Selected Stock Hot News

Felda Global IPO on May 10

2012-02-14T05:48:00.000+08:00

Malaysian plantation firm Felda Global Venture Holdings Bhd will launch its initial public offering on Malaysia’s stock exchange on May 10, state news agency Bernama cited a senior government official as saying today.

Read more: Felda Global IPO on May 10

UOA Development Bhd - IPO Institutional Price RM2.60

2012-02-10T03:11:00.002+08:00

UOA Development Bhd Website

JCY Q1 profit soars 20-fold to RM162m

2012-02-09T04:46:00.001+08:00

Kuala Lumpur: Hard disk drive (HDD) component manufacturer JCY International Bhd’s net profit soared more than 20-fold to RM162 million for the first quarter ended December 31, 2011 from RM7 million in the same period previously.

The company is confident the current earnings is sustainable this year as it continues to benefit from high HDD orders at good
prices as a result of the floods in Thailand last October.

Read more: JCY Q1 profit soars 20-fold to RM162m

Time dotCom is expected to register a stronger sequential revenue growth

2012-02-08T04:38:00.000+08:00

PETALING JAYA (Feb 7, 2012): Time dotCom is expected to register a stronger sequential revenue growth given the absence of global bandwidth sales in the third quarter of FY11, said OSK Research.

The research house has maintained its revenue forecast of RM93.3 million for Q4 FY11 and has upgraded Time dotCom to a trading buy at 69 sen with an increased fair value of 79 sen from 70 sen previously.
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Having upgraded its fair value of DiGi by 89 sen to RM4, OSK also adjusted Time dotCom's sum-of-parts (SOP) valuation to 79 sen which implies a potential upside of 14.5% from the current price.

"Note that the SOP component for DiGi now makes up 55% of our fair value for Time dotCom. Following the 5-into-1 share consolidation, our fair value will be adjusted accordingly to RM3.95," it said.

"If we were to incorporate the implied valuation of the acquired companies, the stock would be worth 83 sen,......

Read more

Green Packet sees historic 2012 for its P1 unit

2012-02-07T12:11:00.003+08:00

GREEN Packet Bhd expects its unit, Packet One Networks (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (P1), which is among the world's first 4G service providers, to rake in better earnings this year with the strengthening of its 4G service.
Its chief executive officer Michael Lai said 2012 was going to be a historic year for P1.

He said P1 was set to become one of the few telcos attaining profitability in a record time of under five years.

"We have garnered a solid and growing subscriber base of more than 356,000 users in Malaysia as of the third quarter of 2011. We are looking to cross the 500,000 mark this year," he said.

Read more

What Will the Stock Market Do in 2012? Strategists Predict 7% Rise

2012-01-04T03:04:00.000+08:00

Boustead sees bountiful year amid high CPO prices

2011-12-23T05:36:00.001+08:00

BOUSTEAD Holdings Bhd expects to rake in record profit this year as palm oil prices continue to trade at buoyant levels of around RM3,000 per tonne.

Out of its six core businesses, plantation is the biggest earnings contributor, followed by shipbuilding and property development.

In the three quarters ended September 2011, Boustead's plantation division contributed RM267.1 million or 45.5 per cent to the group's RM585.9 million pre-tax profits.

So far, Boustead makes an annual profit of between RM450 million and RM700 million.

Read more: Boustead sees bountiful year amid high CPO prices

Johor Corp, CVC Capital launch takeover of QSR, KFCH

2011-12-14T22:39:00.001+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 14): Johor Corporation and CVC Capital Partners Asia III Ltd have teamed up to take over QSR BRANDS BHD [] and KFC HOLDINGS (M) BHD [] (KFCH).

Johor Corp and CVC Capital had on Wednesday, made the offer via a special purpose vehicle Massive Equity Sdn Bhd (MESB) in which Johor Corp holds a 51% stake and CVC Capital 49%.

MESB offered RM6.80 for the shares in QSR Brands Bhd and RM3.79 for the warrants. At RM6.80, this is 80 sen above the closing price of RM6 on Tuesday while the offer price for the warrants was a premium of 77 sen from the closing price of RM3.02.

MESB also made an offer to KFCH of RM4 per share and RM1 per warrant. At RM4, this was 59 sen above the closing price of RM3.41 on Tuesday but five sen below the closing price of RM1.05.

The securities were suspended from trading on Wednesday and resume on Thursday.

Johor Corp owns 55.9% of KULIM (M) BHD [], which, in turn, owns 53.9% of QSR. QSR has a 50.93% stake in KFCH.

Analysts had earlier expected only Johor Corp to take over QSR and KFCH and this did not include CVC Capital’s participation.

“By taking QSR and KFC Holdings private, Johor Corp would have more control and direct ownership over the cash flows and dividends of the crown jewels, KFC and Pizza Hut. QSR and KFC Holdings generate strong operating cash flows of RM250m million to RM300 million per annum but Johor Corp only get to enjoy less than half of it given their current stakes.

“A buyout of QSR and KFCH would increase the amount of dividends and cash flows that Johor Corp enjoys from this top fast food operator,” a research house said.

In December last year, Johor Corp had stated it has no plans to sell its prized assets, QSR and KFCH, which are held through its subsidiary Kulim.

Its president and chief executive Kamaruzzaman Abu Kassim had then said JCorp entered the quick service restaurants business in 2006 (through Kulim’s investment in QSR) and since then has seen tremendous growth in revenue and profit before tax (PBT) at an average of 13.8% and 3.7% per annum respectively.

“The results from this segment had contributed significantly, making up 47.5% and 44.1% respectively to Kulim’s revenue and PBT in the financial year ended Dec 31, 2009.

“It does not make sense to sell our core business,” he had then said in a statement.

Read more...

MAS to launch premium unit in ‘near term recovery plan’

2011-12-14T06:15:00.001+08:00

Loss-making Malaysian Airline System Bhd (MAS) will launch a new regional premium airline, cut unviable routes and shed noncore businesses in its so-called "near term recovery plan" unveiled yesterday in a bid to return to profitability by 2013.

The new full-service airline will connect Malaysia to key destinations in the country and Asean, as well as South Asia and Greater China, using a fleet of Boeing 737-800, said MAS in a media statement yesterday. The-yet-to be named premium airline will fly all MAS’ domestic and regional routes in the long term.

The segmentation of management will allow the airline to focus on the unique needs of regional premium travellers, said MAS group chief executive officer (CEO) Ahmad Jauhari Yahya in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

“Our domestic and regional routes are still our most profitable, in spite of intense competition from AirAsia Bhd,” he said.

The premier market of customers who prefer to fly full-service airlines will stay and is expected to grow, he said.

Read more...

It’s a tough pull for MAS

2011-12-11T23:43:00.004+08:00

MALAYSIA Airlines (MAS) is perhaps the only Malaysian company that has undertaken the most number of restructuring exercises over the past decade to try to get back on its feet.

A decade ago its books were severely tainted with red ink and had to be cleaned up via the Widespread Asset Unbundling (WAU) exercise where it became an asset light airline. But 10 years later it is still in dire straits and appears not too far from where it was a decade ago.

This Wednesday the new boss of MAS, Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, after coming in one-and-a-half hours late for the media briefing, threw in yet another plan to put it back on course. The theme is “right sizing'' and it involves cost cuts to spinning-off businesses.

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Source of photo

NB: Monitor for sign of successful turnaround!!

The making of Sapura Kencana Petroleum

2011-12-11T23:13:00.001+08:00

The creation of an oil and gas giant hasbegun. SapuraCrest Petroleum Bhd and Kencana Petroleum Bhd will be going through an RM11.85bil merger exercise to create the largest oil service provider by assets in the country - soon to be known as Sapura Kencana Petroleum Bhd.

For now, under a cash and share swap deal, a special purpose vehicle called Integral Key Sdn Bhd would be buying all the assets and liabilities of SapuraCrest for RM5.87bil and Kencana for RM5.98bil.

This shall be satisfied by some five billion Integral Key shares priced at RM2, and RM1.84bil in cash.

Integral Key has offered to acquire the SapuraCrest business for RM5.87bil equivalent to RM4.60 per share. It will acquire Kencana's business for RM5.98bil equivalent to RM3 per share.

At RM2, Integral Key's implied price earnings (PE) is approximately 20 times. The historical PE multiple of Kencana and SapuraCrest are 28.04 times and 25.41 times respectively.

Read more...

SapuraCrest Kencana eyes lucrative overseas deals

2011-12-10T06:58:00.000+08:00

The upcoming merged entity is bidding for multi-billion ringgit worth of oil and gas jobs stretching from Malaysia to Brazil.

SapuraCrest Kencana Petroleum Bhd, the upcoming merged entity between Malaysia’s two largest oil and gas (O&G) players, is eyeing more international projects, especially in Australia and Brazil, to boost its already fat order book of RM13 billion.

SapuraCrest Petroleum Bhd executive vicechairman and president, Datuk Seri Shahril Shamsuddin, said the company and Kencana Petroleum Bhd were bidding for multi-billion ringgit worth of O&G jobs stretching from Malaysia to Brazil.

“There is a lot of work coming out of Australia and Brazil is also another country that you can’t ignore. India is also heating up with new investments in oilfields.

“In the longer term, we will look at the Gulf of Mexico. As a merged entity, we can take on more jobs and bid for larger projects,” Shahril said in an interview with Business Times yesterday.

Also present was Kencana Petroleum Bhd’schief executive officer Datuk Mokhzani Mahathir.

