Malaysia's Property Sector Likely to Face Near-Term Headwinds — Market Talk

Malaysia's property sector is likely to face growing headwinds in the near term as rising oil prices will increase costs for developers and hurt home buyers' interest, MBSB Research analyst Jessica Low Jze Tieng says in a note. Higher oil and diesel prices have pushed up transport costs, making construction materials more expensive. As higher oil prices will lead to higher inflation, home buyers could hold back spending on big ticket items such as property. MBSB lowers its rating for Malaysia's property sector to neutral from positive and pegs Mah Sing Group and Matrix Concepts as its top picks.(amanda.lee@wsj.com)