UNIMAS Journal (Universiti Malaysia Sarawak)
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THE IMPACTS OF FINANCIAL RATIOS ON STOCK PRICES IN MALAYSIA: EVIDENCE FROM BANKING INDUSTRY
Get PDFThe objective of this study is to identify whether the financial ratios have an impact towards the stock price in the banking industry of Malaysia. The financial ratios used in this study are the net profit margin, price to earnings ratio and dividend payout ratio. The sample collected for this empirical study covered 10 years of data from 2013-2022. The study found that the net profit margin and price to earnings ratio boost stock price, however the dividend payout ratio decreases stock price. The influence of net profit margin and dividend payment ratio on stock price is negligible, in contrast to price to earnings ratio, which has a large effect on stock price
Morphometric Analysis of Sexual Dimorphism in Penthicodes farinosus (Weber, 1801) (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae) from Sarawak: Morphometric analysis of sexual dimorphism in Penthicodes farinosus
No full textThe Penthicodes farinosus are strikingly coloured insects and can be found in India, Myanmar, Peninsular Malaysia, Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi, the Philippines, and Borneo. Despite their wide distributional range in Asia with a common occurrence in Borneo, morphometric investigation of P. farinosus is still lacking. The study is aimed to investigate the morphological variations of this species between two different sexes in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. Eleven morphometric characters were measured from 183 specimens (69 males and 114 females). The data were analysed using an independent t-test, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA). Sexual dimorphism index (SDI) was found ranging from 0.044 (LV) to 0.1008 (BTg) indicating females were larger than males. In PCA, cumulative variations of 59.9% were recorded from two principal components, showing higher loadings in the length of tegmen (LTg) and total length (TL). DFA revealed a single function that explains a canonical correlation of 0.895 with 100% variation. The Wilks’ Lambda values of 0.199 were highly supported with p<0.0001. The highest loadings for the model are LTg and TL. The two variables were further tested using Leave-One-Out Cross Validation (LOOVC) method which resulted in 97.2% cases being correctly classified as male or female. This suggests LTg and TL can be useful in separating both sexes of P. farinosus
Optimisation of Phytate Degradation in Whole Grain Rice During Germination Processing Using Response Surface Methodology : Optimising phytate degradation in whole grain rice
No full textPhytic acid (IP6), stored in seeds as metal salts known as phytates, binds to micronutrients and prevents its absorption by the human body. The germination process could improve cereal nutritional values by stimulating endogenous phytase activity and promoting phytate degradation. This study evaluated the physicochemical changes of phytates in rice cultivars with different IP6 contents, followed by optimisation of phytate degradation using response surface modeling. The magnitude of changes in IP6 content and phytase activity differed among rice cultivars. This suggested that the efficiency of germination treatments relied on the amount of natural phytic acid and phytase activity present in the rice grains. The cultivar “Tuan” was then selected and studied for the germination effect on phytate degradation using a central composite design. The cultivar gave a lower IP6 content, enhanced phytase activity and improved minerals bioaccessibility under acidic conditions. Acidic germination facilitated the degradation of phytate complexes in whole grain rice by making phytate complexes more soluble, accelerating phytase activity and thus, releasing mineral micronutrients from phytate globoids. The optimum germination condition was identified at pH 2.7, 25 °C over 12 h. In conclusion, germination processing facilitated phytate degradation in whole grain rice to make value-added rice products with low phytic acid and good mineral bioaccessibility
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC INFRASTRUCTURE AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH REGIONAL ECONOMIC GROWTH IN ECUADOR
Get PDFIn the literature on growth, infrastructure, in addition to other factors, is identified as a determining element in the growth of regions from a long-term perspective. However, there are few studies where the unit of analysis is disaggregated down to the regional level. Therefore, this research aims to explore the importance of infrastructure (social and economic) in the economic growth of Ecuador´s provinces. The methodology used leads to the calculation of a Global Productive Infrastructure Index (GPII) composed of two categories: Social Productive Infrastructure (SIP), and Economic Productive Infrastructure (EPI) (Hansen, 1965). In addition, econometric estimates are made of the relationship between infrastructure and economic growth, the latter measured by the Gross Added Value of each province. The results of the empirical models used indicate that the economic productive infrastructure is essential for the economic growth of Ecuador´s provinces. It is made up of energy infrastructure, transport infrastructure and communications infrastructure, of which the last two are the most representative and affect growth directly. In terms of the disaggregation of indices, it is observed that, in general, the provinces with the highest economic and global index and, therefore, the highest growth are the provinces of Pichincha, Azuay and Guayas