SapuraCrest last month won a US$1.4 billion (RM4.4 billion) contract from Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras), Latin America’s largest company, to charter and operate three units of pipe-laying support vessels.

Kencana, on the other hand, announced yesterday that it won a RM1 billion contract to help build a liquefied natural gas processing facility in Australia, awarded by United States-based Bechtel International Inc.

Shahril said SapuraCrest Kencana, which will be the world’s fourth largest O&G service provider by market capitalisation upon merging, aimed to grow its revenue by 15 to 20 per cent per annum.

“Currently, our combined revenue is between RM5 billion and RM5.5 billion a year and we are confident to increase that year-onyear,” Shahril said.

On whether the new merged entity will embark on an acquisition trail, Shahril said if there were companies that could help mitigate risk or enable SapuraCrest Kencana to do projects at low cost, it would consider the options available.

The acquisitions may include buying engineering firms or those involved in specialised areas.

SapuraCrest and Kencana are merging in a deal worth RM11.85 billion to create the largest O&G service provider by asset in the country.

Under their cash and share swap deal, special purpose vehicle Integral Key Sdn Bhd will buy all the assets and liabilities of SapuraCrest for RM5.87 billion and Kencana for RM5.98 billion.

The companies are obtaining shareholders' approval at their respective extraordinary meetings on December 14 and December 15.

The exercise is scheduled to be completed by first quarter 2012.

Read more: SapuraCrest Kencana eyes lucrative overseas deals

Maxcorp boss seeks to take over Wijaya

2011-12-07T07:12:00.000+08:00

The low-profile Anuar Adam, who helms privately-held Maxcorp Group, aims to buy out Datuk Tiong King Sing’s interest in Wijaya at about RM1.10 per share.

Kuala Lumpur: Former army Major (rtd) Anuar Adam is gunning for control of Wijaya Baru Global Bhd.

Anuar is understood to be backed by a group of powerful Indonesian businessmen.

The low-profile Adam, who helms privately-held Maxcorp Group of companies, aims to buy out Datuk Tiong King Sing in a deal that values the Sarawakian tycoon’s interest in Wijaya at about RM1.10 per share.

Wijaya’s mother share closed 4.5 sen higher at 80.5 sen, while the warrants ended the trading day 9.5 sen higher at 33 sen.

Read more...

How to Chase the Market Rally

2011-12-07T06:24:00.001+08:00

They say the best athletes make it look easy; their swing so fluid, their sight so sharp, their hands so certain. Whatever the case may be, their performance is as instinctive as it is smooth. And so it is with the best investors, who have the consistency and confidence to play their game, and not be enticed into something else.

For Gene Peroni, portfolio manager at Advisors Asset Management, his game is simple: "Identify quality companies, with good earnings growth, good cash flow, and in some cases nice dividends", that are technically "trending higher, not ones that are still in troughs."

"Once we've identified those stocks...I think the best tack is to buy and hold through the short-term volatility," Peroni explains in the attached video.

While many investors may fear that they have missed the move of the past week or so, this Philadelphia-based fund manager sees higher levels ahead

"It would seem like you were chasing the markets," Peroni says. "But when you really compare that with the upside potential before the end of the cycle -- I believe it's above 16,000 (on the Dow Jones Industrial Avg.) over the next several years -- then the risk to reward, even at these levels, remains very attractive. For stocks individually, it's an even better outlook."

Cyclicals, and what he calls the "market leaders", are his favorites right now particularly Transportation plays like airlines, truckers, shippers as well as rails "right down the line." Kansas City Southern (KSU) being one of his favorites.

In addition, if you combine his expectation that there will be a migration into small and midcap names, with his affinity for industrials, aerospace and defense names like TransDigm (TDG) make the cut over their large cap peers.

And finally, Peroni is getting long energy, which he says has good sub-sector underlying strength in groups like oil and gas drillers, oil services and oil technology. Here, he singles out Concho Resources (CXO) as a "leadership stock" that's worth a look.

What do you think? Is it time to dive in or cash out?

Read more...

Three-way bid for Proton stake

2011-12-06T03:53:00.000+08:00

It is believed that the bidders are Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar AlBukhary’s DRB-HICOM, several key shareholders linked to the Naza Group and Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh.

As many as three parties have submitted a bid to Khazanah Nasional Bhd yesterday to seek control of national carmaker Proton Holdings Bhd, people involved in the bidding process said.

“The bids were in the range of between RM6 and RM7 a share,” said a party directly involved in the bidding process.

It is believed that the bidders are Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar AlBukhary’s DRB-HICOM Bhd, several key shareholders linked to the Naza Group and Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh.

Khazanah has a 43 per cent stake in Proton, and any bidder seeking to buy the government investment arm’s block will trigger a general offer.

“Those are the nitty gritty details, which are still being worked at ... but whoever is buying Proton is getting the company on the cheap,” said the source.

As at end-March 2011, Proton’s book value per share stood at RM9.84.

Read more: Three-way bid for Proton stake

Marco is on an uptrend, albeit gradual

2011-12-05T10:50:00.002+08:00

MARCO CORPORATION (M) SDN BHD is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marco Holdings Bhd., listed on the main board Bursa Malaysia. Farsighted with a focused vision, coupled with a steadfast corporate culture, these values have greatly contributed to the rapid business expansion of MARCO CORPORATION.

TIME dotCom next focus is Asia Pacific

2011-11-25T05:20:00.001+08:00

The company is now ready to go beyond the region equipped with its RM1 billion in assets.

SUBANG JAYA: TIME dotCom Bhd, which already has a strong presence in Southeast Asia, now plans to focus its business in the Asia Pacific market.

Executive director and chief executive officer Afzal Abdul Rahim said the company is now ready to go beyond the region equipped with its RM1 billion in assets.

"We will hit the international market and play with the big boys," Afzal told reporters here after the company's extraordinary general meeting.

TIME dotCom Bhd is the country's second largest fixed line telecommunications network and solutions provider after Telekom Malaysia Bhd.

It is a pioneer in fibre optic telecommunications technology, delivering data and non-data communication services to enterprise, corporate, government, wholesale and retail customers via its fibre optic network traversing Thailand to Singapore.

TIME dotCom had received minority shareholders approval on its RM339 million proposed acquisition of three companies.

Afzal said the group can now pursue its plan to become a regional player with the Asia Pacific market as its main focus.

The three companies are Global Transit Communications Sdn Bhd, which is a leading regional wholesale Internet service and backhaul provider, AIMS Group, a leading "carrier hotel" (a type of data centre) in Malaysia and Global Transit Entities, which hold internet licenses in Singapore and Hong Kong.

Upon completion by the first quarter 2012, the acquisitions will effectively position TIME dotCom into a regional telecommunications player.

This will see TIME dotCom moving up the telecommunications value chain giving it access and the capability to serve a multi-billion dollar market comprising the growing Indo-China, ASEAN and North Asian market where more than half of the world’s population resides and Internet demand is increasing.

TIME provides backhaul and wholesale bandwidth solutions to leading regional and global operators offering a full suite of telecommunication services, ranging from voice and data communications including high-speed broadband, Internet, satellite connectivity and managed services.

TIME was first to market fibre-to-the-home in Malaysia in early 2010.

Its signature product, TIME fibre broadband, now offers Malaysian home Internet users the fastest broadband connectivity in the country with speeds of up to 50Mbps.

Read more

Of penny stocks and regulations

2011-11-19T06:30:00.000+08:00

Penny stocks will survive. They survived the designation of Iris Corp Bhd, and they will survive the recent designation of Harvest Court Industries Bhd.

It is easy to paint penny stocks in one brush, that they are useless and mere vehicles for a quick punt.

Just like it's easy to push the buck to the regulator for letting stocks surge, with the occasional unusual market query.

In all fairness, the regulator had issued an alert to investors on trading in Iris five years ago, and on Harvest Court as early as last week.

Did the market players understand that an investor alert is the most serious warning before a stock is designated?

The market regulator should not be used as a punching bag for market participants' lack of foresight in scrutinising the Bursa Malaysia website.

Likewise, a handful of black sheep should not be allowed to poop the party, which never begun for the rest.

The likes of Fitters Diversified Bhd, Cuscapi Bhd and Asia Media Bhd, which are making good profits relative to their size, never really appreciated during the penny stock rally, or, should we say, the penny stock mutiny.

Should companies such as SYF Resources Bhd, which this week announced a plan to venture into the property sector and change its core business, be dismissed merely because it ran up at the wrong time?

Others, however, seem to have managed to dodge the limelight.

Read more

Harvest shares, warrants advance, ignore trading curbs

2011-11-19T06:08:00.005+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 18): HARVEST COURT INDUSTRIES BHD []’s shares and the warrants climbed on Friday despite the trading curbs on the securities which came into effect on Wednesday to check excessive speculation.

At 4.14pm, Harvest was up 31 sen to RM1.35 with 8.89 million shares done while the warrants added 26 sen to Rm1.15 with 8.51 million units transacted.

The performance of the securities bucked the cautious broader market which saw the FBM KLCI falling 4.77 points to 1,460.70.

Read More

Harvest Court rallies to six-year high

Written by Syarina Hyzah Zakaria Thursday, 03 November 2011 11:37

KUALA LUMPUR: Harvest Court Industries Bhd’s share price surged by over 20% with some 54.23 million shares changing hands, making it the third most actively traded stock on Bursa Malaysia yesterday.
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The company also drew attention when it announced the appointment of Nazifuddin Najib, the son of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, as a non-executive director. Nazifuddin is also a director of Sagajuta.
Read more

Harvest rebounds after 2-day selldown on trading curbs
Written by Joseph Chin of theedgemalaysia.com Friday, 18 November 2011 15:04

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 18): The shares of HARVEST COURT INDUSTRIES BHD [] staged a mild rebound on Friday after a two-day selldown since Wednesday after trading curbs were placed.

