KUALA LUMPUR: Chocolate demand in Asia is booming, and this Malaysian company sits at the epicentre.

The shares of Guan Chong Bhd have soared more than 150% in the past year in Kuala Lumpur as profits doubled, making the producer of chocolate ingredients a top performer on the Bursa Malaysia Consumer Product Index. The MSCI All Country World Index of stocks is broadly flat in the past year.

For chief executive officer Brandon Tay Hoe Lian, Asia’s biggest cocoa bean processor has been riding a wave of improved margins and higher sales.

Net income doubled to RM189.3mil last year, and 2019 “is looking as good as last year” because of increased capacity and sustained margins, he said in an interview last week.

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