Thursday 28 Mar 2024
By
main news image

This article first appeared in Capital, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on August 24, 2020 - August 30, 2020

SINCE the Covid-19 pandemic began, dozens of companies have announced ventures into the manufacture of gloves, test kits, personal protective equipment (PPE), vaccines and ventilators. It begs the question, however, of whether their forays into the healthcare segment will succeed, as some do not have the relevant experience and know-how. Still, their share prices have surged to stratospheric levels on the back of the Covid-19 theme and ample market liquidity. This is despite a lack of concrete execution plans, with some having only signed a memorandum of understanding. We take a look at the winners and potential beneficiaries of the pandemic, and the value that has been added to these counters since March 11, when the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a global pandemic.

COMPANIES WITH CORE BUSINESS RELATED TO HEALTHCARE SEGMENT

Top Glove Corp Bhd

RM56.5 bil market cap added

Glove mania drove Top Glove to become the second-largest company on Bursa Malaysia with a market capitalisation of RM75.7 billion. The stock touched an all-time high of RM29.30 on Aug 7, before closing at RM27.14 last Wednesday.

Analysts remain positive on the company’s outlook, with Citi Research saying the stock could hit RM77.60 in a bull scenario, as it could aggressively raise its average selling prices (ASPs) on the back of the demand-supply imbalance.

The research house warned, however, that Top Glove’s share price could fall to RM16.50 in a bear scenario, with key risks including a sharper-than-expected decline in ASPs when Covid-19 de-escalates, along with high volatility in raw material costs and the ringgit.

 

Hartalega Holdings Bhd

RM36.8 bil market cap added

Hartalega, the world’s largest nitrile glove maker, is acquiring a 60.57-acre land parcel in Selangor for RM158.3 million to build additional glove manufacturing facilities, which will boost its installed capacity by 19 billion pieces a year. Upon completion in 2021, its annual installed capacity will increase to 44 billion pieces.

Net profit for its first quarter ended June 30, 2020 jumped 134% to RM219.72 million from RM94.06 million a year ago.

 

Supermax Corp Bhd

RM26.1 bil market cap added

Supermax posted a record quarterly net profit of RM399.62 million for its fourth financial quarter ended June 30, 2020, up 27 times from RM15.06 million a year ago. The stellar performance was also attributable to its own brand manufacturing (OBM) model, which has higher profit margins.

Another catalyst is its upcoming addition to the MSCI Global Standard Indices on Aug 31. Supermax is also buying a 2.02ha plot in Klang, Selangor, for RM21.78 million for future capacity expansion.

 

Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd

RM14.2 bil market cap added

Riding on the strong demand for gloves, Kossan is looking to ramp up production capacity through the purchase of an industrial property measuring 4.05ha in Meru, Selangor, for RM40 million.

The facility will add a production capacity of 6.4 billion pieces from 21 production lines and will be fully operational in the second half of 2022.

Kossan’s total annual production capacity for 2020 is forecast at 32 billion pieces.

 

Comfort Gloves Bhd

RM2.3 bil market cap added

Comfort Gloves is expected to add six production lines in FY2021, increasing its production capacity by 14% to 5.9 billion pieces a year.

It has two plants in Simpang and Matang, Taiping, with 53 production lines. About 87% of its revenue is derived from synthetic gloves, while the remainder is from natural rubber gloves.

RHB Research has raised its FY2021-to-FY2023 earnings forecasts by 49% to 75%, after Comfort Gloves’ net profit for 1Q ended April 30, 2020 leapt 94% to RM16.34 million from RM8.41 million previously.

 

Rubberex Corp (M) Bhd

RM1.4 bil market cap added

Rubberex has raised RM31 million through a private placement to expand its production lines for nitrile gloves. The built-up area of its factory is expected to increase to 110,000 sq ft, from 92,000 sq ft now.

In terms of production lines, five double-former lines will be installed on top of the eight single-former lines it has now. Its installed capacity will increase to 2.5 billion pieces a year, from one billion currently.

 

Careplus Group Bhd

RM2.1 bil market cap added

Careplus will double its total production capacity to 8.8 billion pieces by end-2021 — with a total of 50 production lines by then — from 4.1 billion pieces currently.

The company returned to the black with a net profit of RM36.21 million for 2Q ended June 30, 2020, of which RM15.4 million was registered as a one-off gain from a stake disposal.

