huang, an airline cabin crew supervisor. This was Huang's third fact-finding trip to Malaysia with her husband, who also works in the airline industry. The couple ultimately decided to buy two units and become "ASEAN landlords."

Others in the group included retired teachers, technology executives and real estate speculators flush with cash.

A Taipei City councilor recently asked a friend familiar with developments on the Asian mainland: "I just want you to tell me, will the Trans-Asian Railroad be built?" Upon hearing "it's going to get built and some segments are already operating" for an answer, she duly showed up at the Kuala Lumpur briefing the following day.

For nearly a year now, as the economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) boom, groups of Taiwanese jetting off to various ASEAN countries on "property market fact finding missions" have become quite the trend.

Malaysian, Thai Properties Hot

"I've flown to ASEAN [nations] at least once a month over the past year. I've lost count of the number of trips I've made," says Lin Guangyan, spokesman for the Taiwan Realty International Real Estate Division for local realtor Apac House.

Two years ago, Apac House began offering agency services for units in select Malaysian property development projects, organizing tours of the projects for groups of prospective clients. The initial response was tepid at best. Beginning last year, however, interest exploded and tours were booked solid.

Now, fact-finding tours of the Malaysian property market have become "incredibly popular," Lin reveals. Each group comprises 40 to 50 prospective property buyers with tours organized twice monthly. Tours are booked solid through mid-year.

Last year Apac House acted as agent in the sale of more than 500 units in Malaysian development projects alone, with total transaction value topping NT$10 billion.

And interest is not merely limited to Malaysia, with numerous Taiwanese investors recently showing similar interest in property markets in ASEAN members Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

Among those, interest in Thailand, a familiar holiday destination for Taiwanese, has been relatively strong. Even Taiwan financial information website cnYes.com has gotten in on the act, organizing fact-finding tours and agency services for prospective buyers of Thai and Malaysian properties.
Although the "Thailand Groups" can't compare in scale with the "Malaysia Groups," over the past year about a hundred people monthly head off to Thailand to look at properties and invest there, one industry insider notes.

In 2015, the ASEAN member states will merge their economies into a single market. ASEAN member economies have been showing vigorous growth, and that has led to an outbreak of "ASEAN property fever" in Taiwan.

Fueling that fever has been a return of easily six percent or better on rental income, and with more hot money pouring in, the "conceivable space" for further rises in property values there is virtually inexhaustible.

"Previously, the majority of Taiwanese investors were most keenly interested in China properties. But the future prospects there are now unclear, and disputes over property transaction rights are also numerous. In Taiwan, investors are subject to luxury taxes, real value assessments [for taxation purposes] and other official housing policies," one investor surnamed Hu says. "By contrast, ASEAN is growing rapidly, the possibilities are numerous, what with the Trans-Asian Railway to eventually provide a link from China all the way through to Singapore. Add to that the low interest rates and investment capital flowing in from a variety of countries, and it's hard to envision [property prices] not rising."

During 2009-2010, before Taiwan imposed its luxury tax, Hu made himself a bundle, with around NT$1 billion on hand. Even though he's unfamiliar with the local property markets there, today he's planning on "sinking some cash into ASEAN" to test the waters there.

Three Key Hurdles for ASEAN Landlords

According to statistics from the U.K.-based Global Property Guide, property values in Singapore, the Philippines and Malaysia have risen 30 percent over the past three years. Thailand and Indonesia have also seen property values rise 20 percent during the same period.

It's not just Taiwanese buyers investing in ASEAN property. Plenty of investment capital is also flowing in from Japan, South Korea, China, and Hong Kong. But experts advise that sinking cash into the ASEAN property markets is not without risk and note three key hurdles to which investors must pay heed.

Hurdle One: Varying Investment Laws

First of all, due to the differences in regulations governing investment by foreigners, buying property in the various ASEAN member states is a lot different than buying in Taiwan.

For example, says Lin Guangyan, the Taiwan House spokesman, in Indonesia and the Philippines foreign individuals may not hold direct property rights; property purchases there must be made in conjunction with a citizen of said country or through an asset management company, REIT fund or other mechanism securing indirect property rights. In Thailand, foreigners may own an apartment but may not own stand-alone houses or land.

In Malaysia, legal regulations guaranteeing citizens right to purchase low-cost housing mean that foreigners may only buy properties with a net value of RM$500,000 (about NT$5 million) or higher.