At 2.57pm, the share price was up 15 sen to RM1.19 with 5.60 million units done. The warrants gained six sen to 95 sen with 5.26 million units transacted.

On late Monday, Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd announced that it had declared the securities of Harvest Court as designated counters with effect from Nov 16, Wednesday, due to excessive speculation.

The imposition of this ruling for the shares and the warrants are in force until further notice.

Wall St jumps, on track for weekly gain as fears ebb

2011-11-12T05:01:00.000+08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose on Friday and were on track to end the week higher as Italy's Senate approved economic reforms, easing investors' concerns about the euro zone's debt crisis.

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SapuraCrest wins RM4.37 billion Petrobras job

2011-11-02T02:13:00.001+08:00

PETALING JAYA (Nov 1, 2011): SapuraCrest Petroleum Bhd has won a US$1.4 billion (RM4.37 billion) contract from Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) to build, charter and operate three deepwater flexible pipe-lay support vessels (PLSV) for the Brazilian national oil company.
"This contract is a significant milestone as it marks our entry into the vast, dynamic yet technologically challenging oil and gas market in Brazil,'' executive vice-chairman and president Datuk Seri Shahril Shamsuddin said in a press statement today.
Under the award, SapuraCrest's wholly-owned unit TL Offshore Sdn Bhd (TLO) is to construct and charter the three PLSVs to Petrobras.
"Revenue from the award is expected to be generated by the fourth quarter of 2014,'' SapuraCrest said in a separate statement to Bursa Malaysia.

"The award will have no effect on the issued and paid-up share capital of the company and is expected to contribute positively to the group's net assets and earnings for the financial year ending Jan 31, 2015 and beyond,'' it added.

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Stocks Sink to End Month, but Major Indices Still See Big Gains for October

2011-11-01T04:05:00.007+08:00

Consumers less negative than data says: U.S. Commerce official

2011-10-28T20:02:00.002+08:00

Charts are Bullish

2011-10-25T03:21:00.000+08:00

Bigger network for Asia Media

2011-10-24T20:14:00.000+08:00

Puchong: Asia Media Group Bhd, the country's largest transit-television network operator, plans to launch a terrestrial digital TV station by as early as the first quarter of next year, said its controlling stakeholder Datuk Ricky Wong Shee Kai.
"We have started testing works in Puchong and Shah Alam early this month, and have allocated as much as RM50 million in capital expenditure next year to help us with the launch in the Klang Valley," Wong told Business Times in an interview at his office.

Wong, who owns slightly more than 45 per cent of Asia Media, is also the chief executive officer of the company.
"A partial launch will be done in the first quarter, and by the second quarter, we should be in full swing," said Wong.

He said the first step in the plan to launch the terrestrial digital TV station is to launch the "out-of-home service".

"Out-of-home service means that people who use public transport such as the Rapid buses and the city's rail service will be able to watch live TV," said Wong.

Read more: Bigger network for Asia Media

Expect All-Time Market Highs in 2012

2011-10-20T19:50:00.004+08:00

TimeCom as sole network provider for Scomi

2011-10-19T04:40:00.002+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR: Scomi Group Bhd (Scomi), a global oilfield services, transport solutions and marine services provider, has appointed TIME dotcom Bhd as the sole network provider to meet its global connectivity needs across five countries.

The partnership includes the design, implementation and full management by TIME dotcom Bhd of Scomi's Private Data Network connecting Scomi's offices in India, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and Malaysia.

Dow closed at 11 397 down 247, but indicators point to an uptrend - Let's see! Dow R~11 640 KLCI R~1480

2011-10-18T04:34:00.004+08:00

The Following Day

21 October 2011

P1 to offer fibre-powered broadband in 1Q12

2011-10-17T05:21:00.002+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR: Green Packet Bhd’s wireless broadband arm, Packet One Networks (M) Sdn Bhd (P1), will begin offering fibre optic cable-powered high-speed broadband (HSBB) and possibly IPTV services by 1Q12, having sealed a 10-year wholesale agreement with Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM).

“Along with [the] launch early next year, we [will] also look at providing IPTV and Video on Demand (VoD),” P1 CEO Michael Lai said at the signing ceremony between P1 and TM yesterday.

The agreement gives P1 access to some 1.3 million homes connected to TM’s HSBB network, alongside leading mobile phone operators Maxis Bhd and Celcom Axiata Bhd, which had earlier signed similar wholesale agreements with TM. These services will compete with TM’s own HSBB triple-play (broadband-home voice-IPTV) offering UniFi which has 142,000 customers as at mid-August, 30% of whom are active users of the IPTV service.

P1 currently offers wireless broadband services using its WiMAX network. Lai, who declined to reveal the value of the agreement, said P1 would need very little capital expenditure for the new service as it rides on TM’s infrastructure.

“There will be some allocation for operational expenditure, [which] we will reveal in the future [when it is ascertained],” he said.

The collaboration with P1 is TM’s third agreement with a local telco since it signed the public-private partnership agreement (PPP) with the government in 2008.

Zamzamzairani: The partnership will bring enormous benefits to all end users. Under the agreement, TM is to allow any MCMC-licensed service provider access to the HSBB network that is estimated to cost RM11.3 billion over 10 years for a fee.

Read more

Wall St. gains on euro-fund optimism, Dow up on year

2011-10-13T03:44:00.002+08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks jumped 1 percent on Wednesday, pushing the Dow into positive territory for the year, as the euro-zone rescue fund was set to get approval from all EU members.

Momentum buying was partly in play, analysts said. The S&P 500 has gained 13.5 percent from the intraday low hit last week on Tuesday and was on track for its largest seven-day rally since March 2009.

"It feels as though the market is experiencing the possibility of a melt-up," said Hank Smith, chief investment officer of Haverford Trust Co. in Philadelphia.

"You've got a lot of money on the sidelines that just didn't want to take the risk of being invested. That could come back in."

Slovakian lawmakers struck a deal to ratify more powers for the euro zone's rescue fund, known as the EFSF, effectively ending a crisis that threatens the euro's survival and which has weighed on stocks and other risky assets for months.

Slovakia is the last country in the 17-member currency zone left to approve the revamped EFSF.

Bank shares led the advance again, with the KBW Bank Index (Philadelphia:^BKX) shot up 4.1 percent. Citigroup (NYSE:C) gained 6.2 percent to $29.54.

The Dow Jones industrial average (DJI:^DJI) was up 159.92 points, or 1.40 percent, at 11,576.22. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (SNP:^GSPC) was up 18.51 points, or 1.55 percent, at 1,214.05. The Nasdaq Composite Index (Nasdaq:^IXIC) was up 31.46 points, or 1.22 percent, at 2,614.49.

The S&P 500 traded above 1,200 for the first time in three weeks, taking the benchmark near the upper end of a range it has been stuck at since early August.

If the index is able to stay above resistance at 1,215, that would be seen as a bullish signal, analysts said.

Among earnings, PepsiCo Inc (NYSE:PEP) rose 3.7 percent to $63.19 after it reported slightly better-than-expected earnings and affirmed its full-year target. But Alcoa Inc (NYSE:AA) fell 2.5 percent to $10.04 and ranked as one of the biggest drags on the Dow, a day after reporting results.

(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Additional reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Jan Paschal)

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Note: Downward trend channel broken upwards!!

Stocks End Near Session Highs, Dow Soars 300

2011-10-11T04:19:00.001+08:00

Stocks surged in the final minutes of trading to close at session highs Monday, led by banks, amid optimism that France and Germany's pledge would help resolve the euro zone debt crisis and rescue the region's struggling financials.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average logged its best five-day point gain since Dec. 2008, led by BofA [BAC 6.28 0.38 (+6.44%) ] and JPMorgan [JPM 32.30 1.60 (+5.21%) ]. The Dow has rallied over 1,000 points from last Tuesday's intraday low of 10404.49.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq also ended sharply higher. Both major indexes are on pace for their best month this year. The CBOE Volatility Index, widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, traded below 34.

All 10 S&P sectors finished firmly in the black, led by banks and energy.

Over the weekend, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy promised to present a plan before a G20 summit early next month to shore up euro zone banks, settle the Greek debt crisis and help growth in Europe.

“The optimism is amazing to me—I don’t think any market participant is saying things are fixed in Europe, but what they’re hoping is that by the time Europe starts to resurface again in a few months from now, there will be traction in our economy that will be enough of a positive to wipe out the negative there,” Jim Iuorio of TJM Institutional Services told CNBC.

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Chart Watchers See Upbeat Turn

2011-10-10T07:41:00.000+08:00

In recent years, they have sounded the alarm over everything from "death crosses" to "Hindenburg omens," warning of a dire future for the stock market.

Now, several of Wall Street's technical analysts—the stock-market geeks who scour charts for patterns and clues to future market moves—have some good news for the bulls.

They say trading in the past few days suggests the U.S. market may have reached a bottom early last week, and that stocks are destined to move higher.

They point to the moves on Tuesday in particular, when major stock indexes were lower for much of the day before ...

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Week Ahead: U.S. corporate earnings to be weak, says analyst

2011-10-10T03:23:00.001+08:00

Weekly Recap - Week ending 07-Oct-11

2011-10-09T20:35:00.001+08:00

Failure to sustain a rebound from midday losses left stocks to roll into the red during the final hour. They still made it out with week 2% higher than where they started.