Careplus has been the star performer with a 26-fold jump in share price year to date.

 

Adventa Bhd

RM397.3 mil market cap added

While Adventa no longer manufactures surgical gloves after it sold the business to Top Glove in 2012, its healthcare business — involving the distribution of medical and healthcare equipment, appliances and medical disposal products — has garnered investors’ interest. Its shares have surged more than five times this year.

It swung back to the black, registering a net profit of RM1.01 million for 1Q ended March 31, 2020, from a net loss of RM1.23 million in the same quarter a year ago, underpinned by sales of its PPE.

 

HLT Global Bhd

RM981.3 mil market cap added

HLT, which specialises in producing glove dipping lines for manufacturers, wants to raise up to RM324.68 million via a private share placement to fund the purchase of land on which to build a six- to 10-acre rubber glove plant. It plans to have between 10 and 14 new double-former glove dipping lines.

Through the construction and commissioning of the first phase of the glove plant, it expects to boost its rubber glove production from the existing one billion pieces annually to between 4.1 billion and 5.3 billion pieces annually.

In recent years, its products have been sold in Malaysia and other countries such as Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam.

 

CE Technology Bhd

RM212.9 mil market cap added

Listed on the LEAP Market, Taiping-based cleanroom glove manufacturer CE Technology is embarking on capacity expansion at a cost of RM50 million. Three additional double-former glove-dipping lines will be added to boost its raw nitrile glove capacity to 70.5 million pieces a month.

It will also increase its cleanroom post-processing capacity to 83 million gloves a month through the addition of two new facilities. The facilities are expected to be fully functional in 1½ years.

 

Oceancash Pacific Bhd

RM118.9 mil market cap added

Oceancash has been benefiting from a surge in demand for PPE, as it manufactures and trades in air-through bonded non-woven and thermal bonded non-woven fabric, widely used in disposable hygiene products.

Besides Malaysia, the company also exports its products to its key market in Japan as well as several other countries around the world.

Year to date, its share price has doubled to 98.5 sen last Wednesday.

 

Tek Seng Holdings Bhd

RM257.8 mil market cap added

Tek Seng’s polypropylene non-woven manufacturing business has seen a jump in orders and it is on the lookout for a parcel of land in Bukit Mertajam, Penang, to build a plant to boost its capacity in this segment.

Non-woven fabric is used for the manufacturing of masks and protective gowns.

The company has set aside RM20 million as capital expenditure (capex) to increase production capacity, as it has been running at the full capacity of 300 tonnes a month.

For 2Q ended June 30, 2020, Tek Seng reported a net profit of RM6.54 million compared with a net loss of RM3.99 million a year ago.

 

Luxchem Corp Bhd

RM425.5 mil market cap added

AmInvestment Bank Bhd believes the Covid-19 pandemic cuts both ways for Luxchem. While a surge in demand for PPE and rubber gloves will drive the company’s latex and nitrile processing and compounding businesses, the pandemic has hurt demand for chemicals from sectors such as construction, automobile and electrical.

The latex and nitrile processing and compounding segment contributed to about 35% of Luxchem’s turnover for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2019. For 2Q ended June 30, 2020, the company’s net profit declined 23.5% y-o-y to RM7.57 million from RM9.89 million.

RHB Research noted, however, that the manufacturing segment recorded improved margins for the first half of the year — attributable to a higher margin contribution from Transform Master, a subsidiary that supplies chemicals to the glove manufacturing segment — offsetting the weakness in the unsaturated polyester resin manufacturing segment.

 

ES Ceramics Technology Bhd

RM188.7 mil market cap added

ES Ceramics is involved in making hand formers used by the glove industry, and has operations in Malaysia and Thailand.

Its net profit jumped 209.9% to RM2.44 million for the financial year ended May 31, 2020, from RM786,000 a year ago, thanks to a better product mix.

In terms of geographical breakdown, its Thailand operations continued to be the main contributor, with about 60% of revenue, while Malaysia contributed the remaining 40%.

 

Supercomnet Technologies Bhd

RM804.2 mil market cap added

As an original equipment manufacturer in the automotive cables and medical devices industry, Supercomnet has seen its share price  more than double year to date to RM1.87 last Wednesday.

Several key products made by its subsidiary, Supercomal Medical Products Sdn Bhd, are used in critical medical devices used in the treatment of Covid-19 patients. They include disposable bronchoscopes and the critical care monitoring cable used in intensive care.

