The Edge Markets April 28, 2015

The Edge Markets April 28, 2015

Japan firm looks to lure medical tourists with hospital ties
April 28, 2015 12:37:32 pm
(Apr 28): Capital Medica Co., a Japanese operator of care facilities, is seeking to acquire hospitals in Southeast Asia as it tries to get patients to choose Japan over the U.S. and other markets for heart bypasses and other surgical procedures....

RHB takes CIMB sukuk deal crown months after megabank bid stalls
April 28, 2015 12:28:46 pm
(Apr 28): RHB Capital Bhd. overtook CIMB Group Holdings Bhd. as Malaysia’s top sukuk arranger, resuming their rivalry three months after failing to form an Islamic megabank. RHB jumped from 2014’s fourth position after managing 20 offerings... ...

Masteel declines 20% on late accounts submission
April 28, 2015 12:17:47 pm

KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 28): Malaysia Steel Works (KL) Bhd (Masteel) declined as much as 20% after the company announced that issuance of its audited financial statements (AFS) for financial year ended Dec 31, 2014 would be delayed. Masteel (fund... ...

Singapore c.bank says core inflation to moderate in Q2-Q3 before rising
April 28, 2015 12:10:14 pm
SINGAPORE (Apr 28): Singapore's core inflation may moderate in the second and third quarters and headline inflation could be negative for "some consecutive months", the central bank said on Tuesday. Inflation was expected to return next yea... ...

Tenaga erases gains after rising on stronger 2Q financials
April 28, 2015 12:00:36 pm
KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 28): Tenaga Nasional Bhd erased gains after rising as much as 20 sen or 1.4% on the state-controlled utility's higher second quarter profit and revenue. At 10.38am, Tenaga (fundamental: 1.3; valuation: 1.8) traded l... ...

Asian shares edge off 7-year highs as Fed awaited
April 28, 2015 11:58:48 am
TOKYO (Apr 28): Asian stocks pulled back from a seven-year peak scaled on Tuesday as sentiment gave way to caution ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy two-day meeting scheduled to start later in the session. The dollar clawed back some of... ...

Insider Asia’s Stock Of The Day: Knusford
April 28, 2015 11:44:15 am
Knusford Bhd KNUSFORD (Fundamental: 1.8/3, Valuation: 3.0/3) is principally a trading company for building materials that also provides sales and rental of heavy machinery. The two segments accounted for roughly 80% of... ...

New bird flu cases probable in Iowa, millions of birds affected -Iowa
April 28, 2015 11:43:02 am
CHICAGO (Apr 27): Initial tests have found probable avian influenza outbreaks at five new commercial poultry sites in Iowa, affecting more than 6 million birds, the state's agriculture department and the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Mond......

Stocks With Momentum: Muhibbah Engineering
April 28, 2015 11:40:37 am
Muhibbah Engineering (M) Bhd (-ve) Muhibbah’s share price (Fundamental: 1.1/3, Valuation: 0.8/3) has rebounded strongly, gaining 41.2% to RM2.64, from a slump in 2H2014 amidst a major selldown in O&G counters. Its share pr... ...

Fair, stable oil prices to benefit everyone - Saudi oil minister
April 28, 2015 11:40:01 am
(Apr 28): Fair and stable oil prices will benefit producers and consumers, allowing global supply and demand to grow at a steady pace, Saudi Arabia's Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said on Tuesday. While a roughly 50 percent drop in global oil p... ...

Stocks With Momentum: Techfast Holding
April 28, 2015 11:38:53 am
Techfast Holding Bhd (+ve) A private placement exercise and the release of the annual audited accounts of Techfast Bhd (Fundamental: 1.95/3, Valuation: 0.3/3) saw the counter see-saw from a low of 19 sen to a high of 20.5 sen last Fr... ...

Stocks With Momentum: Acoustech
April 28, 2015 11:35:45 am
 Acoustech Bhd (-ve) Acoustech (Fundamental: 2.25/3, Valuation: 0.3/3) manufactures audio speaker systems. Its roster of clients includes Sony, Kenwood and Panasonic. The company’s share price surged sharply, up to 12.9% since last M... ...

Palm oil to test support at 2,076 ringgit
April 28, 2015 11:31:25 am
SINGAPORE (Apr 28): Palm oil is expected to test support at 2,076 ringgit per tonne, a break below which will open the way towards a range of 2,039-2,060 ringgit. Support is at the 76.4 percent Fibonacci projection level of a downward wave ... ...