The major equity averages lacked direction this morning, even though premarket participants had cheered the September jobs report. Nonfarm payrolls grew by 103,000, up from an upwardly revised 57,000 in August. However, the upside surprise is mostly due to the end of a strike at Verizon. Excluding those workers, payrolls increased by 58,000, which is on par with the 60,000 new jobs that had been generally expected among economists polled by Briefing.com. Meanwhile, private payrolls increased by 137,000, which came on top of the upwardly revised 42,000 jobs that were added during the prior month. An increase of 83,000 had been broadly expected.

The number of people entering the workforce was roughly the same as the number of workers who found jobs in September, so the unemployment rate remained at 9.1%, which is exactly what had been expected. However, job gains were mostly part-time, resulting in an increase in underemployment that took the "real" unemployment rate up to 16.5% from 16.2% in the prior month.

Even though the payrolls report proved better-than-expected, stocks lacked leadership at the open of trade. That made it difficult for the major equity averages to extend their streak of gains to a fourth straight session. The listlessness of early trade left stocks to slide into negative territory. Selling intensified in response to news that analysts at Fitch cut their ratings on Italy and Spain. At its low, the stock market was down more than 1%.

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U.S. stocks rise on Europe and claims data

2011-10-07T05:23:00.000+08:00

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks climbed Thursday for a third day, sending the Dow industrials back above 11,000, as Europe stepped up efforts to bolster its banks and jobless claims rose less than feared, supporting hopes for Friday’s monthly jobs report.

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Late surge erases earlier losses on Wall Street

2011-10-05T08:26:00.000+08:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- A late afternoon surge capped another wild day on Wall Street Tuesday and prevented the S&P 500 stock index from entering a bear market. Stocks jumped on reports that European officials were working to prop up the region's struggling banks.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down nearly 200 points with 40 minutes of trading left. It closed up 153.

Indexes opened sharply lower as traders worried that the government of Greece could be closer to defaulting on its debt. They pared their losses at midday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told a Congressional panel that the central bank could take more steps to stimulate the economy, then slumped again in the afternoon.

At 3:25 p.m., the market began rising quickly after news outlets reported that European financial ministers were working on a way to coordinate their efforts to support European banks, as they did during the financial crisis in 2008. Worries that European and perhaps U.S. banks could get hammered by a Greek default have been a major concern among investors.

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World stocks post worst quarter in 3 years

2011-10-02T19:52:00.001+08:00

Share buybacks point to opportunities

2011-09-29T05:42:00.001+08:00

BOSTON (MarketWatch) — To many investors, it’s a bear market, a wasteland with few if any opportunities — even on a global scale. From high points earlier this year, Japanese markets are down 21%, Germany has dropped 33% and France has declined by 34%. And the U.S. and U.K. markets, down 17 or so percent, from peaks earlier this year, aren’t far behind.

Yet, at times like these, there’s always a bargain to be found. Like those who search for truffles, you just need to know where to look.

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Stocks See Worst Week Since October 2008

2011-09-24T04:39:00.000+08:00

Stocks End Sharply Lower After Fed Decision

2011-09-22T07:39:00.002+08:00

Stocks closed near session lows after selling off sharply in the final hour Wednesday as investors were cautious over the Fed's grim outlook, even as it proposed plans to ramp up its aid to help the economy.

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The Fed announced it would launch a new $400 billion program in a move to rebalance its $2.87 trillion portfolio—a version of the widely expected Operation Twist—by selling shorter-term notes and using those funds to purchase longer-dated Treasurys.

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The men who crashed the world

2011-09-22T02:17:00.000+08:00

America's debt woe is worse than Greece's

2011-09-20T05:23:00.003+08:00

Boston, Massachussetts (CNN) -- Our government is utterly broke. There are signs everywhere one looks. Social Security can no longer afford to send us our annual benefit statements. The House can no longer afford its congressional pages. The Pentagon can no longer afford the pension and health care benefits of retired service members. NASA is no longer planning a manned mission to Mars.

We're broke for a reason. We've spent six decades accumulating a huge official debt (U.S. Treasury bills and bonds) and vastly larger unofficial debts to pay for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits to today's and tomorrow's 100 million-plus retirees.

The government's total indebtedness -- its fiscal gap -- now stands at $211 trillion, by my arithmetic. The fiscal gap is the difference, measured in present value, between all projected future spending obligations -- including our huge defense expenditures and massive entitlement programs, as well as making interest and principal payments on the official debt -- and all projected future taxes.

The data underlying this figure come straight from the horse's mouth -- the Congressional Budget Office. The CBO's June 22 Alternative Fiscal Scenario presents nothing less than a Greek tragedy. It's actually worse than the Greek tragedy now playing in Athens. Our fiscal gap is 14 times our GDP. Greece's fiscal gap is 12 times its GDP, according to Professor Bernd Raffelhüschen of the University of Freiburg.

In other words, the U.S. is in worse long-term fiscal shape than Greece. The financial sharks are circling Greece because Greece is small and defenseless, but they'll soon be swimming our way.

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50-50 chance U.S. will fall back into recession

2011-09-17T20:46:00.001+08:00

Market up for 5th day, but Europe issues linger

2011-09-17T04:09:00.001+08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose for a fifth day on Friday on hopes Europe was on course to solve its debt problems, but investors warned of sharp reversals if real solutions failed to materialize.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner urged EU finance ministers to leverage their bailout fund to better tackle the debt crisis and to start speaking with one voice, but there was no agreement on what steps to take.

"There are still a lot of open-ended issues out there, which means this situation will remain pretty fluid," said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott in Philadelphia. "All of what we just gained in the last five trading sessions could be given back."

On Thursday stocks rallied as the world's leading central banks agreed to boost short-term dollar funding for banks, easing investor fears about the European financial system.

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Are Investors Taking Debt Crisis in Europe Too Lightly?

2011-09-16T04:54:00.001+08:00

Despite a long-term picture in Europe that appears to be as unsettled as ever, investors will take any bit of good news and run with it.

That's been the message from a succession of trading days in which even the whisper of resolution to the European sovereign debt problem-a conference call among policy makers, another bailout installment for Greece-sees the market go higher.

Even downbeat economic numbers, like the batch the government released Thursday, weren't enough to derail hopes that Europe won't implode and take the global economy down for the ride.

"Somehow we're back to a risk-on trade again," says David Twibell, president of Custom Portfolio Group in Englewood, Col. "The problem in Europe is, 1) very serious, and 2) there is no easy solution. If there was we would have already solved the problem. The market is being a bit pollyannaish right now."

An announcement that the European Central Bank and its global cohorts are embarking on a program aimed at providing dollars for liquidity-challenged banks served as all the catalyst the market needed to surge.

Those who trade on hope that the plan will fix the debt crisis do so at their own peril, Twibell says.

"If the market is going to be remotely rational, the upside is going to be fairly limited," he says. "We still don't know how the US economy shakes out. The situation in Europe is going to be an overhang. I don' see a lot of upside, and the downside could be substantial if we see a disorderly default in Europe."

Though the problems with European debt and the effect it will have on banks run well beyond liquidity and into actual solvency, the narrative that took hold was that central bankers were taking a proactive step to prevent another catastrophe on the scale of the fall of Lehman Brothers.

The move came on the third anniversary of Lehman's implosion and conjured up memories of the financial crisis that nearly brought down the entire global economy.

"What is the good news? That the big powers in Europe are still adamantly opposed to any kind of debt resolution?" said Walter Zimmerman, senior vice president at United-ICAP in Jersey City, N.J. "Those who don't have a vested interest in European banks look at that and say it's just delusional to think that Greece is going to get out of this without any type of debt restructuring."

The answer to the market's movement, then, could be as much technical as it is based on hopes for European stability.

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Stocks Rally on Hopes for Progress on Greece's Debt

2011-09-15T04:18:00.002+08:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stock indexes jumped in another day of bumpy trading Wednesday after European leaders renewed pledges to help Greece avoid defaulting on its debts.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 194 points, or 1.8 percent, to 11,299 at 3 p.m. It had been down as many as 112 points within an hour after the opening bell.

The leaders of Greece, France and Germany agreed in a teleconference that Greece was an "integral" part of the 17-nation bloc that uses the euro. Greece also agreed to abide by agreements to trim its debts. The statements were intended to calm fears that Greece was headed for a default on its debt or might be forced to exit the euro.

European stock indexes rose in the hours leading up to the meeting as investors hoped the talks would be productive. Germany's DAX gained 3.4 percent and France's CAC-40 1.9 percent.

The threat of a Greek default and the damage it could wreak on financial markets has had investors on edge in the past two weeks, lifting Treasurys and weighing on stocks. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note hit a record low on Monday of 1.87 percent and the S&P 500 has only risen three days this month.

Uri Landesman, president of the New York hedge fund Platinum Partners, said worries over Greece have gone too far. Landesmann thinks European countries won't let a Greek default create a larger financial crisis. "They're just not going to let them go under," he said. "That's just not happening. I think people have learned the lesson from letting Lehman Brothers fail."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel distanced herself from comments this week by her vice chancellor and others who suggested a Greek bankruptcy was possible. The finance ministers from the 17 nation-bloc that uses the euro currency will meet on Friday in Poland.

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Would Systech Rise Tomorrow??