On July 10, the group announced that its latest catheter for cardiovascular use had been approved and is now listed on the US Food & Drug Administration’s website. The FDA approval means the company can now start manufacturing the catheter for its client — a Denmark-based company that is the exclusive distributor for several world-leading producers of medical devices.

 

LKL International Bhd

RM437.4 mil market cap added

Hospital bed manufacturer LKL has ventured into PPE production and secured two contracts totalling RM13.641 million to supply PPE to the public hospitals and front-liners in Sarawak.

It said the contracts had been partially fulfilled in the financial year ended April 30, 2020, while the remaining will be delivered in the first quarter of FY2021.

 

Karex Bhd

RM490 mil market cap added

Karex, the world’s biggest condom manufacturer, started producing hand sanitisers under the HANS brand in March. It was reported in June that some 100,000 bottles of sanitiser had been produced and were available for purchase online.

Group CEO Goh Miah Kiat said the company made the shift to address the shortage of sanitisers since it did not require a major adjustment to its manufacturing process.

The stock touched an all-time high of RM1.23 in intra-day trade on Aug 5, before retracing to close at 88 sen last Wednesday.

 

LYC Healthcare Bhd

RM50 mil market cap added

LYC Healthcare, which operates confinement centres for new mothers and nursing homes, is a beneficiary of the market’s interest in healthcare counters that spilled over into related smaller-cap businesses.

Its share price reached a year-to-date high of 54 sen on June 1, from 13 sen on March 26, after it made a series of announcements in May on collaboration agreements to market cleanliness, hygiene and sanitation services in Malaysia as well as a contact tracing application for Covid-19.

 

Pharmaniaga Bhd

RM776 mil market cap added

 

Duopharma BioTech Bhd

RM1 bil market cap added

Interest in Pharmaniaga and Duopharma had been driven by developments surrounding the formulation and distribution of a vaccine for Covid-19, as the two counters have been tapped by the government to package the vaccine for use in Malaysia once available.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin later clarified, however, that the selection of companies would not be limited to Duopharma and Pharmaniaga. Last week, he said the ministry would recommend to the cabinet that the Covid-19 vaccine be provided free to all Malaysians.

 

COMPANIES WITH CORE BUSINESS NOT RELATED TO HEALTHCARE

SCGM Bhd

RM360.1 mil market cap added

SCGM’s decision to dedicate a quarter of its workforce to produce personal protective equipment (PPE) has served it well amid a backdrop of reduced resin prices, lower interest expense and higher gain on foreign exchange. The thermoform food packaging product manufacturer returned to the black in its fourth financial quarter ended April 30, 2020, posting a net profit of RM6.86 million compared with a net loss of RM7.14 million a year ago.

Year to date, it has gained RM325.6 million in market value to close at RM620.53 million on Wednesday.

While the group will stay on course to serve the recession-proof food and beverage sector as its primary market, and medical PPE segment as its secondary market, it intends to expand its product portfolio by adding face masks to its current range of face shields.

 

Jerasia Capital Bhd

RM21.3 mil market cap added

Shares in Jerasia have seen high trading interest since the retailer, which operates Mango outlets in Malaysia, announced on July 3 that it would venture into the healthcare industry by using its production lines to produce PPE for both the local and export markets.

The company says it has manufactured more than 750,000 units of PPE, valued at more than RM5 million.

Shares in Jerasia have surged 557% to hit a 52-week high of 92 sen on Aug 6 after falling to a low of 14 sen on April 3. The stock closed at 54 sen on Wednesday, giving the company a market capitalisation of RM44.3 million.

 

Iconic Worldwide Bhd

RM89 mil market cap added

Iconic Worldwide, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Iconic Medicare Sdn Bhd, began production trials of three-ply face masks in a rented premise in Juru, Penang, last month. It will initially produce two million to three million masks a month, before gradually increasing production to five million a month. In addition, the company aims to produce one million N95 disposable surgical masks a month.

The Penang-based tourism and property development outfit has made an internally funded initial investment of RM2.8 million in the new venture and hopes to derive a double-digit profit margin from it.

Thanks to strong buying interest in PPE-related companies, Iconic Worldwide saw its share price surge 406% to a 52-week high of 91 sen on Aug 6 from a low of 18 sen on March 25, when most global markets reported severe contractions, mainly in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and an oil price war between Russia and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. The stock closed at 57 sen on Wednesday, valuing the company at RM184.52 million.