Hurdle Two: Climbing Tax Rates

The next thing investors must also consider is that property taxes in ASEAN nations may gradually rise.

In Singapore, for example, a new law was passed in January of this year specifically targeting property purchases by foreigners (including permanent residents), subjecting them to tax levies of five to seven percent, and limiting the percentage of the purchase which may be financed through lending.

Thailand levies no land value tax, house tax or property transaction income tax; buyers need only pay a stamp tax at the time of transaction. But in both Malaysia and Thailand, income tax of 20 percent or more must be paid on rental income.

"There's a possibility that each ASEAN nation will in the future follow Singapore's lead in boosting taxes to cool down [the market] in order to prevent [foreign] hot money from sparking inflation.

 Investors should take this into careful consideration," suggests Pauline Ng, an investment manager and Malaysia and Singapore country specialist at JP Morgan Asset Management (Singapore) Ltd. Whether investing in financial markets or the property market, investors would be wise to avoid relatively inflationary countries.

Hurdle Three: Unfamiliarity with Political, Economic Trends

Finally, as most Taiwanese investors are not particularly well-versed in the political and social conditions extant in ASEAN nations, it is difficult for them to get a read on the shifting winds of local property markets.

Early last year, for example, contentious border issues between Vietnam and China resulted in an indefinite suspension of cooperation between the two countries in building a new highway, the establishment of a duty-free zone and other economic development plans, resulting in a sharp decline in property markets in Hanoi and the region around northern Vietnam's border with China.

Experts advise investors to make judgments on long-term property market trends in a given country based on fundamental factors such as economic growth rates, trends in urbanization and population demographics. They should also avoid over-leveraging themselves to reduce risk.

Perhaps more attractive than property market speculation are ASEAN-based mutual funds, which offered nearly 20 percent returns last year and continue to rise this year, attracting keen interest from Taiwanese stock players.

Last year, Philippine and Thai equities markets led the ASEAN pack with 30 percent gains as ASEAN become the highest growth region among global equities markets. Whether or not that trend will continue has become the focus of great concern among investors.

"Judging from international capital flows, economic growth projections and other indicators, ASEAN markets will continue to rise this year, be it equities markets or bond markets," says JP Morgan's Pauline Ng.

Despite uncertainties like the ending of the third round of "quantitative easing" in the United States and the depreciation of the Japanese yen, international hot money continues to pour into ASEAN equities markets. An anticipated wave of depreciation among ASEAN currencies has also yet to materialize, and indeed, those currencies have continued to rise. Equity market indices in Thailand and Indonesia continue to set record highs.

On top of that, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore are this year embarking on massive economic infrastructure construction plans and JP Morgan's Pauline Ng is bullish in her forecasts, expecting better than 10-percent growth on average across the ASEAN region.

Kuo Yu-lan, ASEAN fund manager for Fidelity Worldwide Investment says Northeast Asian investment destinations Japan, South Korea, China and even Taiwan, will be facing problems related to aging populations, declining workforces and other challenges over the next five years.

In contrast, ASEAN nations will continue to reap a population dividend. In addition, with a growing middle class in those nations, domestic demand stock plays in such sectors as telecoms, foodstuffs, and property development will continue to be attractive in the long-term, despite having already seen a surge in value, driven by growing domestic demand in the emerging ASEAN nations.

By Hsiang-Yi Chang
Translated from the Chinese by Brian Kennedy
Excerpt From  : CommonWealth Magazine

Update : New class of condos

搶進東協 馬泰 台灣包租公跨海炒房

 

台幣900萬的吉隆坡精品公寓，台灣人搶著組團飛去買。東協股、債、匯均漲，今年基金仍看好，報酬率高達兩成，已取代歐美，變身投資新主流。

春節假期，兩輛大型遊覽車，停靠在馬來西亞首府——吉隆坡著名的觀光地標：雙子星大樓(KLCC)。五十多名衣著光鮮的台灣旅客，卻不入內參觀，而是在當地律師、銀行專員陪同下，魚貫走入附近的建案樣品屋。

