Forces going places

THERE seems to be no stopping the Armed Forces Superannuation Fund or Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT). It has grown stronger and has today an asset base of RM60 billion and a string of diversified businesses, including six listed entities. While it may not often be in the limelight like the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) or Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), it has delivered an impressive dividend of 10.5% per annum on average. Much of its success can be credited to Tan Sri Lodin Wok Kamaruddin, who has been helming LTAT for almost three decades.

With the market run showing no signs of reversing, many stocks, especially the big caps, have rallied over the last two years. Our `Special Report' features potential small cap stocks that investors may want to have on their radar.So where does LTAT go from here? Senior Writer Yvonne Chong catches up with Lodin to get a picture on what's in store.We profile octogenarian Tan Sri Dr Yahaya Ibrahim. An educationist, he is still as passionate about education today as he was when he first started his career many decades ago.Petronas Dagangan Bhd plans to accelerate the growth of its Malaysian lubricant business. Its General Manager-lube business division, Mohd Shobri A Bakar, shares his plans.With gold prices on the uptrend, listed gold-related companies are being keenly watched. One company that may be worth a watch, say analysts, is Tomei Consolidated.Local media group Sedania aims to strengthen its products and expand ts business to new countries. mb-e interviews its CEO Azrin Mohd Noor o learn more about the company's shift into new media.In `Other Thots', A Kadir Jasin writes on what Malaysians can learn from the results of the recent Singapore general election. He also argues why the ruling Barisan Nasional should tackle issues that affect the people directly.Sime Darby's oil and gas unit recently secured a huge contract that may signal a turnaround for its once-beleaguered engineering and utilities division. Will this be the case?The global semiconductor sector bounced back strongly last year after slumping to one of its worst patches in a decade in 2009. Still, analysts do not expect a `blowing' growth this year, given cyclical considerations.

Local media group Sedania aims to strengthen its products and expand ts business to new countries. mb-e interviews its CEO Azrin Mohd Noor o learn more about the company's shift into new media.