Malaysian regulator to ask publicly-traded firms for El Nino plans, eyes deeper Middle East ties

Malaysia's Securities Commission intends to request publicly-traded firms to reveal their strategies for coping with the potential impacts of El Nino, a weather event that could result in prolonged heat, drought and adverse effects on the country's key industries, including palm oil. The regulator's chairman, Mohammad Faiz Azmi, plans to send a letter to major companies to inquire about their El Nino readiness plans, with a view to assessing their effectiveness in the following year.

This initiative comes after regulators worldwide have been demanding climate and weather impact disclosures from companies, although such requests are usually kept confidential. The regulator also aims to strengthen ties with Middle Eastern regulators to deepen Islamic finance links and attract more capital to Southeast Asia, starting with an analysis of differences in how jurisdictions classify stocks compliant with Islamic law, or Sharia.