LINKING THE ANTECEDENTS OF A KEY PLAYER IN NATIONAL’S PALM OIL SECTOR IN ACHIEVING COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: MODERATING EFFECTS OF ORGANISATION’S AGE
Get PDFThe concept of strategic positioning as a fundamental element in strategic management used to understand one of the government agencies, the key player in the plantation industry, determines its external environment, internal strategic capabilities factors and understanding its stakeholders' influences-expectations towards achieving competitive advantage. This study aims to examine all the competencies level and the correlation between the external environment, internal strategic capabilities, and understanding its stakeholders' influences-expectations and achieving competitive advantage. This study tries to examine the moderating variable that could affect the relationship between determinants of strategic positioning and achieving competitive advantage, namely the organisation’s age. This study employed quantitative and qualitative approaches by using triangulation techniques. Through cross-sectional design, there were 162 completed survey questionnaires returned, but only 150 were useable. The data collections conducted through interviews with the Agency's Board members and surveys. The survey questionnaires distributed to managers who are involved and engaged in the planning and the implementation of strategies/policies relating to the Agency. Findings indicate that the internal strategic capabilities which had created an important correlation in organisations for realising competitive advantage. Besides, the findings demonstrate the indirect effect of age of organisation in the relationship between all the determinants and their position to achieve competitive advantage. Finally, the research outcomes of this study will hopefully provide the reference to other public sector organisations to emulate the model of the Agency in positioning its organisation. It also hoped to set a direction and roadmap for the Agency to go forward as well as enable them to compete domestically and internationally on the scale of competitions
THE SPEED OF ADJUSTMENT TOWARDS OPTIMAL CAPITAL STRUCTURE: DO OWNERSHIP CONCENTRATION AND BOARD DIVERSITY MATTER?
Get PDFUsing a partial adjustment model of capital structure, this study examines the role of ownership concentration and board diversity on the speed of adjustment towards optimal leverage. While a degree of ownership concentration can create value, board diversity on the other hand, is vital for companies to endure shifting market conditions. Both components are necessary for leveraging the outcomes of recent Malaysian Corporate Governance Strategic Priorities (2017-2023). As such, recognizing factors that could hinder the adjustment process is important as firms may deviate from their optimal leverage. The analysis of this study includes the top 100 non-financial Malaysian listed companies from 2012 to 2017. Evidence from this study indicates large Malaysian firms have optimal leverage and adjust at a modest rate towards their target in the long-term. The results are robust when using two alternative measures of ownership concentration, which are the single largest shareholder (OC1) and five largest shareholders (OC5). This study reveals both proxies have negative impact on adjustment speed. In other words, large firms with high level of concentrated ownership adjust their leverage slower towards the optimal level. Likewise, a negative significant relationship is found between board diversity and adjustment speed with the presence of OC5. Firm size is also found to have a significant impact on adjustment speed. These results potentially have long-term ramifications for corporate governance, as specific prerogatives for minority shareholders and directors representing them are required to reduce the negative externalities brought by concentrated ownership. Firms should outweigh the cost and benefits of board diversity, as more diverse boards may hinder the adjustment process
REVISITING TEMPORAL CAUSALITY BETWEEN ISLAMIC FINANCE INSTRUMENTS AND OUTPUT
Get PDFWith the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, financing would again be the crux of the recovery process. This paper revisits existing literature on how financial development promotes growth by focusing on the role of Islamic finance in Malaysia. Specifically, the role of sukuk and loans by Islamic banks on output is examined in Malaysia. The main objective of this paper is to investigate the causal nexus between sukuk, Islamic banking loan, and output using a bootstrap causality test applied to both full sample and rolling window sub-samples. Data ranges from 2000M1-2021M6 for the sukuk market and 2006M12-2021M6 for Islamic banking loans. We rely on bootstrap rolling windows which allow for time-varying causalities within time-series data. Results indicate evidence that Islamic financing instruments, in this