GEORGE TOWN, MALAYSIA: Investors will soon be moving towards making "safe" investments like fixed price unit trusts and bank deposits even with low returns.

Permodalan Nasional Berhad president and group chief executive Tan Sri Hamad Kama Piah Che Othman said that due to the global financial crisis net asset values, income from dividends and capital gains will drop, bringing lower returns next year.

"Such conditions will affect investors" confidence in the equity markets.

"We should expect them to move from equity to bonds, money market funds, fixed price unit trusts or even bank deposits," he said at the first CEO Talk series organised by Universiti Sains Malaysia at the School of Arts yesterday.

He said unit trust investments were like putting money into a well-managed company with good long-term potential that has now become relatively cheap.

Later at a press conference, Hamad Kama Piah said putting money into unit trusts did not clash with the Government's RM7bil(S$2.9 bil)  stimulus package that encourages the people to spend more.

"If you have the money, then spend it. Unit trust investments are good for those who think they do not have a lot and should start saving money effectively.

"We cannot have everybody exhausting their savings," he said.

Late last month, PNB's wholly-owned subsidiary Amanah Saham Nasional Bhd (ASNB) offered one billion new units of Amanah Saham Wawasan 2020 (ASW 2020) with a 49% quota for non-bumiputras. The one billion units were snapped up in six hours and 10 minutes.

On Dec 1, ASNB also released one billion units of Amanah Saham Malaysia (ASM) for subscription. The units were all taken up in three-and-a-half days.

Asked if PNB would be issuing more units of ASM and ASW 2020 in the near future to encourage Malaysians to invest more in unit trusts, Hamad Kama Piah said PNB had such plans but declined to say when the new units would be offered.

"Although we encourage the people to invest in the schemes, we also need to make sure we make justifiable returns every time we offer new ASM and ASW 2020 units," he said.