 

Pecca Group Bhd

RM37.6 mil market cap added

Among the latest non-healthcare-linked companies to repurpose some of its existing production lines to get on the PPE bandwagon is car leather upholstery maker Pecca, which in late June announced the allocation of RM2.2 million in capital expenditure for the supplementary foray.

Affin Hwang Capital Research expects Pecca’s FY2021 profitability to recover in view of an estimated revenue contribution from the PPE venture of RM12 million to RM14 million for FY2020 and FY2021.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia on Aug 7, the company said it had obtained the quality management system certificate for the design, development and manufacturing of PPE gear and was applying for the licence to commence production and certification to export the goods.

 

Komarkcorp Bhd

RM127.4 mil market cap added

Packaging machinery and self-adhesive label maker Komarkcorp said on June 15 it would invest up to RM20 million to venture into the manufacturing of masks using funds raised through a private placement of up to 30% of its issued shares, as well as internal funds and bank borrowings.

On Aug 4, the company said it had placed orders for 15 production lines — nine lines for the manufacture of three-ply surgical face masks and six lines for the manufacture of KN95 masks  — which are expected to yield a production capacity of up to 120 million three-ply surgical face masks per year and 60 million KN95 masks per year.

The production lines are to be commissioned by September, while the company is waiting to obtain the necessary licences.

The new business is projected to contribute at least 25% to its net profit.

 

Notion VTec Bhd

RM373.7 mil market cap added

Notion VTec’s strategic decision in March to move into the healthcare sector has had the precision component producer supplying PPE to the local market since June.

The company told Bursa that the business will gradually be scaled up according to market developments and as it irons out manufacturing kinks.

Its total investment so far is RM10 million in capex, with four production lines producing 10 million masks a month and five lines for the production of 50 tonnes of polypropylene meltblown (PPMB) a month, enough to produce 50 million masks a month. The excess of PPMB will be sold to other mask makers locally and overseas.

Shares in Notion VTec hit a record high of RM1.92 on Aug 7. The stock closed at RM1.54 on Wednesday, giving it a market capitalisation of RM774.35 million.

 

Nexgram Holdings Bhd

RM133.1 mil market cap added

Interest in Nexgram soared when the loss-making company, whose business is in information and communications technology, property investment and logistics, announced on April 23 its intention to venture into distributing medical ventilators.

The announcement lifted its trading volume to a high of 74.5 million shares on that day, compared with its 200-day moving average volume of 2.61 million.

Through another agreement with Indonesian firm PT Mitra Abadi Propertindo Utama, Nexgram’s unit Nexgram Biomedic Sdn Bhd will sell two million isolation gowns and 500,000 boxes of gloves to the Indonesian partner every month, from November this year to October 2021. There is also an option to extend the deal for 24 months.

 

Ni Hsin Resources Bhd

RM40.3 mil market cap added

Shares in Ni Hsin Resources closed at a high of 18 sen on May 18, from 11 sen the previous day, when the stainless steel cookware manufacturer announced its collaboration and distributorship agreement with WTK Manufacturing Sdn Bhd and WTK Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd to market fabric protective masks, PPE and hand sanitisers locally and internationally.

Since then, the stock has continued its upward momentum to hit a fresh record high of 30 sen on Aug 6. The stock pared some of the gains to close at 24 sen on Wednesday, bringing a market capitalisation of RM75.21 million.

Earlier, Ni Hsin also signed a product manufacturing agreement with Marywah Industries (M) Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of lingerie maker Caely Holdings Bhd, appointing the latter as the original equipment manufacturer of Ni Hsin’s wholly- owned subsidiary Ni Hsin Marketing’s brand name products and PPE.

 

Xidelang Holdings Ltd

RM117.7 mil market cap lost

Loss-making Xidelang announced on April 15 that it would enter the PPE segment by setting up a new material technology division. The China-based sports apparel and equipment maker said it would take on the production of reusable and washable protective masks, in collaboration with Fujian BiTiChong Baby Products Co Ltd, from whom it will source material and technology for the products.

 

Texchem Resources Bhd

RM43.4 mil market cap added

Texchem Resources, which trades textiles and chemicals and makes plastics products, was reported as saying that its unit Texchem-Pack (M) Sdn Bhd has sold more than 3.5 million face shields locally and internationally since mobilising its facilities, technical capabilities and supply chain to realise its new face shields production segment.

