Securities Commission today shrugged off a decision by the huge US pension fund California Public Employees Retirement System (Calpers) not to reinvest in Malaysia.

"Well, (it's) certainly not a sore point. Investors have the right to decide where they invest," the market watchdog's chairman Ali Abdul Kadir told reporters.

He was speaking at the start of a three-day conference o­n corporate governance organised by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

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"I think regulators and the institutions in Malaysia will continue to engage with all investors to ensure they get the full and correct picture of corporate governance practices in Malaysia," he said.

Ali said he hoped Calpers, the largest US public sector pension fund, would return to invest in Malaysia.

"We certainly do hope that Calpers and other funds like Templeton will come back o­ne day," he said.

Recommendation rejected

Earlier this year, Calpers decided against the recommendation of its consultant, Wilshire Associates, that it should resume investing in Malaysia.

Calpers withdrew from share investment in Malaysia and several other Asian markets in 2002, citing issues of political stability, human rights and labour practices.

Ali said the commission continued to press for an improvement in corporate governance and disclosure and was proposing a set of standards to assist institutional investors in determining their approach.

The commission was looking at how institutional investors could play their part and how funds could discharge their responsibilities to clients as well as ensure that companies practice good corporate governance, he said. - AFP