2011-09-14T21:24:00.004+08:00

Systech 2 Weeks Later

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING IN RELATION TO THE PROPOSED ACQUISITION BY SYSTECH BHD ("SYSTECH" OR "THE COMPANY") OF 100,000 ORDINARY SHARES IN POSTLINK PTE LTD (“POSTLINK”) (“POSTLINK SHARES”) REPRESENTING 100% EQUITY INTEREST IN POSTLINK FOR A PURCHASE CONSIDERATION TO BE DETERMINED (“PROPOSED ACQUISITION”)

Stocks Could Be Running Up the 'Bear Flag,' Signaling Another Move Lower

2011-09-13T19:12:00.000+08:00

Dow Could Crash to 3,000 in 2013: Author

2011-09-13T06:37:00.000+08:00

The recent gyrations in global stock markets are just the beginning, says U.S.-based economist and author Harry Dent, who believes the Dow will fall below 10,000 in the near term before crashing to around 3,000 in 2013.

He pointed to the selloff during the last global financial crisis, when the Dow lost around 8,000 points in the period between October 2007 and early 2009.

Dent based his bearish predictions squarely on the changing spending habits of global consumers.

"Baby boomers around the world, and all the developed countries — Europe, North America, Australia — they have peaked in their spending cycles...they've been driving up real estates prices and stock prices and the economy for decades, and now they're going to be saving and not borrowing," Dent said.

Accentuating the problem is the deleveraging of U.S. private debt, which has doubled to $42 trillion from $20 trillion in the last eight years, according to Dent, and is now valued at three times the size of the nation’s public debt.

"That debt is deleveraging, and that's actually causing deflationary trends. It won't matter how much stimulus the government throws at the system, because baby boomers with their already huge debt burdens will not want to borrow money and spend more,” said Dent.

"In the Great Depression, that's what happened — deflation came in such a deep downturn because so much debt was deleveraging."

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Stocks turn higher in final minutes

2011-09-13T04:16:00.002+08:00

Dow Slumps 304 Points as Europe Jitters Slam Stocks

2011-09-10T05:44:00.002+08:00

Obama Unveils $447 Billion Jobs Plan to Congress

2011-09-09T08:10:00.003+08:00

President Barack Obama proposed a $447 billion jobs package on Thursday to help boost the U.S. economy, challenging Congress to pass legislation made up largely of tax cuts for workers and businesses.

"It will provide a jolt to an economy that has stalled and give companies confidence that if they invest and hire there will be customers for their products and services. You should pass this jobs plan right away," Obama said.

Obama, whose 2012 re-election depends on his ability to bring down the 9.1 percent unemployment rate, proposed extending unemployment insurance at a cost of $49 billion, modernizing schools for $30 billion and investing in transportation infrastructure projects for $50 billion.

But the bulk of his proposal was made up of $240 billion in tax relief by cutting payroll taxes for employees in half next year and trimming employer payroll taxes as well.

The $447 billion is more than the $300 billion initially expected.

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Wall St extends losses after Bernanke speech

2011-09-09T04:11:00.000+08:00

Stocks rally after Germany upholds bailout plan

2011-09-08T03:59:00.000+08:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S. stocks rallied for the first time in three days Wednesday after a German court backed the country's role in bailing out other European countries. The ruling renewed hopes that Europe will find a solution to its long-running debt problems.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 253 points, or 2.3 percent, to 11,392 at 2:30 p.m. EST. The Dow and other U.S. indexes fell over the previous three days on worries about Europe's debt woes and weakness in the U.S. jobs market. All 30 stocks in the Dow rose.

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Bernalec and Bernalec-cb

2011-09-08T03:46:00.000+08:00

Bursa and Bursa-ct

2011-09-08T03:26:00.002+08:00

U.S. stocks drop in bleak September streak

2011-09-07T07:17:00.003+08:00

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks tumbled for a third straight session Tuesday, marking the S&P 500’s worst September start in its five-decade history, on worries related to Europe’s debt crisis.

A rush to assets still perceived as safe sent the 10-year Treasury yield to a record low. The Swiss franc, recently a popular alternative to the euro and dollar, fell the most since the formation of the euro after the Swiss central bank capped the exchange rate.

The day’s action resulted in the roughest September start for U.S. stocks in years if not decades. Still, the close marked a recovery from session lows.

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Europe stocks slammed; Germany drops over 5%

2011-09-05T23:41:00.005+08:00

2011-09-04T05:07:00.002+08:00

Stocks plunge after US hiring dries up in August

2011-09-03T04:12:00.002+08:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks plunged Friday after a dismal report on the job market renewed fears of another recession.

No jobs were added in the U.S. last month, the government said early Friday. It was the worst report in 11 months. The unemployment rate held steady at 9.1 percent. It has been above 9 percent in all but two months since May 2009.

"It's certainly ugly," said Jeff Kleintop, chief market strategist at LPL Financial. Kleintop said the report didn't change his view that the economy was headed for a stretch of weak economic growth, not a recession.

Treasury yields fell sharply and gold jumped $48 an ounce as cash flowed into investments seen as less risky than stocks. Overseas markets followed U.S. stocks lower. They were already lower on reports that talks between Greece and international lenders over that country's debt crisis were breaking down.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 250 points, or 2.2 percent, to 11,240 at 3:37 p.m. EST. All 30 stocks in the Dow fell. Bank of America Corp. fell the most, 8 percent.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 30, or 2.5 percent, to 1,173. The Nasdaq composite index fell 65, or 2.5 percent, to 2,480.

The losses wiped out most of this week's gains, pushing the Dow and S&P 500 down by less than 1 percent. Stock indexes rose last week for the first time since July 22.

Volume was thin ahead of the Labor Day weekend, which often makes markets take bigger jumps. When fewer traders are active in the market, large buy and sell orders can move stock prices more than they would on a typical day.

The lack of hiring in the Labor Department's closely watched jobs report surprised investors. Previously reported job addition figures for June and July were also revised lower. The average work week declined and hourly earnings fell.

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Stocks End Near Session Highs, Led by Banks

2011-08-30T04:14:00.002+08:00

Stocks closed near session highs Monday, fueled by a merger between two big Greek banks, a better-than-expected personal spending report and as the damage from Hurricane Irene over the weekend was less than feared.

Stocks recover after Bernanke predicts US growth

2011-08-27T04:07:00.001+08:00

Stocks turn higher, erasing early losses, as Bernanke predicts long-term US economic growth

Sellers Emerge Ahead of Bernanke Speech

2011-08-26T04:05:00.001+08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major stock averages fell on Thursday as traders were quick to shed positions ahead of a keenly awaited address by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday.

A report showing U.S. job market weakness and concerns over a sharp drop in German stocks were the latest global economic concerns, fueling a wave of selling that picked up steam.

"They're selling ahead of Bernanke and being fairly cautious in their positioning," said Len Blum, managing partner of Westwood Capital LLC in New York.

New U.S. jobless claims rose last week, the government said, suggesting the job market is still struggling.

"It's just a skittish market," he said. "You had jobs this morning, which wasn't a great thing. It's not a very bearish sentiment around here... It's just everything -- a convergence of factors -- including the European situation and unemployment."

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Stocks stage afternoon rally; Gold drops $104

2011-08-25T04:44:00.002+08:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks are closing higher after a late afternoon surge. Gold dropped $104, the dollar and government bond yields rose as investors became less fearful.
A rise in orders for long-lasting goods like cars and aircraft in July eased fears that the U.S. was headed for another recession.

Stocks rose for a third straight day, but only after swinging from gains to losses and back again. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 144 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 11,321 Wednesday.

The S&P 500 index rose 15, or 1.3 percent, to 1,178. The Nasdaq rose 22, or 0.9 percent, to 2,468.

More than two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange Trading volume was above average at 4.6 billion shares.

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Stocks Jump; Dow Headed for Best Gain in Two Weeks

2011-08-24T04:03:00.001+08:00

Benalec posts RM22.81m net profit in 4Q

2011-08-23T04:39:00.001+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR: Benalec Holdings Bhd posted net profit RM22.81 million for the fourth quarter ended June 30, 2011 on the back of revenue RM65.96 million.

Earnings per share was 3.10 sen while net assets per share was 47 sen.

Reviewing its results, Benalec said on Monday, Aug 22 attributed its net 4Q net profit due to recognition of net gain on disposal of land held for sales, fair value gain on acquisition of a subsidiary, and offset by listing expenses in the previous quarter.

For the financial year ended June 30, Benalec posted net profit RM96.08 million on the back of revenue RM214.49 million.

Going forward, Benalec said the prospects for growth were bright based on the future projects in the pipeline that exists particularly in Penang, Melaka, Iskandar, Port Klang and the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE).

It said the Tenth Malaysia Plan had ports and harbour industry as a key economic sector for targeted growth in Malaysia and had allocated a substantial amount of funding in support of the industry.

“The Government is committing resources towards making Malaysia a high income, high Gross Domestic Product (GDP) nation by the announcement of the five (5) economic regions during the Ninth Malaysia Plan, by which the development of these regions encompasses coastal, rivals and waterfront development as well as the upgrade of infrastructure such as the CONSTRUCTION [] of power plants and energy stations, better drainage control and flood mitigation systems.

“On the regional front, the opportunities that exist in Asia Pacific with future projects estimated at over RM170 billion, are a compelling incentive for Benalec to invest and expand its operations beyond domestic borders,” it said.

Source

Wall Street sinks for fourth straight week

2011-08-22T01:20:00.001+08:00

NEW YORK: Wall Street ended a fourth week of losses on a down note on Friday, Aug 20 as most buyers left the market before the weekend on growing fears of another U.S. recession and destabilization in Europe's financial system.