Shares in Texchem hit a 52-week high of RM1 on Aug 10. The stock has since pared some of the gains to close at 74 sen on Wednesday, for a market capitalisation of RM88.62 million.

 

COMPANIES WITH PENDING HEALTHCARE VENTURES

Inix Technologies Holdings Bhd

RM94.3 mil market cap added

Inix, which is mainly involved in software development, wants to invest RM35 million in a factory, paving the way for it to enter into the production of medical rubber gloves.

It has signed a letter of intent with Lyg­lan Properties Sdn Bhd to acquire a factory located in the Sendayan Industrial Zone in Negeri Sembilan.

Inix and Lyglan will set up a joint-venture (JV) company to develop a medical rubber glove business. They will hold a 65% and a 35% stake respectively.

Meanwhile, it is worth noting that the recent appointment of Macau tycoon Wan Kuok Koi as the company’s chairman has come under the spotlight because he was released from prison in Macau in December 2012 after serving a 14-year sentence for charges including loan-sharking, money laundering and heading a criminal group.

 

AT Systematization Bhd

RM128.4 mil market cap added

Industrial automation system and machinery designer and manufacturer AT Systematization expects its first glove-dipping line to be operational in November.

It plans to expand to 20 lines within 36 months, with an annual production capacity of more than 3.2 billion gloves. The capex is estimated at RM150 million.

As part of the proposed diversification, it had on June 26 announced the purchase of Pearl Glove (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd for RM22 million cash.

It is looking to raise up to RM63.83 million via a private placement for working capital and capex for the glove business.

On another note, there has been no material development in relation to its memorandum of understanding with US-based Arzon Solar LLC, Sanichi Technology Bhd and PNE PCB Bhd announced on May 18 for the production of medical-grade mechanical air ventilators, which are to be distributed and marketed globally.

 

Permaju Industries Bhd

RM140 mil market cap lost

Last month, Permaju said its plan to venture into glove manufacturing with Anzo Holdings Bhd was still being discussed and no JV had been formed. This clarification followed an article on the venture posted on a website. There has since been no further announcement.

The company is mainly involved in the distribution of vehicles, property development and plantation.

Earlier in June, it also announced plans to venture into the bottling and distribution of sanitiser products, as well as the sale of air purification products.

 

MQ Technology Bhd

RM103.9 mil market cap added

In July, MQ Tech inked an investment and collaboration JV agreement with Hong Kong-based JD Resources International Ltd to acquire a company involved in the manufacturing and marketing of gloves and that owns a glove-making factory.

On Aug 14, it said both parties had agreed to extend the cut-off date by a month, from Aug 15 to Sept 15, for the finalisation of the definitive terms and conditions pursuant to the agreement. It also allows a longer time frame for the potential seller to revert on its interest.

Earlier, MQ Tech, which specialises in high-precision moulds and magnetic coils for hard disk drives, also expressed interest to acquire Latexx Partners from Semperit Group.

 

Titijaya Land Bhd

RM340 mil market cap added

Property developer Titijaya is proposing a diversification into healthcare products, with a distribution agreement with Rubberex to export gloves, PPE and medical products to China.

In April, it had signed an agreement with China’s Sinopharm Medical Equipment QuanZhou Co Ltd to collaborate on the sale of medical industry-related equipment and real estate.

Then, in June, it signed another deal with Sinomach Heavy Industry Corp to develop a facility to produce PPE-related fabric.

 

Kanger International Bhd

RM142.6 mil market cap added

On Aug 11, Kanger, which is involved in the manufacture and trade of bamboo flooring and related products, said it had been approached by Dubai-based Constellation Holdings Ltd (CHL) to jointly set up medical examination gloves operations in Malaysia.

A heads of agreement was executed with CHL two days later, with the Dubai company paying RM49,000 to Kanger for a 49% stake in Kanger Glove Manufacturing Sdn Bhd, which plans to acquire land in Selangor worth RM6.8 million to set up a glove factory for RM70 million. According to Kanger, most of the gloves will be sold to CHL.

 

Bintai Kinden Corp Bhd

RM33.3 mil market cap added

Mechanical and electrical engineering works specialist Bintai Kinden said on Aug 14 that it was venturing into developing a vaccine for Covid-19 through a partnership with a US pharmaceutical company.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) with vaccine research firm Nugenerex Immuno-Oncology (Generex) was inked to fund and manage a synthetic peptide vaccine for Covid-19.

