Malaysia Hot Stocks - Factors to watch

KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 (Reuters) - Here are news stories that may affect the Malaysian stock market on Wednesday.

MALAYSIA PM VOWS TO SPEED REFORM AFTER POLL SETBACK

- Malaysia's prime minister vowed on Tuesday to speed up economic reform after voters gave his government a wake-up call at elections this month.

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KHAZANAH SAYS SET FOR BIG DEALS

- Malaysian state investor Khazanah could pursue a number of large deals with the companies in its portfolio, either by selling large chunks of those firms or by bringing in partners, its chief said on Tuesday.

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MALAYSIA SEES 208 GDP GROWTH OF 6 PCT OR LESS

- Malaysia's economic growth this year may fall short of the official target of 6.0-6.5 percent, a senior government official said on Tuesday.

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BUMI-COMMERCE CEO SAYS UNAWARE OF MAYBANK MERGER PLAN

- Malaysia's second-biggest bank, Bumiputra-Commerce Holdings BUCM.KL, said on Tuesday it was unaware of any plan for it to merge with Maybank (MBBM.KL), the country's top lender.

"Not to my knowledge," Bumiputra-Commerce Chief Executive Nazir Razak told Reuters when asked to comment on market talk that the two banks would be merged.

TEMASEK CLOSE TO SELECTING BII BUYER, HSBC DROPS OUT

- HSBC (HSBA.L), Europe's biggest bank, dropped out of the race to buy a 42 percent stake in Bank Internasional Indonesia (BNII.JK), a source said on Tuesday, as Singapore state investor Temasek moved closer to choosing a buyer who may have to pay over $1 billion.

The battle is now between Malayan Banking Bhd (MBBM.KL) and Bank of China (601988.SS) for Indonesia's sixth-biggest lender, while South Korea's Kookmin 060000.KS has also joined the race as a third bidder, a source with direct knowledge of the deal told Reuters.