KUALA LUMPUR (March 7): The conflict in the Middle East, sparked by the US and Israel’s joint attacks on Iran since Feb 28, has spread across the region and shows no sign of abating soon. It has driven up prices of commodities such as Brent crude oil and gold, put pressure on the ringgit and rattled markets worldwide.

In The Edge’s Cover Story 1, we look at what the war means for Malaysia given the country’s dependence on oil revenue and the Budi95 targeted fuel subsidy for RON95 petrol that was launched last year.

At the time of writing, Brent crude futures were traded at US$91 (RM359.11) per barrel.

At the current juncture, it remains to be seen if Putrajaya will need to exercise the flexibility it has in reducing its RON95 fuel subsidy burden by adjusting up the RM1.99 per litre price, which is among the top 10 lowest in the world.

What happens if Brent reaches US$100 and higher?

Meanwhile, gold hit US$5,400/oz as buyers sought shelter in safe-haven assets to hedge the impact of the crisis.

Analysts believe that gold will continue to shine as long as geopolitical risks continue to bring about uncertainty, as seen in recent years.

What will be the impact on gold jewellers, such as Poh Kong Holdings Bhd (KL:POHKONG) and Tomei Consolidated Bhd (KL:TOMEI)? Have consumers’ jewellery-buying habits changed with the price of gold trading higher in recent years?

Meanwhile, Cover Story 2 looks at the tussle between NexG Bhd (KL:NEXG)’s executive chairman Datuk Hanifah Noordin and the existing board members on the back of the group’s maiden loss of RM130.88 million in its third quarter ended Dec 31, 2025 (3QFY2026), as well as an ongoing review relating to the company’s investments in quoted shares.

These investments — in public listed companies, namely MMAG Holdings Bhd (KL:MMAG), NexG Bina Bhd (KL:NEXGBINA) as well as in private company Innov8tif Holdings Sdn Bhd — had resulted in a fair value adjustment of approximately RM145.6 million.

The fair value adjustments contributed to the maiden loss recorded by NexG in 3QFY2026.

“In light of recent developments that may affect the independence and integrity of the ongoing review process, the board has resolved to temporarily suspend the executive powers and functions of Datuk Hanifah to allow the committee and its advisers to continue their work without undue influence and in accordance with the company’s governance procedures and standard operating practices,” NexG’s board of directors states in a statement to Bursa on March 6.

Prior to the suspension of executive powers, NexG’s shareholders Hanifah, Siti Nur Aishah Ishak and Velocity Capital Sdn Bhd — the moneylending arm of Velocity Capital Partners Bhd (KL:VELOCITY) — called for an extraordinary general meeting to remove seven directors and appoint eight new ones.

Talk about a total overhaul of the board.

All these are happening just after Raya Aviation Holdings Sdn Bhd — a company linked to Datuk Ishak Ismail, a known close associate of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim — emerged as the largest shareholder on March 5.

What is transpiring in NexG? For a company that holds RM2.6 billion worth of government contracts to produce security documents including passports and identity cards, it has certainly attracted a lot of attention, for the wrong reasons.

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