Generex is involved in robust research and development in creating on-demand peptide vaccines to control pandemic viruses. It has developed its proprietary, patented li-Key immune system activation technology that holds promise for stopping viral outbreaks such as the current pandemic.

 

MyEG Services Bhd

RM1.1 bil market cap added

MyEG garnered interest when it announced that its indirect 40% associate company PT Cartenz Inti Utama, through its 88.75%-owned subsidiary PT Cartenz Tekno Lab, had entered into an MoU with Jakarta Smart City Management Unit on June 5 under the Indonesian government’s Communications, Infomatics and Statistics Department to provide and implement an application to be used in the state to manage the spread of Covid-19.

Its share price rose 23.4% to RM1.53 from RM1.24 after the announcement on June 10.

The company has yet to provide an update on the deal.

 

mTouche Technology Bhd

RM36.6 mil market cap lost

mTouche’s share trade volume surpassed 100 million units on April 15, from 48 million shares the day before, after the loss-making company announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary mTouche International Sdn Bhd had signed a supply agreement with Network Global Solutions Pty Ltd to distribute Covid-19 detection, diagnostic and rapid test kits besides medical products across Southeast Asia.

According to Bloomberg, mTouche Technology specialises in wireless network technologies, mobile messaging services and interactive media applications. In the announcement to the exchange, mTouche said the parties in the agreement would obtain the necessary approvals for the test kits from the Ministry of Health, as required under the Medical Device Act 2012.

The company has yet to provide an update on this matter.

 

K-One Technology Bhd

RM230.9 mil market cap added

K-One, which sees itself as a one-stop technology solutions provider, saw its share price soar after its announcements on April 13 and May 6 that it was venturing into the production of ventilators and nasal swabs drew investor interest.

On May 7, it clarified that the nasal swabs to be marketed in Malaysia were subject to approval from the Medical Device Authority (MDA) under the Ministry of Health. Similarly, it would have to obtain approvals from the authorities in the countries it is targeting overseas.

On June 16, it said it had commenced pilot manufacturing of the nasal swab in May and soft-launched the product. It had also submitted the product for MOH’s evaluation and approval. There have been no updates since then.

Nevertheless, on June 1, K-One said it had been licensed to make and distribute the VITAL ventilators worldwide.

Its share price has since hit a high of 63 sen on Aug 6, nearly tripling from 22 sen on Jan 2.

 

Ho Wah Genting Bhd

RM496.7 mil market cap added

In the past few months, Ho Wah Genting (HWGB), which makes wires, cables and power supply cords, has made a slew of announcements regarding ventures into the provision of essential medical and healthcare products ranging from diagnostic kits to clinical trials for vaccines.

In its latest filing on Aug 6, the company said its unit HWGB Biotech had partnered with US-based E-MO Biology Inc (EBI) to invest US$1 million (RM4.2 million) in EBI for a profit entitlement of 40% from the commercialised vaccine.

HWGB will have exclusive rights to the production, distribution and sale of the repurposed vaccine based on the polio vaccine for use in preventing Covid-19 infections in Southeast Asian countries.

 

Key Alliance Group Bhd

RM78.6 mil market cap added

On May 19, Key Alliance Group (KAG) announced its appointment as a local partner of South Korea-based ITDF Co Ltd. The company, which specialises in IT and financial solutions, will sell the Care Gene Covid-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test kits manufactured by South Korean company Wells Bio Inc in Malaysia. It will leverage its existing IT-related services business to complement its new medical equipment segment.

Subsequently, on July 10, its unit Key Alliance Sdn Bhd received its establishment licence from MDA to act as an authorised representative, distributor and importer of the test kit in Malaysia.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia on Aug 6, KAG said it was awaiting the final stage of approval, known as Special Access Approval, from MDA, which is required for the importation and placement of the test kits in Malaysia. Upon receiving the approval, KAG expects to commence sales to the intended target market, comprising private sector corporations and businesses with a large workforce as well as private clinics, laboratories and hospitals.

The penny stock hit an intra-day high of 14 sen on May 6 before paring its gains to close at 10 sen last Wednesday, giving the company a market capitalisation of RM98.22 million.

 

 

Save by subscribing to us for your print and/or digital copy.

P/S: The Edge is also available on Apple's AppStore and Androids' Google Play.

      Print
      Text Size
      Share