每戶室內實坪約二十五坪的精品公寓，含裝潢、家具與車位，總價一百萬馬來西亞令吉（約九六○萬台幣）。不少台灣客當場簽約，刷卡下訂。甚至一訂就是四、五戶。

「算一算每坪四十多萬台幣，在台灣只能買到新北市非精華區，在這裡卻可以買首都精華地段。不但有租金收入，未來增值潛力更高，」三十七歲的航空公司座艙長黃太太，和同在航空業的先生，已到馬來西亞考察三次。最後決定買下兩戶，要當「東協包租婆、包租公」。
同團的成員，還有退休教師、科技業主管，甚至包括不少現金滿滿的投資客。

日前，一名台北市議員詢問熟悉亞洲的友人，「你只要告訴我，泛亞鐵路建不建？」得到「建啊，有些路段都已通車了」的答案，她隔天便出席了吉隆坡團的說明會。

近一年來，隨著東協經濟大幅成長，像這樣從台灣飛往東協各國的「房市考察團」，正蔚為風潮。

東協炒房團　夯泰、馬

「這一年，每個月都至少飛東協一趟。已經算不出總共去多少次了，」台灣房屋國際資產中心發言人林廣彥說。

兩年前，台灣房屋推出馬來西亞部份建案的代銷業務，帶客戶組團看屋。剛開始，乏人問津。去年中起，卻忽然場場爆滿。

林廣彥透露，如今馬來西亞的房市考察團「夯到不行」。每團約四、五十人名額，每月出團兩趟，報名已經額滿至年中。

去年，單是台灣房屋在馬來西亞代銷的建案，已完銷超過五百戶，成交總金額逾台幣一百億元。

不只馬來西亞，東協的印尼、菲律賓、新加坡和泰國，近來同樣有不少台灣投資客探路。
其中以台灣人熟悉的旅遊勝地——泰國，人氣較旺。連國內財經網路媒體（鉅亨網），都扮演起泰、馬房地產的組團仲介角色。

業界人士指出，「泰國團」雖不比「馬來團」，今年以來，每月也有近百人前去看屋置產。
二○一五年，東協即將成為單一市場。成員國經濟和區域間貿易，都成長強勁，以致在台灣掀起「東協炒房熱」。

而炒房熱的主因，是動輒六％以上的租金收入，和熱錢湧入下，房價上漲的「想像空間」無窮。

「過去，最多台灣投資人最有興趣的大陸房地產，現在前景不明、買賣產權糾紛也多。在台灣，則有奢侈稅、實價登錄等打房政策，」投資客胡先生說。「反觀東協成長快、題材多，如亞洲鐵路將來從中國大陸一路貫穿到新加坡。加上低利環境下，各國資金湧入，（房價）不漲也難。」

在○九、一○年奢侈稅開徵前，胡先生賺進大把鈔票，手握約十億現金。即使他不熟悉當地市場，如今也計劃要「錢進東協」試水溫。

東協包租公　三大關卡

根據英國環球房地產指南統計，包括新加坡、菲律賓、馬來西亞等東協國家的房價，三年來漲幅均超過三○％。泰國和印尼，也有超過二○％的漲幅。

搶進東協房地產的，不只台灣買家，還有日、韓、中、港的投資客。

不過，專家提醒，「錢」進東協房市仍有風險，有三大關鍵必須注意。

關卡一：投資法規各異

首先，由於對外人投資的法規不同，在東協各國買房，與在台灣購屋大不相同。

台灣房屋國際資產中心發言人林廣彥舉例，如在印尼和菲律賓，外國自然人不能直接擁有房地產產權。必須與該國公民共同購買（房地產），或透過資產管理公司、REIT基金等，間接持有。在泰國，則可以持有公寓產權，但不能購買獨棟房屋及土地。

而在馬來西亞，由於法令保障本國人購買平價住宅，因此外國人只能購買總價五十萬令吉（約五百萬元台幣）以上的房地產。

關卡二：稅率愈來愈高

其次，投資人也必須衡量，東協置產的租稅負擔，可能逐漸增加。

以新加坡為例，今年一月份通過新法，針對外國人（包含永住居民）購置房地產，徵稅五％至七％，並限制貸款成數。

泰國沒有地價稅，也沒有房屋稅和交易所得稅，只有在交易時繳納印花稅。但在租金收益上，馬來西亞和泰國，必須徵收二○％以上的所得稅。

「為防止熱錢推升通膨，未來，東協各國不無跟進新加坡、增稅降溫的可能。投資人需審慎考量，」摩根東協基金經理人黃寶麗建議。不論投資股匯或房市，最好先避開通膨較高的國家。