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Stocks turn lower as traders prepare for weekend

2011-08-20T04:08:00.003+08:00

MRT Co takes over

2011-08-19T04:51:00.002+08:00

Putrajaya: The Cabinet has set up MRT Co, a company under the Minister of Finance Inc, to directly oversee the multi-billion ringgit Klang Valley MY Rapid Transit (MRT) project.

MRT Co will officially become MY Rapid Transit project and asset owner, currently held by Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd, from September 1.

The government will name a local as MRT Co's chief executive officer at a later date, according to a statement by Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) yesterday.

"MRT Co's immediate and critical priority is to focus on ensuring the smooth implementation of the Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line," Pemandu said.

With MRT Co in the picture, Prasarana will now be able to focus on its role to ensure an efficient and reliable public transportation service in the Klang Valley, it added.

Read more: MRT Co takes over

Financials Lead Global Sell-Off But This Is Not 2008: Yoshikami

2011-08-19T04:42:00.000+08:00

Wall Street ends sharply lower on recession fears

Wall St. Erases Last Week's Losses on Big Merger Monday

2011-08-16T04:07:00.001+08:00

New life in KL plan

2011-08-15T07:24:00.003+08:00

Kuala Lumpur: Urban regeneration projects in Malaysia may be given a new breath of life with the RM9 billion Tamansari Riverside Garden City development in Kuala Lumpur starting soon.

The first regeneration project for Malaysia was the development of Subang Jaya in Selangor in the 1960s, initiated by second prime minister, the late Tun Abdul Razak.

The idea was later mooted by Tun Abdul Razak to regenerate the Pekeliling flats area, located along Jalan Tun Razak-Jalan Pahang in the 1970s, which is now known as Tamansari.

Stocks soar on small positive economic signs

2011-08-12T04:02:00.002+08:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street's wildest week since 2008 continued with another 400-plus point move for the Dow on Thursday. This time, stocks shot up after investors saw small signs that the economy might not be headed into another recession.

Fewer Americans joined the unemployment line last week, and a technology bellwether said revenue could grow faster this quarter than analysts expected. The news pushed prices on long-term Treasurys down, and gold fell from its record high.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 549 points, or 5.1 percent, to 11,269 at 3:45 p.m. in New York.

During a calm market, a 400 point move would rank as the Dow's biggest in months. During this volatile week, it's the smallest. On Monday, The Dow plunged 634 points only to gain 429 points Tuesday and then sink 519 points Wednesday. If the Dow stays above 400 points through today's close, it would be the first time in its history that it had four-straight 400-point days.

Such big up-and-down swings are reminiscent of 2008, when the financial crisis battered stocks. The last time the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose or fell by 4 percent in four straight trading days, as it has just done, was Nov. 19, 2008 through Nov. 24, 2008. Over that span, the index went from down 6.1 percent to down 6.7 percent to up 6.3 percent to up 6.5 percent.

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Market Turmoil Continues; Banks Drag Wall Street Lower on Europe Debt- Reuters

2011-08-11T06:19:00.006+08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fear returned to Wall Street on Wednesday, sending the S&P 500 to another 4 percent decline, triggered by worries that Europe's debt crisis could engulf French banks and spill onto the U.S. financial sector.

Trading was once again marked by sharp moves on heavy volume. For a fifth straight day, the Dow industrials fluctuated in a range of more than 400 points.

"What you're seeing is a very short-term, direction-oriented market," said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer of North Star Investment Management Corp in Chicago.

Worries about the strength of French lenders, including Societe Generale, triggered a selloff in European and U.S. banks. Rumors about SocGen's financial health, which the bank denied, sent its shares tumbling 14.7 percent.

An index of European banks dropped 6.7 percent and the KBW index of U.S. bank stocks slid 4.9 percent as fear grew of a possible contagion of any French crisis. Bank of America Corp lost 10.9 percent to $6.77 and Goldman Sachs slid more than 10 percent to $110.34.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 519.83 points, or 4.62 percent, to 10,719.94. The S&P 500 fell 51.77 points, or 4.42 percent, to 1,120.76. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 101.47 points, or 4.09 percent, to 2,381.05.

Wednesday's drop came a day after stocks rallied on the Federal Reserve's pledge to keep interest rates near zero for at least two more years.

Even after Tuesday's snap-back rally, the S&P 500 is down almost 18 percent from its 2011 closing high set April 29.

The losses came against the backdrop of recent weak U.S. economic data, the United States losing its triple-A credit rating from Standard & Poor's and the inability of lawmakers to address worries that another recession may be on the way.

Dow Gets Back 430 Points in Furious Rally

2011-08-10T06:38:00.001+08:00

Dow rallies after Fed statement, up 429 points

2011-08-10T04:25:00.001+08:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks are rising at the closing of trading after the Federal Reserve said it has discussed policy moves it can make to spur the economy. The Fed also said growth has been slower than expected.

The Dow Jones industrial average is closing up 429 points, or 4 percent, to 11,239.77.

Stocks rallied in the last hour of trading. Stocks initially fell after the Fed made its statement, which included a pledge to keep interest rates at their record low until at least the middle of 2013.

The S&P 500 is up 53, or 4.7 percent , to 1,172.53. The Nasdaq is up 124, or 5.3 percent, to 2,482.52

The Dow had plunged 634 points Monday on the first day of trading since Standard & Poor's cut the U.S. credit rating.

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Stocks End Violent Sell-Off at Session Lows: Worst Day Since Credit Crisis

2011-08-09T05:50:00.002+08:00

Dollar to Be 'Discarded' by World: China Rating Agency

2011-08-08T07:16:00.001+08:00

The man who leads one of China’s top rating agencies says the greenback’s status as the world’s reserve currency is set to wane as the world’s most powerful policy makers convene to examine the implication of S&P’s decision to strip the United States of its triple “A” rating.

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The editorial called for “international supervision over the issue of U.S. dollars” and the introduction of “a new, stable and secured global reserve currency.”

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No Chance of Default, US Can Print Money: Greenspan

2011-08-08T07:06:00.003+08:00

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan on Sunday ruled out the chance of a US default following S&P's decision to downgrade America's credit rating.

"The United States can pay any debt it has because we can always print money to do that. So there is zero probability of default" said Greenspan on NBC's Meet the Press.

"What I think the S&P thing did was to hit a nerve that there's something basically bad going on, and it's hit the self-esteem of the United States, the psyche" said Greenspan.
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Greenspan said the current sense of crisis that has unnerved investors is about the euro zone, not the US.

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Stocks End Down 7% for the Week, Europe, Economy in Focus

2011-08-06T04:48:00.000+08:00

Stocks zigzagged wildly in volatile trading Friday as an uncertain economy and fears about the European debt crisis prevailed.

Stocks are closing mostly lower after a day of whipsaw trading. The Dow Jones industrial average traded in a huge range of 400 points.

Investors are fearful that the debt crisis in Europe might infect banks there, roiling financial markets worldwide.

Stocks opened higher Friday after the government said hiring picked up in July, but the gains were erased within 25 minutes.

The Dow closed up 61 points, or 0.5 percent, at 11,445. The S&P 500 closed down a point, or 0.1 percent, at 1,199. The Nasdaq composite index closed down 24, or 0.9 percent, at 2,532.

The Dow fell 513 points Thursday, the biggest loss since 2008.

Three stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading volume was heavy at 8.6 billion shares.

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DOW fell 512 points!!

2011-08-05T04:07:00.005+08:00

Where's the Market Value?

2011-08-05T03:17:00.000+08:00

Dow Skids 3%, Major Averages Lower for 2011

2011-08-05T03:16:00.001+08:00

All three major averages fell into negative territory for the year Thursday and are on track to post their steepest loss since May 2010 as investors were rattled over an intensifying global economic slowdown and ahead of the widely-followed monthly unemployment report.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 411 points during session lows, led by Caterpillar [CAT 91.7606 -4.5194 (-4.69%) ] and IBM [IBM 173.52 -5.31 (-2.97%) ], after rebounding from a deep selloff in the previous session to snap an eight-day losing streak. The blue-chip index bobbed in and out of "correction territory," defined by a drop of 10 percent from its peak from its intraday high in May.

The last time the Dow dropped more than 400 points in a single session was in Dec. 2008.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also plummeted. The S&P is also in correction mode. All three major indices are currently trading in negative territory for the year.

The CBOE Volatility Index, widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, surged more than 25 percent to trade near 30.

“You’re at critical levels here—the Dow has marginally broken through yesterday’s low and the S&P has yet to do that,” Art Cashin, director of floor operations at UBS Financial Services told CNBC. “If they break through noticeably, then we could be in for further selling.”

“The fact that we’re getting the heavy volume indicates that we might be getting some selling from offshore—people who can’t raise money in Europe might be trying to raise it over here,” Cashin said.

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Mah Sing lands M Sentral deal

2011-08-03T21:11:00.005+08:00

Kuala Lumpur: Asie Sdn Bhd has dished out the first contract for the RM9 billion privatised urban regeneration project in Kuala Lumpur to Mah Sing Group Bhd, Malaysia's fifth largest property developer by revenue.

The contract given to Mah Sing entails it to undertake a niche development on 1.6ha.

Called M Sentral, it will feature serviced residences and retail lots worth a combined RM900 million.

The urban regeneration project, dubbed Tamansari Riverside Garden City and mooted more than 10 years ago, is one of key developments under the Entry Point Projects.

