Monday, February 20, 2006
Avian influenza in Malaysia, poultry related stocks down.
Malaysian authorities on Monday reported their first case of H5N1 avian influenza since November of 2004. Tests on chickens that died in central Selangor state last week were confirmed to have the H5N1 avian influenza
Agriculture Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said it was an isolated case and that the public should not worry as no humans were infected.
“Tests conducted confirmed the death of the free range chickens was caused by H5N1 avian influenza virus,” he said in a statement.
Muhyiddin said all 110 chickens in the area just outside the capital had been destroyed. “Immediate and integrated action had been taken to contain the disease and prevent it from spreading,” he added.
The fresh case of avian influenza caused shares in poultry companies to drop and prompted neighboring Singapore to suspend imports from the state.
“As a precautionary measure, AVA is suspending poultry and egg imports from Selangor with immediate effect. This is in line with the established protocol between the veterinary authorities of the two countries for poultry imports from disease free zones in Malaysia,” theAgri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) said in a statement.
Shares of Leong Hup Holdings Bhd