Euro holds gains after rising on Greek hopes, dollar awaits data
April 28, 2015 11:12:13 am
SYDNEY/TOKYO (Apr 28): The euro hovered near a three-week peak on Tuesday, having pushed higher overnight as the dollar came under broad pressure and on renewed hopes that cash-strapped Greece was a step closer to securing fresh funding. Th... ...

China Aviation Oil seeks up to 1.1 mln bbls jet fuel for May-June
April 28, 2015 11:08:07 am
SINGAPORE (Apr 28): China Aviation Oil (Singapore) is seeking up to 1.1 million barrels of jet fuel for late May to June, similar volumes to its previous requirement, a tender document showed on Tuesday. The company is seeking three cargoes... ...

Gold clings on near $1,200 ahead of Fed meeting
April 28, 2015 11:03:58 am
SINGAPORE (Apr 28): Gold clung to sharp overnight gains on Tuesday, bolstered by a weaker dollar and short-covering on rising expectations the Federal Reserve will not hint at a June rate increase at its policy meeting this week. Spot gold ... ...

MH370 support centre in China shuts down, says report
April 28, 2015 11:02:20 am
(Apr 28): The MH370 family support centre in Shunyi, near Beijing, will be closed today, after a year-long operation of updating next of kin on the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) jetliner, The Star reported. Six branches of the support cen... ...

Johor Corp to list RM900m Islamic REIT in 3Q
April 28, 2015 10:58:10 am
PUTRAJAYA (Apr 28): Johor state investment arm Johor Corp is expected to list its estimated RM900 million Islamic real estate investment trust (REIT) Al-Salam on Bursa Malaysia's Main Market in the third quarter of this year. Johor C... ...

RHBCap to improve cost and capital efficiencies
April 28, 2015 10:55:20 am
RHB Capital Bhd (April 27, RM7.86) Maintain add with target price of RM10.50: Over the weekend, The Edge weekly featured an interview with the current RHB Capital group managing director Kellee Kam who is leavin... ...

Jaya Tiasa’s earnings disrupted by lower log and FFB harvesting
April 28, 2015 10:54:35 am
Jaya Tiasa Holdings Bhd (April 27, RM1.65) Sell with a target price of RM1.50: For the nine months ended March 31, 2015 (9MFY15), Jaya Tiasa’s total log production fell by 8% to 694,403 cu m, and its fresh fruit... ...

Convicts in isolation cells, await execution in Indonesia
April 28, 2015 10:49:29 am
JAKARTA/SYDNEY (Apr 28): Nine drug traffickers were being held in isolation cells at an Indonesian maximum security prison awaiting execution by firing squad, after Indonesian authorities notified them they had no hope of reprieve. Security... ...

DiGi.Com sees higher depreciation
April 28, 2015 10:48:43 am
DiGi.Com Bhd (April 27, RM6.19) Maintain buy with target price of RM7: DiGi.Com’s total subscribers rose 2.3% quarter-on-quarter ([q-o-q] +7.4% year-on-year [y-o-y] to 11.69 million, mainly due to improvement in... ...

1HFY16 to be challenging for Pantech
April 28, 2015 10:47:12 am
Pantech Group Holdings Bhd (April 27, 75.5 sen) Maintain buy with target price (TP) of 95 sen: Pantech’s earnings for financial year 2015 ended February (FY15) were 8% or RM4 milllion below our and consensus est... ...

Kossan’s plants to boost capacity by 6 billion gloves per annum
April 28, 2015 10:44:04 am
Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd (April 27, RM5.74) Maintain buy with target price of RM6.75: All three of Kossan’s new plants have entered full commercial production. Plant 1, Pl... ...

Angry Nepalis wait for quake help as death toll passes 4,000
April 28, 2015 10:39:46 am
KATHMANDU (Apr 28): Shock turned to anger in Nepal on Tuesday as some of the tens of thousands stricken by a devastating earthquake, which killed more than 4,000 people, expressed frustration at what they said was their government's slow response ......

March adex — pre-GST fears weighed
April 28, 2015 10:39:21 am
Media Sector Maintain neutral: After a brief respite in February 2015, total gross advertising expenditure (adex) resumed its year-on-year (y-o-y) decline in March this year by easing 7% y-o-y. Recall that the March 2... ...

U.S. senator sticking by 'poison pill' tweak to trade bill
April 28, 2015 10:38:59 am
WASHINGTON (Apr 24): U.S. Democratic Senator Robert Menendez said on Monday he would strongly resist any attempt to override a human-trafficking amendment to trade legislation that some say could derail a Pacific trade pact. The amendment, ... ...