關卡三：不熟政經情勢

最後，由於台灣投資人多半對東協各國的政治、社會環境不熟悉，不易掌握當地房市轉折。
例如去年初，越南河內，與北部中越邊境一帶，因中越邊境主權紛爭，造成中越合作興建高速公路、成立免稅特區等計劃，無限期延宕，房市因此暴跌。

專家建議，投資人最好從經濟成長率、都市化趨勢和人口結構等基本面，判斷當地房價的長期趨勢。同時避免過度融資，以降低風險。

比炒房更有吸引力的，是去年來動輒近兩成報酬率、今年還在漲的東協基金，正吸引台灣人螞蟻雄兵般的資金。

去年，菲律賓、泰國股市領軍大漲三成，東協成為全球股市漲幅最高的區域。「今年是否還能延續去年漲勢？」也成為投資人最關心的焦點。

「從國際資金流向、經濟成長預期等指標來看，今年，東協不論股、債市，都還沒漲完，」摩根東協基金經理人黃寶麗指出。

目前，雖有美國QE3退場、日圓貶值的不確定因素，國際熱錢仍持續湧入東協股市。東協各國貨幣也未如預期開始競貶潮，反而逆勢走升。印尼、泰國股市更持續突破歷史高點。

加上泰、馬、新加坡等國，今年都推出大規模的經濟建設計劃，黃寶麗樂觀預期，今年東協各國，平均仍有超過一成的上漲空間。

富達東協基金經理人郭玉蘭指出，相較於東北亞的日、韓，以及中國，甚至台灣，未來五年都面臨高齡社會、勞動力流失的挑戰。

反觀新興的東協各國，仍有人口紅利加持。加上中產階級增加，電信、食品、金融和房地產開發商等內需概念股。在東協內需興起的大趨勢下，即使股市已有一波漲幅，仍值得長線投資。

綜合專家建議，今年東協基金投資策略，穩健型投資人，可參考去年績效表現較佳的區域型基金，將二至三成資金放在東協市場。積極型投資人，則可繼續加碼去年「獲利王」——泰國股市基金，並分批逢低進場越南、印尼股市。
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5力引爆「東協熱」

一年來，全球不斷出現投資東協的報導，和看好東協的調查。這股「東協熱」，在世界經濟情勢改變的推力、東協本身拉力的雙重作用下，潛力蓄勢噴發。

推力1：中國變貴。「中國必須轉型，因為我們變貴了，」復旦大學財金系教授孔愛國歸納。中國工資快速上漲及缺工難題，讓許多外商將目光轉到東協，尋求替代產能。

推力2：釣魚台爭議，日商轉進。

去年11月初，娶了大理太太，在雲南帶旅遊團的大連人小陳，才剛送走了大連來的四個日本客人。日本客人在日本車廠的大連分公司工作。因釣魚台爭議引發反日，公司被砸。「待不下去啦，回日本前，先到大理玩一轉，」小陳說。「你不知道，他們緊張的咧，一路上不敢開口，怕人家認出他們是日本人。」

日本到泰國、馬來西亞等東協國家的投資，近年來突增。除了日圓升值、日本國內市場萎縮的因素，中日關係緊張，也是迫使日商加速外移的原因。

東協自己也夠爭氣，形成拉力，吸引資金、人才匯集。

拉力1：因亞洲金融風暴受重傷的泰國等國，經貿早已回彈。近十年來，GDP幾乎年年成長5％以上。2008年以來，美國金融風暴與歐債危機，東協幾乎毫髮未傷。攤開所有機構的預測，曾經閃閃發亮的金磚四國一一掉漆，歐、美、日困獸猶鬥。全球經濟的亮點，就在東協了。

拉力2：原本鬆散的東南亞國協，近年來，讓懷疑者跌破眼鏡，積極整合。2015年，即將組成單一自由市場。六億人口，東協已經自成一格，成為吸引力十足的市場。此刻的東協，史上最強。

拉力3：年輕、日漸富裕、充滿活力的市場，讓東協成為各方拉攏的對象。中、美、歐、日、韓、紐、澳及拉丁美洲，一個接一個和東協簽訂自由貿易協定（FTA），催出投資、貿易年年雙位數成長。（賀桂芬）作者：張翔一
天下雜誌 517期

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