Asie, a private concessionaire, has full rights and approvals to build residential and commercial properties, leisure, recreation and infrastructure facilities on 15 parcels of development land with five air rights in Precinct 2-Pekeliling of the River Corridor Development under the Blue Corridor policy of Kuala Lumpur City Plan 2020.

Located on 23ha along Jalan Tun Razak-Jalan Pahang, the former site of the Tunku Abdul Rahman flats or Pekeliling flats, the 15-year project is envisaged to be bigger than Mid Valley City.

Stocks now down for year as economic concerns grow

2011-08-03T04:52:00.002+08:00

Stocks retreat, with S&P down 2.6 percent as weak economic signs overshadow debt bill passage

David K. Randall, AP Business Writer, On Tuesday August 2, 2011, 4:13 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- A sell-off is erasing all of the year's gains in the stock market.

The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 2.6 percent Tuesday as investors grew increasingly concerned about the economy. The benchmark index is now at its lowest point of the year.

A report that consumers cut their spending in June for the first time in two years added to a series of weak economic indicators have pushed stocks lower for seven straight days.

The S&P is closing down 33 points to 1,254. The Dow Jones industrial average is down 266, or 2.2 percent, to 11,867. The Nasdaq is down 75, or 2.8 percent, to 2,669.

Four stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was higher than average at 5.3 billion shares.

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Doing Away With the Debt Ceiling

2011-08-02T03:40:00.000+08:00

Bruce Bartlett held senior policy roles in the Reagan and George H.W. Bush administrations and served on the staffs of Representatives Jack Kemp and Ron Paul.

Almost 10 years ago, I testified before the Senate Finance Committee that the debt limit should be abolished. Among the others who testified that day, including Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, no one supported my position.

What we have seen, currently and in the years since that hearing, is that for any politician to deny the validity of the debt limit is effectively to support unlimited debt, something no member of either party can afford to be accused of.

The negotiations leading up to Sunday night's announcement that President Obama and Congressional leaders of both parties had reached a deal to cut trillions of dollars in federal spending over the next decade makes the case against the debt limit that much stronger. We now know that it is a powerful mechanism for political extortion.

Unless the party holding the White House has a comfortable majority in the House of Representatives and at least 60 seats in the Senate, raising the debt limit is going to remain a means by which the minority party can impose its demands on the majority.Even if the Treasury avoids default on government debt this week, we will inevitably have to go through the same political drama the next time the debt limit runs out and every time thereafter. And sooner or later the shoe will be on the other foot, as Democrats hold the debt limit hostage against a Republican president.

Unfortunately, the option of just letting the debt limit expire is not available. It is permanent law and can be abolished only by repeal or by a ruling by the Supreme Court that it is unconstitutional. Note that the law does not impose a deadline at which the debt limit runs out; rather, the limit is a dollar figure that must be amended when the gross federal debt reaches it. The date when the limit is breached is a function of Treasury's cash flow and expenses.

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What the U.S. debt deal means for the global economy

2011-08-02T03:27:00.000+08:00

When U.S. President Barack Obama announced Sunday night that he and Congressional leaders had finally reached an agreement to raise the government debt ceiling, the world breathed a collective sigh of relief. Stock markets in Asia jumped on the news. Yes, the pact still has to pass through the Senate and unruly House of Representatives (a vote will take place today) before becoming official. But in all likelihood the scary game of brinksmanship between the country's two political parties has come to an end (for now), and as a result, the U.S. will likely not default on Tuesday. If the world's most important economy had actually been unable to pay its bills, the consequences for the global economy could have been biblical. The fact that we (barely) averted such a disaster is a bit of good news, something investors haven't had much of recently.

But just as a default by the U.S. would have had an outsized impact on the global economy, due to the unique position of America in the world, a deal struck to alter the direction of fiscal policy will also have a tremendous effect. The decisions made (or in this case, not made) by Washington in the debt agreement will reverberate through the world economy for years to come.

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CNBC.com Market Outlook

2011-07-30T07:25:00.000+08:00

Late Sell-Off Closes Bad Week for Stocks

2011-07-30T07:08:00.001+08:00

A difficult week on Wall Street came to a dismal end, with storm clouds of another recession and a crippling debt crisis circling overhead and dampening investor appetite for risk.

Major averages again sold off into the close, capping a week in which the market lost more than 4 percent and prepared for the worst that could lie ahead. Washington leaders failed to reach an agreement on raising the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling, setting the table for more troubles when the market reopens next week.

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Deadlock, durables, dismal earnings hit Wall Street

2011-07-28T05:27:00.002+08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street suffered its worst day in eight weeks on Wednesday, hit by weak earnings, lackluster economic data and no movement in Washington talks as the deadline for a default looms.

The debt ceiling debate has grabbed much of investors' attention this week as the August 2 deadline approaches, but it took a back seat for much of the day as the market reacted to earnings disappointments in industrial and technology sectors.

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Markets in-depth: 2nd-half outlook

2011-07-05T04:07:00.007+08:00

Wall St rises for 5th day on strong data

2011-07-02T02:58:00.001+08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) - July started on a positive note for U.S. stocks with Wall Street notching its fifth day of gains on Friday after a surprising jump in manufacturing data eased concerns about a tepid economic recovery.

The gains put equities on track for their best week in nearly a year, as the data and a temporary resolution to Greece's debt situation spurred increased demand for riskier assets.

"It's been quite a week, that's for sure. The strength just keeps getting better," said Andy Fitzpatrick, director of investments at Hinsdale Associates, in Hinsdale, Illinois. "It was positive to see a resolution in Greece and (the strength) could continue into July ... my view is that the outlook is pretty positive."

The pace of growth in manufacturing picked up for the first time in four months, with an index of national factory activity rising to 55.3 in June from 53.5 in May, Institute for Supply Management (ISM) data showed.

The ISM survey built on surprisingly strong regional business data on Thursday, reversing a recent trend of weaker-than-expected data.

The Dow Jones industrial average (DJI:^DJI - News) was up 157.30 points, or 1.27 percent, at 12,571.64. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (^SPX - News) was up 16.98 points, or 1.29 percent, at 1,337.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index (Nasdaq:^IXIC - News) was up 39.26 points, or 1.42 percent, at 2,812.78.

Friday marks the fifth day of a rally as stocks rebounded from a spate of weakness over the last two months. The S&P 500 (^SPX - News) climbed further above resistance at its 50-day moving average at 1,317, establishing another floor in the market after the benchmark index moved above a number of technical resistance levels. The S&P is up 5.4 percent this week.

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Petronas Chemicals to go ahead with US$1.5b Sabah urea project

2011-07-01T05:13:00.001+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR: Petronas Chemicals Bhd will go ahead with its US$1.5 billion Sabah ammonia urea project which will have urea capacity of 1.2 million tonnes per annum.

It said on Thursday, June 30 the plant would be built on 166 acres in the Sipitang industrial park in Sabah. The RM1.5 billion development cost would be financed from internal cash reserves and external borrowings.

Petronas Chemicals said a special purpose vehicle would undertake the project and work is expected to start in the second quarter of 2012 and commissioning in 2015.

It said the new plant supported its strategy to expand its production capacity and would provide it opportunities to further capitalise on its strengths and marketing position in Asia Pacific.

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Stocks Seek Strong End to Weak June

2011-07-01T04:06:00.001+08:00

NEW YORK—U.S. stocks climbed, on pace for a fourth straight day of gains, as encouraging Chicago-area economic data and a pledge from German banks to support heavily indebted Greece boosted investor sentiment as the second quarter comes to a close.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 129 points, or 1.1%, to 12390. The Dow is still in negative territory for the month, but it turned positive for the quarter Thursday, led by Intel, which rose 3.6%, and Hewlett-Packard, which gained 3.5%. The blue-chip index surged 327 points over the past three sessions, marking its strongest three-day performance since mid-March.

The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index jumped 12 points, or 0.9%, to 1319, led by industrial and technology stocks. All 10 of the S&P 500's sectors traded in positive territory. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 33 points, or 1.2%, to 2774. Both measures are now a hair's width from positive territory for the second quarter.

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AmBank issues 7 put & call warrants

2011-06-30T17:29:00.001+08:00

AmBank (M) Berhad (“AmBank”) is issuing seven new European style cash-settled structured warrants to meet investors’ demand for trading opportunities and alternative investments for the current market.

Under AmBank’s Put-Call Pair Programme, there will be three pairs of put and call warrants (the “PW” and “CW”
respectively) over the ordinary shares of Dialog Group Berhad (“DIALOG”), DRB-HICOM Berhad (“DRBHCOM”) and Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings Berhad (“MHB”).

There will also be a CW issued over the ordinary shares of TanChong Motor Holdings Berhad (“TCHONG”). The structured warrants on DIALOG, DRBHCOM and MHB will have tenures of approximately eight months while the call warrant on TCHONG will have a tenure of approximately twelve months. The structured warrants will be listed on 1 July 2011 with issue size of up to 100 million each.

“For AmBank’s upcoming tranche of structured warrants, we are issuing three put and call warrant pairs on DIALOG, DRBHCOM and MHB under our Put-Call PairProgramme, all of which have seen significant trading interest recently on the back of the Malaysian government’s ETP initiatives and M&A activities.

However, as market sentiment remains uncertain and conditions volatile over fears of a slowdown in global growth and Eurozone debt issues, AmBank’s put-call pair programme enables investors to profit on both the ups and downs of share price movements.