Nikkei rises on dividend optimism, Fanuc soars
April 28, 2015 10:37:00 am
TOKYO (Apr 28): Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Tuesday morning on hopes of better shareholder returns after Fanuc Corp doubled its dividend payout ratio at its earnings release. Industrial robot maker Fanuc jumped 6.6 percent to a rec... ...

Oil falls more than 1 pct as U.S. crude stockpiles expected to hit high
April 28, 2015 10:34:33 am
SINGAPORE (Apr 28): Oil fell more than 1 percent on Tuesday ahead of weekly U.S. crude inventory data that is expected to hit another high and as Saudi Arabia pledged to supply more oil to China if needed. U.S. commercial crude stockpiles w... ...

KL-Singapore HSR may miss 2020 deadline
April 28, 2015 10:31:04 am
KUALA LUMPUR: The multibillion ringgit high-speed rail (HSR) link between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore is expected to miss its 2020 deadline by two years, Singapore’s Business Times reported yesterday. Citing unnamed sources, the business pap... ...

BCorp offer for REDtone ‘fair and reasonable’, says independent adviser
April 28, 2015 10:29:15 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Berjaya Corp Bhd’s (BCorp) takeover offer for telecommunication player REDtone International Bhd at 80 sen per share is deemed “fair and reasonable” even though it is lower than the current market price of REDtone shares, acco... ...

IJM Land, Singapore firm to develop RM3b project
April 28, 2015 10:24:48 am
KUALA LUMPUR: IJM Land Bhd, the property development arm of IJM Corp Bhd (fundamental: 1.1; valuation: 1.4), has teamed up with Singapore-based Perennial Real Estate Holdings Ltd (PREH) to acquire and develop a 32.76-acre (13.25ha) parcel o... ...

Carimin partners Arab firms for O&G jobs
April 28, 2015 10:23:26 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Offshore oil and gas (O&G) support services provider Carimin Petroleum Bhd has teamed up with Makamin Offshore Saudi Ltd Co (MOS) and Petro Allied International DMCEST (PAI) to explore opportunities in Saudi Arabia, the Mi... ...

MHB’s 1Q earnings rise 4.03% y-o-y to RM36m on higher revenue
April 28, 2015 10:17:12 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings Bhd (MHB) saw its net profit rise 4.03% in the first quarter ended March of financial year 2015 (1QFY15) to RM36.03 million from RM34.63 million a year ago on higher marine operat... ...

KKB Engineering shares jump 13% on higher profit, revenue
April 28, 2015 10:16:46 am
KKB Engineering shares jump 13% on higher profit, revenue   ...

Govt to begin anti-dumping probe into steel products
April 28, 2015 10:16:41 am
KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (Miti) has initiated a preliminary investigation into imports of cold rolled stainless steel (CRSS), and pre-painted/painted/colour-coated steel coils, from several countries, i... ...

Axiata: International roaming to phase out on AEC integration
April 28, 2015 10:07:45 am
KUALA LUMPUR: International roaming will be phased out upon the integration of the Asean Economic Community (AEC), said Axiata Group Bhd president and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Jamaludin Ibrahim. “We would not be seeing inte... ...

Borneo Oil to raise up to RM356.07m
April 28, 2015 10:07:38 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Sabah-based fast food operator and energy outfit Borneo Oil Bhd has proposed a one-for-six renounceable rights issue together with free warrants to raise gross proceeds of up to RM356.07 million. The bulk of the proceeds will ... ...

Masteel says external auditors need more information to complete report
April 28, 2015 10:05:01 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Steel Works KL Bhd (Masteel) — which manufactures and sells high-tensile steel bars, mild steel bars and prime steel billets — announced that it will delay the issuance of its audited financial statements for the fina... ...

AHP buys Mydin mall and land
April 28, 2015 10:02:27 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Amanah Harta Tanah PNB (AHP) is acquiring a 13.39 acre (5.41ha) piece of land in Seremban with a three-storey mall cum hypermarket and two sub-basements for RM240 million, from Mydin Mohamed Holdings Bhd. Based on a fil... ...

Foreign sentiments improving
April 28, 2015 10:01:00 am
KUALA LUMPUR: There seems to be signs that foreign investors are coming back to Malaysia, as evidenced in increased equity purchases and higher value of foreign ownership of Malaysian government securities in March — but analysts are not co... ...

