Johor’s property market continues to expand, but the focus is shifting from pure growth to infrastructure readiness. According to Kashif Ansari, Co-Founder and Group CEO of Juwai IQI, the defining issue shaping real estate decisions is no longer just location or pricing, but access to electricity and water. As highlighted in coverage by Astro Awani and Bernama, developments without secured utility access are facing rising uncertainty, while infrastructure-ready land is gaining premium value. This shift is being accelerated by Malaysia’s rapid emergence as a regional data centre hub. Data centres are intensive users of power and water, and according to global insights from the International Energy Agency, demand is growing faster than supporting infrastructure can be delivered. Mr Ansari describes this imbalance as a “power pinch,” already influencing developer site selection, investor risk assessment, and project design. While Johor sits at the centre of this trend, the implications extend nationwide, signalling that infrastructure availability will increasingly guide pricing, timing, and momentum across Malaysia’s property market. Download the full report for deeper market insightsDownload

As February 2026 unfolds, the global economy is showing encouraging signs of stability, supported by steady GDP growth forecasts and accommodative monetary policy across major markets. Emerging economies particularly in Asia and parts of Latin America are expected to drive much of this momentum. While geopolitical tensions have introduced some uncertainty, markets have remained resilient, with investors gravitating toward structural growth themes such as technology, renewable energy, and advanced manufacturing. At the same time, gold and precious metals are quietly strengthening, reinforcing their role as effective portfolio hedges. In this environment, success favours investors who stay anchored to fundamentals anddiversification. Balancing growth assets with defensive allocations like fixed incomeand alternatives helps manage volatility while preserving upside. Real estate continues tostand out, especially in multifamily housing, logistics, and niche commercialsegments, where long-term demand and tight supply support income potential. Withfinancing conditions improving in select markets, 2026 is shaping up to be a year wherediscipline, agility, and thoughtful diversification turn uncertainty into opportunity. Download the full report for deeper market insightsDownload

Markets Re-Enter an Age of Alchemy The year has barely begun, yet the alchemy of global markets has already shifted. Rising geopolitical risk, the resurgence of AI-led capital expenditure, buoyant equity markets, and precious metals at stratospheric levels are rapidly reshaping the investment landscape. Investors are no longer chasing growth at any cost. Priority has shifted to growthwith peace of mind, capital deployed with durability, visibility, and long termsustainability, rather than fleeting momentum. Artificial intelligence has reentered the cycle with conviction. This phase is infrastructure driven, capitalintensive, and productivity enhancing, positioning AI as a powerful GDP catalyst over the next three to five years, particularly across ASEAN, the GCC, and parts of Africa, where policy alignment and digital adoption are accelerating. At the same time, history is reasserting itself. The 1970s are back in style. Inflationsensitivity, geopolitical fragmentation, and currency debasement have restored realassets to center stage. 2026 is shaping up to be the year of tangibility. Gold and silver are heading toward vertiginous levels, while real estate has evolved into a new global currency, offering inflation protection, yield resilience, and geopolitical optionality. Markets evolve; technologies advance but history repeats. Those who grasp the convergence of innovation and real assets will be best positioned for the next phase of global economic realignment. US EQUITY MARKET OUTLOOK: OVERVALUED AT PRESENT. U.S. equities are at historic valuationextremes expectations elevated, riskpremiums compressed. The Buffett Indicator above 210% signals assets priced for perfection, driven by AI exuberance, mega-cap concentration, and excess liquidity. Buffett’s USD 330 billion cash pile says it all: at peaks, liquidity is strategy. History is clear—after valuation extremes, Real assets outperform through preservation, not speculation. FASTEST GROWING ECONOMIES IN 2026 - OECD OUTLOOK The latest OECD Economic Outlook (December 2025) revealed that the global economy has proved resilient last year, even though fragilities remain, with a range of risks including "elevated policy uncertainty and rising barriers to trade". According to the organization's forecasts, global GDP growth is projected to slow down from 3.2 percent in 2025 to 2.9 percent in 2026. As our infographic shows, among G20 economies (together accounting for around 80 percent of global GDP), some countries are expected to continue growing at a pace well above the average.India tops the list, with a real GDP growth expected to exceed 6 percent again this year (6.7 in 2025; 6.2 in 2026), driven by robust domestic demand, digital transformation andmanufacturing growth. Indonesia follows at 5.0 percent (rate in 2025 and 2026), leveraging its young workforce and commodity exports. China, though facing structural slowdowns, remains a key player with 4.4 percent economic growth projected this year (after 5.0 percent in 2025). Saudi Arabia follows closely at 4.0 percent, buoyed by oil revenues and ambitious economic diversification efforts under the "Vision 2030" national plan TOP COUNTRIES HOLDING RARE EARTH IN THE GLOBAL World's Largest Rare Earth Reserves. Rare earths are crucial for EVs, wind turbines, smartphones, batteries, and defense tech. They are heavily concentrated: China holds nearly half the world’s known reserves and even more dominance in actualmining and refining (~85–90% of processed rare earths). This concentration is a majorstrategic vulnerability for the West, driving efforts to develop alternatives. Greenland’sreserves are increasingly in focus especially with US interest in Arctic resources. Download the full report for deeper market insightsDownload