case, sukuk and loans by Islamic banks Granger-cause output in the long run. Even in the long run, non-constancy in the parameters is detected for total sukuk, sukuk for finance, and sukuk for transport. The parameter stability tests indicate parameter non-constancy in the short run for total sukuk, sukuk for finance, sukuk for transport, and sukuk for utility for the output - sukuk equation. In the case of Islamic financing via loans, short-run parameter instability is prevalent for all loan–output equations. We take the analysis further by examining the direction of the lead variables on a multi-time scale using continuous wavelet transforms and wavelet coherence. Results show that causality runs from sukuk output for total sukuk, transport, and utility sukuk whereas construction sukuk seems to exhibit a mixed behaviour. In the case of sukuk for finance, the impact is more pronounced in the very-long run. These findings could be a guide for countries intending to use Islamic financing instruments as one of the tools for fiscal stimulus or post-pandemic economic recovery
HERDING BEHAVIOR IN VOLATILE MARKET REGIMES: AN IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF COINS, TOKENS, PANDEMIC, PENNY, AND PRICEY CRYPTOCURRENCIES
Get PDFThis study comprehensively analyzes herding behavior in the cryptocurrency market. First, we conduct an in-depth investigation of herding behavior in the overall cryptocurrency market. Second, we form several groups of cryptocurrencies according to their characteristics and analyze whether each group behaves similarly in volatile market regimes. Third, we investigate whether herding existed in each cryptocurrency group before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a sample of 227 cryptocurrencies constituting nearly 95% of market capitalization, we reveal that herding behavior was absent in the overall sample and sub-samples comprising cryptocurrency groups. Further, the anti-herding behavior implies a contrarian response to the crowd. This anti-herding can be explained from two views: rational behavior of taking profit from market irrationality and irrational behavior due to fear or recency bias
FINANCIAL INCLUSION OF HOUSEHOLDS IN INDONESIA
Get PDFThere is extensive attention on financial inclusion and its benefits, recently strategy to stimulate financial inclusion has focused on innovation and technology penetration. This paper analyzes the effect of financial inclusion on a household’s income and the role of cellphone and internet access in household financial inclusion in Indonesia. We develop the financial deprivation of each household to calculate financial exclusion. The Indonesia Family Life Survey year 2014 data are utilized in this paper. Our methodology is Ordinary Least Square (OLS) to examine how the role of financial institutions affects a household’s income. In the second model, we use Probit estimation to determine the likelihood of household financial deprivation due to cellphone and internet access. We also check the robustness of previous models using Propensity Score Matching (PSM) estimation. Our estimation results found that financial exclusion has a highly significant impact on a specific group of households. With middle-level income households, the financial exclusion would deprive income of almost 80 percent. This finding explains that middle welfare households benefited more from financial inclusion than households in the poorest and the wealthiest group. Another result found that cellphone and mobile banking significantly impact decreasing financial deprivation, respectively
K-WAVE FANS AND NON-FANS: CULTURE-SPECIFIC AND COLLECTIVE RESPONSES TO KOREAN COUNTRY AND PRODUCT IMAGE
Get PDFPurpose – Malaysia is a multicultural society, comprising ethnic Malays, Chinese, Indians, and other ethnic minorities. Its culture has complex interactions among multicultural and multi-lingual people, with diverse faiths and religions. This study investigates how a multicultural and multi-religious society responds to the influx of Korean products in the market and explores the differences in responses between fans and non-fans of the Korean Wave.Design/Methodology – Using the Online Focus Group Discussions (FGD) technique, qualitative research was conducted with ten participants to investigate multicultural Malaysians’ response to Korean country and product image.Findings – Through questions asked during the FGDs, themes that explain Malaysians’ perceptions of the Korean country image, Korean culture, and Korean products were identified. “Valuing relationship”, “Asian compatibility”, “natural and authentic”, “creativity and innovation”, “projection of boldness and confidence”, “cautious followers”, and “protective and caring culture” were primarily identified, representing positive attributes; “cosmetic surgery” was viewed negatively.Originality/value – Studies about the influence of culture and religion on Malaysian consumers’ responses toward Korean products are scarce. The findings of this study would provide insights into Malaysian consumers from diverse ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds. Understanding how foreign products enter and remain successful in a country like Malaysia could provide valuable insights to other countries and SMEs planning to enter new multicultural markets