Nakamichi delays submission of FY14 accounts
April 28, 2015 10:00:52 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Timber and consumer electronics company Nakamichi Corp Bhd has announced it is unable to furnish its audited financial account for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2014 (FY14), as it has yet to receive the management accounts ... ...

Khairussaleh is RHB banking group’s new CEO, MD
April 28, 2015 10:00:34 am
KUALA LUMPUR: RHB Capital Bhd (RHBCap) said Datuk Khairussaleh Ramli, 46, will be its new chief executive officer (CEO) and managing director (MD) as well as group CEO and group MD of the RHB banking group, from May 5. In a filing wi... ...

TNB 2Q net profit up 24.4% on lower generation costs
April 28, 2015 09:54:56 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) saw its net profit for the second financial quarter ended Feb 28, 2015 (2QFY15) rise 24.4% to RM2.16 billion from RM1.73 billion a year ago. This is on lower generation costs due to a lower coal price... ...

Dialog: Oil storage space at Pengerang terminal may double
April 28, 2015 09:47:35 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Crude oil storage capacity at Phase 1 of the Pengerang independent terminal in Johor could be doubled, said Dialog Group Bhd executive chairman Tan Sri Dr Ngau Boon Keat, but this is subject to a study on the oil storage marke... ...

Best Western i-City opens
April 28, 2015 09:37:47 am
SHAH ALAM: Selangor’s i-City will see RM700 million investments in three hotels and a total accommodation of 1,000 rooms in the near future. The three-part hotel plan on the 72-hectare freehold ultrapolis along the Federal Highway be... ...

KLCI volatile ahead of US Fed meeting, ringgit strengthens
April 28, 2015 09:36:10 am
KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 28): The KLCI vacillated between gains and losses before trading almost flat ahead of the two-day US Federal Reserve's policy meeting beginning today. The meeting may offer clues on the timing of US' interest rate hikes, w... ...

Tenaga shares up 20 sen at RM14.80 on profit rise, dividend
April 28, 2015 09:13:57 am
Tenaga shares up 20 sen at RM14.80 on profit rise, dividend   ...

KLCI higher at 1,860.64 pts at 9:05am
April 28, 2015 09:09:45 am
KLCI higher at 1,860.64 pts at 9:05am   ...

Asian shares at 7-year highs, cheered by Apple earnings
April 28, 2015 08:41:11 am
TOKYO (Apr 28): Asian stocks scaled fresh seven-year peaks on Tuesday as Apple's upbeat earnings offset underlying caution ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting scheduled to start later in the session. The dollar, meanwhile, clawed ... ...

Mobile operators off to slow start in 2015
April 28, 2015 07:57:38 am
KUALA LUMPUR: Mobile phone operators got off to a slow start in the first quarter of this year, with both Maxis Bhd and DiGi.Com Bhd posting a decline in net profit despite improvement at the revenue level. Maxis, the country’s large... ...

Malaysian shares seen tracking US losses; firmer ringgit, Tenaga in spotlight
April 28, 2015 07:56:37 am
KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 28): Malaysian shares may today track overnight US share losses as investors eye the strengthening ringgit's impact on the FBM KLCI. Tenaga, which reported stronger financials may also attract market interest. Yeste... ...

Upgrades to LRT stations coming soon, says Prasarana
April 28, 2015 07:10:49 am
KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 28): Prasarana Malaysia Bhd will soon look into upgrading their stations, to provide banking facilities, retail outlets, laundromats and other amenities for the convenience of its commuters. Prasarana group managing... ...

RHB takes CIMB sukuk deal crown months after megabank bid stalls
April 28, 2015 07:01:50 am
KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 28): RHB Capital Bhd. overtook CIMB Group Holdings Bhd. as Malaysia’s top sukuk arranger, resuming their rivalry three months after failing to form an Islamic megabank. RHB jumped from 2014’s fourth position after m... ...

U.S. crude output drop seen accelerating as rig cut reverberates
April 28, 2015 06:48:29 am
NEW YORK (Apr 28): The drop in U.S. crude production is set to accelerate as investment cutbacks are felt, reducing the chance of a V-shaped recovery in output. Reports of falling output and plummeting rig counts in the four main sha... ...

S&P 500 falls, gold jumps; return plans boost Apple after market
April 28, 2015 06:33:21 am
NEW YORK (Apr 28): U.S. stocks fell amid a retreat in biotechnology shares, while gold rallied on speculation the Federal Reserve won’t move soon on interest rates. Apple Inc. climbed in extended trading after boosting the amount it will return to......