This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 9, 2026 - November 15, 2026
The week ahead will get off to a slow start as the Deepavali public holiday falls on Monday, but will heat up towards the end of the week with the 16th Melaka state election on Saturday, Nov 14.
Early voting will start on Tuesday, Nov 10, but the real action will take place on Saturday as a total of 79 candidates from various political parties and coalitions, as well as independents, are confirmed to contest for 28 seats.
Pakatan Harapan will contest 24 seats, followed by Barisan Nasional (BN) (23), Parti Bersama Malaysia (16) and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (7). Perikatan Nasional will contest six seats, while three candidates will contest as independents.
As the 16th general election is expected to be held next year, the Melaka state election is expected to serve as a gauge of voter sentiment towards the incumbent ruling coalition.
Earlier, voters in Johor and Negeri Sembilan made their feelings known at the polls, giving BN a victory in many seats. The coalition outdid its 2022 performance in the Johor state election in July, taking 48 of the 56 seats. In Negeri Sembilan, it won 18 of the 36 seats.
On the economic front, the Department of Statistics Malaysia will release the Industrial Production Index and Manufacturing Sales Value for Septmeber on Tuesday. The Malaysian Palm Oil Board is set to release supply and demand data for October on the same day.
Meanwhile, Hartalega Holdings Bhd (KL:HARTA) will announce its earnings for the second quarter of FY2027 on Thursday. Management had earlier guided for a potential margin compression during the quarter as the group needed to lock in and deplete its raw material inventory purchased at a higher cost because of the Middle East war. The softer average selling price and higher input costs mean that weaker earnings could be on the cards for the glove manufacturer.
Several consumer product companies will release their quarterly earnings next week. They include Heineken Malaysia Bhd (KL:HEIM) and Fraser & Neave Holdings Bhd (KL:F&N) on Thursday and Mr D.I.Y Group Holdings Bhd (KL:MRDIY) and Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd (KL:CARLSBG) on Friday.
In the courts, the Federal Court on Nov 12 will make its decision on whether to reinstate an affidavit by Singaporean Shabnam Naraindas Daswani in support of an application by 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) and other plaintiffs, for a Mareva injunction against Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, the wife of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak. The injunction would prevent Rosmah from disposing of her assets. Shabnam was a former associate and shopping partner of Rosmah and the case is related to a US$346 million lawsuit 1MDB and other companies filed against Rosmah and Shabnam in June 2024.
Outside of Malaysia, things should get heated up in the US following the Democrats’ sweeping win in the US midterm elections last week. In what has been described as a “blue wave”, the Democrats captured the majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Congress is set to return to Washington for the next session on Nov 9, but analysts have described it as a “lame-duck” session given that the Republicans will still hold their current majority in both chambers until the end of the year. They may try to push through partisan legislation, such as a major increase in defence spending before losing their majority, says Charles Schwab & Co Inc in a commentary.
“The dynamics of post-election sessions of Congress are notoriously tricky because dozens of lawmakers are retiring or have just lost their re-election bid. It means motivations have changed and even attendance is unpredictable, so it may be difficult for Republicans to accomplish as much as they’d like during the remaining weeks of 2026,” the financial institution adds.
As for the equity markets, which have rallied this year on the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, history has shown that the US stock markets tend to do well after the midterm elections.
Since 1982, large-company US stocks have gained about 15% to 16% in the six months after midterms and 22% over the following year, notes Morgan Stanley Research in a commentary. “Markets largely expected Democrats to win both chambers, with a slim Senate majority, but the size of the win — especially in the Texas governor’s race — could cause some short-term ups and downs. That said, this uncertainty may also mark the final stage of the stock market pullback that began over the summer. Other risks to watch include renewed military conflict involving Iran and new US tariffs.”
In China, the annual inflation data for October is slated for release on Nov 9. Bloomberg consensus forecast is for an October Consumer Price Index growth of 0.83% year on year (y-o-y). In September, inflation rose 0.9%, coming in below forecasts.
In addition, China export data will be out this week, with the latest Bloomberg forecast pegging export growth at 38%. In September, China’s exports grew 36.3% y-o-y, up from 25% and above market forecasts.
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