AmBank’s put warrants can also be used by investors to hedge their exposure to the underlying share. Each put and call warrant pair is issued with the same strike price over the underlying share,” said Ms Ng Ee Fang,Director/Head, Equity Derivatives, AmInvestment Bank Berhad.

Oil and gas services company DIALOG recently signed a RM1.9 billion agreement to provide engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning (EPCC) works for the first phase of a deepwater petroleum terminal at Pengerang, Johor. The
construction cost of RM1.9 billion is higher than management’s earlier guidance of RM1.7 billion with the schedule of completion extended from end-2013 to 2014.

The first phase of the terminal will have a capacity of 1.3 million cubic metres and will comprise a harbour port, jetty and other marine facilities with waterdepth up to 26 metres. Besides the Pengerang tank terminal project, DIALOG couldalso be potentially involved in the Bentara/Balai marginal field development.

AmBank’s CW and PW on DIALOG are both priced at 15 sen each with gearing of 6.09 times.

Major oil & gas fabricator MHB’s acquisition of Sime Darby’s 130-acre Pasir Gudang yard for RM399 million cash is expected to transform Malaysia’s fabrication landscape. Along with Petronas’ Teluk Ramunia yard, MHB will have access to Malaysia’s largest domestic fabrication yard of 672 acres. Petronas’ capex programme of RM250 billion for the next five years points to an abundance of new projects for fabrication yards. Therefore, MHB’s capacity expansion from the Pasir Gudang yard acquisition is expected to accelerate order book recognition, enhance deepwater capabilities and drive margin efficiencies.

AmBank’s CW and PW on MHB are both priced at 15 sen each with gearing of 5.69 times.

Conglomerate DRBHCOM had recently won the bid for Khazanah Nasional’s 32.2% stake in POS Malaysia. With its stake in POS Malaysia, DRBHCOM subsidiary Bank Muamalat can leverage on POS Malaysia’s extensive network of branches to reach a wider consumer base. POS Malaysia also has an attractive land bank with
potential for commercial development. DRBHCOM’s automotive joint-venture with Volkswagen AG to assemble Volkswagen vehicles is slated to start production towards the end of 2011. AmBank’s CW and PW on DRBHCOM are both priced at 15 sen each with gearing of 5.02 times.

Automotive assembler and distributor TCHONG posted strong quarter-on-quarter earnings growth of 53% for Q1 2011 (ended 31 Mar 2011) on the back of a 36% increase in sales revenue. Strong demand for its high-end CKD Teana model also helped boost average selling prices for its vehicles by 19%. For Q1 2011, 1,790 units of Teana were sold compared with only 476 units in Q4 2010. Although parts supply was disrupted by the major Japan earthquake and tsunami in March, parts supply from Nissan to TCHONG is expected to return to normal by July. As for TCHONG’s operations overseas, subsidiary Nissan Vietnam Ltd. is breaking even at EBITDA level. AmBank’s CW on TCHONG is priced at 15 sen each with gearing of 3.77 times.

This offer is aimed at sophisticated traders who want to trade on the direction and volatility of DIALOG, DRBHCOM, MHB and TCHONG. The new CWs and PWs have gearings ranging between 3.77 and 6.09 and are targeted at investors who want leveraged exposure to the underlying on both the upside and downside. - Bloomberg

Read more: AmBank issues 7 put & call warrants

Euro debt news lifts stocks after last week's loss

2011-06-28T03:38:00.001+08:00

Signs that a widespread European debt crisis could be averted helped send stocks up sharply Monday.

French banks agreed to accept slower repayment of Greece's debt. That would give Greece more time to meet its other immediate financial obligations. French bondholders hold about $21.3 billion in Greek government debt. Greek lawmakers are also debating austerity measures that must pass before the country can receive another financial rescue package to help avoid default.

The U.S. government, meanwhile, said that spending by consumers decreased in May, after adjusting for inflation. April's figures were also revised downward, revealing the first decline since January 2010. Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity.

Gas prices nearing $4 per gallon in late April and early May curtailed spending on retail goods such as televisions and clothes. Since then, gas prices have fallen to a national average of $3.57 per gallon. Oil prices have declined steeply over the last few weeks, which should eventually translate into even lower pump prices. Lower gas prices could help boost consumer spending in other areas in the coming months.

In late afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 157 points, or 1.3 percent, to 12,093. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 15, or 1.2 percent, to 1,283. The Nasdaq composite index rose 40, or 1.5 percent, to 2,692.

Analysts said the rally was stronger than the economic news would suggest in part because many traders invest when indices hit certain pre-determined price levels.

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Kencana 3Q net profit jumps 81% to RM56.42m

2011-06-25T02:09:00.001+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR: KENCANA PETROLEUM BHD []’s earnings rose 81% to RM56.42 million in the third quarter ended April 30, 2011 from RM31.17 million a year ago underpinned by the progress achieved for the oil and gas contracts.

It said on Friday, June 24 that revenue rose 34.7% to RM377.83 million from RM280.37 million. Earnings per share were 3.08 sen versus 1.92 sen a year ago.

“Compared to the corresponding quarter ended April 30, 2010 of RM280.37 million and RM36.5 million, revenue and profit before tax had increased by approximately 35% and 91% respectively in the current quarter.

“This is mainly due to higher progress achieved for contracts in hand on the back of bigger order book and better management of relevant costs as well as contribution from drilling services,” it said.

For the nine-months, earnings increased by 69% to RM159.38 million from RM94.3 million while revenue increased by 31.5% to RM 1.06 billion from RM811.51 million.

Its cash and cash equivalents increased to RM809.50 million as at April 30 from RM222.39 million on July 31, 2010.

Kencana was upbeat about its prospects following the Malaysian government’s strategy to intensify exploration activities in Malaysia to increase the oil and gas production as set out in the Economic Transformation Programme.

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Gamuda 3Q net profit up 39.6% to RM116.63m

2011-06-24T04:43:00.002+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR: GAMUDA BHD []'s net profit for the third quarter ended April 30, 2011 rose 39.6% to RM116.63 million from RM83.53 million a year earlier due to higher contributions from all its divisions.

Revenue for the quarter rose to RM621.20 million from RM511.20 million in 2010. Earnings per share was 5.67 sen while net assets per share was RM1.77.

Gamuda declared a second interim tax-exempt dividend of 6 sen per share single-tier.

For the nine months ended April 30, Gamuda’s net profit rose 26.7% to RM299.19 million from RM236.19 million on the back of revenue RM1.86 billion.

Commenting on its prospects, Gamuda said on Thursday, June 23 that with the existing CONSTRUCTION [] projects progressing on schedule and the strong performance of the property division, the group’s results were expected to further improve in the remaining quarter of the current financial year.

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Stocks End Sharply Lower; Dow Skids 1.5%

2011-06-16T06:58:00.002+08:00

Stocks closed broadly lower Wednesday as the dollar jumped following worries over the exacerbating Greek debt situation and after a handful of dismal economic news.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 178.84 points, or 1.48 percent, to close at 11,897.27.

The blue-chip index has declined almost 5.5 percent since the beginning of the month. Since 1950, the Dow has been down more than 5 percent halfway into a month 30 times. When that happened, the index almost always finished in the red for the month.

And if the Dow does finish down this month, it will be its first back-to-back monthly declines since May/June 2010.

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Petronas Chem on acquisition trail

2011-06-12T19:44:00.000+08:00

Kertih: Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd, which has a war chest of RM8 billion, is eyeing strategic acquisitions in the country and the region to consolidate its position as one of Southeast Asia's largest integrated petrochemical producers.

Petronas Chemicals president and chief executive officer Dr Abd Hapiz Abdullah said the expansion plan will be selective and synergistic as well as add growth, value and competitiveness to the group.

"The selective acquisition could be in the setting up of a new plant, joint ventures or buying stakes in other firms.

"We are talking with several parties right now but they are at a very preliminary stage.

"Rest assured, this is part of our reinforced commitment and strategy to grow our business," Abd Hapiz told some ten visiting jounalists here at its sprawling 5,000ha complex on Thursday.

Abd Hapiz said Petronas Chemicals is flexible when it comes to holding discussions but it will all depend on how to set objectives on growing its business.

"Sitting on a big cash pile helps a little bit on how you look at growing the business. We are going to have selective opportunity acquisitions in the future," he said.

Petronas Chemicals is the chemical arm of national oil and gas corporation Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas).

The group floated its shares on Bursa Malaysia last November, raising RM12.8 billion which is Southeast Asia's largest initital public offering to date.

Established in 1985, Petronas Chemicals has 22 subsidiaries. They comprise wholly-owned and partly-owned subsidiaries, joint ventures and associate companies which it has been forging in the past 26 years.

These include its US$660 million (RM1.99 billion) purchase of Optimal group of companies in 2009 from US-based Dow Chemical Co, the world's oldest chemical company.

Last year, Petronas Chemicals bought UK-based BP plc's 15 per cent stake and 60 per cent interest in Ethylene Malaysia Sdn Bhd and Polyethylene Malaysia Sdn Bhd, respectively, for a combined US$363 million (RM101 billion) cash.

Petronas Chemicals chief financial officer Wan Shamilah Saidi said the group was able to make both purchases in a timely and quick manner without going to the market to raise funds.

The group has no firm plans and a timeframe on its selective opportunistic acquisitions.

After the listing, Petronas Chemicals is a 64.4 per cent subsidiary of Petronas with a market capitalisation of over RM47 billion.

It is one of Bursa Malaysia's top 15 companies and a component of the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index.

Read more: Petronas Chem on acquisition trail