DRM-HICOM Bhd has made a pitch to General Motors (GM) about jointly conducting completely-knocked-down (CKD) operations in the country. Market sources said the prospects of doing local assembly for GM would be beneficial to future sales as locally assembled cars would be cheaper. DRB-HICOM started distributing and selling GM cars in 2003 and was selling about 6,000 cars a year with more than 30 dealers under its wing. The number of dealers shrank over time given GM’s preference for its dealer to have 3S (sales, service and spares) capability. DRB-HICOM is willing to invest millions of ringgit in the GM business in the country but it wants a larger say on how operations are run, according to sources. (StarBiz)
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Tycoon Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan and Tan Sri Chua Ma Yu agreed to take part in the initial public offering (IPO) of Wynn Macau Ltd on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange by investing US$80m and US$70m respectively. Quek’s involvement is via Guoco Management Co Ltd and GuoLine Group Management Co Ltd, while Chua’s vehicle is CMY Capital Markets Sdn Bhd. Wynn Macau said CMY’s stake could amount to almost 5% of the offered shares while Guoco and GuoLine could collectively hold 5.3% based on a mid-point offer price of HK$9.30 and assuming the over-allotment option was not exercised. The IPO involves floating 1.25bn shares at HK$8.52-HK$10.08 each. (StarBiz)
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The non-interested directors of Kumpulan Jetson Bhd (KJB) have advised shareholders to reject the conditional takeover offer by Superior Pavillion Sdn Bhd (SPSB) and Odyssey Wealth Sdn Bhd (OWSB) for the group’s securities. In an independent advice circular (IAC), KJB said its non-interested directors concurred with its independent adviser Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd (KIBB) that shareholders reject the offer as the prevailing market prices of the shares, ICULS and warrants were significantly higher than the offer prices, adding that it was more beneficial for the securities’ holders who wished to realise their investment to do so in the open market. As such, the non-interested directors turned down SPSB and OWSB’s joint offer for the remaining KJB shares. (Financial Daily)
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Green Packet Bhd hopes to double the number of its subscribers by the end of the year, while continuing to widen its coverage within Peninsular Malaysia, said its subsidiary Packet One Networks Malaysia Sdn Bhd’s (P1) chief executive officer Michael Lai. The company is investing almost RM1bn over a period of five years to boost its coverage. It has invested around RM300m since 2008 and plans to invest a further RM700m by 2012 towards expanding coverage in West Malaysia from 30% to 35% by the end of the year. The company also hopes to double its subscriber base from 80,000 in August to 160,000 by year-end through its “Cut Now” campaign along with two or three more initiatives ahead. (Financial Daily)
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HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd has become the first custodian bank to be approved by Bursa Malaysia as a lending representative under the Securities Borrowing and Lending Negotiated Transaction (SBLNT) model that was launched on Aug 17. The bank’s role will include the submission of clients’ requests to Bursa Clearing to be appointed as an approved lender, receipt of instructions for lending transactions and subsequent termination, pre-matching of SBL transactions with counterparties and provide timely status updates and updating the SBLNT system for lending contracts entered into by clients. HSBC Malaysia said with the new framework, the bank could act as an intermediary on behalf of its clients for lending activities. It said the new model could improve the liquidity of the securities and borrowing market in Malaysia, making it more attractive for market participants. (Financial Daily)
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Penang Port Sdn Bhd’s (PPSB) existing ferry and port operations will be split and placed under a common holding company in a restructuring exercise that will facilitate the listing of just the port operations on Bursa Malaysia securities, said PPSB executive director Datuk Ahmad Ibni Hajar. He said the move was instructed by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) under the Prime Minister’s Department as a condition towards PPSB seeking listing in the next few years. Ahmad said thought PPSB’s board has yet to meet on the matter, the Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Finance had given their approvals to the restructuring exercise, which could take about a year to be completed. (Financial Daily)
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International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed says that Malaysia’s exports are beginning to see signs of recovery. The pick-up in export demand suggests early signs of a global recovery, following the impact of the global financial crisis that had caused the current sluggish export performance. Demand for electronic and electrical (E&E) sectors has been sluggish between the end of last year and the 1H09. However, Mustapa said that at a recent meeting with players from the E&E sector, it was pointed out that additional orders were recorded as well as the need for more foreign labour. (BT)
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Malaysia’s domestic demand is showing clear signs of recovery from the fiscal stimulus and an accommodative monetary policy, says Bank Negara governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz. Zeti expects an improvement in external demand in the third quarter and an expansion in gross domestic product (GDP) in the next three months, adding that there would be a revision in the country’s growth forecast in Budget 2010, to be tabled in parliament next month. The government expects the economy to shrink as much as 5% in 2009. The country’s economic contraction eased to 3.9% in the second quarter from a 6.2% decline in the first quarter. Zeti said interest rates were also “appropriate” as government stimulus and improving overseas demand had helped boost economic recovery. (StarBiz)
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Stocks slumped Thursday, falling for the second straight session, as a surprise drop in existing home sales and tumbling commodity prices gave investors a reason to sell into a rally that pushed the major gauges to one-year highs. Stocks gained in the early going after the Labour Department reported that jobless claims fell for the third week in a row. But the market abandoned gains after the housing report. A slide in oil and gold shares on the back of a stronger dollar dragged on commodity stocks. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.4% (-41.1 pts, close 9,707.4). The Nasdaq lost 1.1% (-23.8 pts, close 2,107.6) and the S&P 500 lost 0.9% (-10.1 pts, close 1,050.8). U.S. light crude oil for October delivery fell US$3.08 to settle at US$65.98 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. (CNNmoney)
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Sales of existing U.S. homes unexpectedly fell last month for the first time since March, signalling the housing recovery will be slow to gain speed. Purchases dropped 2.7% in August to a 5.1m annual rate, the second-highest level in the last 23 months, the National Association of Realtors said yesterday in Washington. The median price dropped 12.5% from August 2008. Existing home sales were forecast to rise to a 5.35m annual rate, according to the median forecast of 74 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The number of unsold homes on the market dropped 11% to 3.6m in August. At the current sales pace, it would take 8.5 months to sell those houses, the fewest since April 2007. (Bloomberg)
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The number of Americans filing first-time claims for jobless benefits dropped unexpectedly last week to the lowest in two months, another sign firings are slowing as the economy pulls out of the recession. Applications fell by 21,000 to 530,000 in the week ended Sept. 19, from a revised 551,000 the week before, Labour Department data showed yesterday in Washington. The total number of people collecting unemployment insurance fell in the prior week to 6.14m, lower than forecast. Economists forecast weekly claims would rise to 550,000 from a previously reported 545,000, according to the median of 44 projections in a Bloomberg News survey. Estimates ranged from 510,000 to 565,000. Continuing claims were forecast to rise to 6.18m. The report showed the four-week moving average of initial applications, a less volatile measure, fell to 553,500 last week, the lowest since January, from 564,500. (Bloomberg)
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German business confidence rose to a 12-month high in September, indicating Europe’s largest economy will gather strength after exiting its worst recession since World War II. The Ifo institute in Munich said yesterday its business climate index, based on a survey of 7,000 executives, rose to 91.3 from 90.5 in August. That’s the highest reading since September last year. Economists expected a gain to 92, the median of 40 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey showed. The index reached a 26-year low of 82.2 in March. While the Bundesbank predicts a “strong pickup” in 3Q09, the recovery could falter when stimulus measures expire and as unemployment rises. (Bloomberg)
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Germany cut its program of debt sales as the end of the recession helped boost the finances of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government before national elections. The nation reduced proposed issuance of bonds and bills in 4Q09 by 22% to 59bn euros (US$87bn), the Frankfurt-based Federal Finance Agency said yesterday in a statement. The change is “based on improved funding conditions and reduced borrowing requirements of the Financial Market Stabilisation Fund,” the agency said on its web site. Germany initially planned to issue a record 346bn euros of debt this year, a 57% increase from 220bn euros in 2008. The 4Q09 reduction will lower this year’s total to 329bn euros, still an all-time high. Redemptions in the next three months will be 69bn euros, the agency said yesterday. (Bloomberg)
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The number of jobseekers in France rose by about 40,000 in August and will climb further in the months ahead as companies trim payrolls to reduce costs, Labour Minister Xavier Darcos said. The increase was “maybe 40,000,” Darcos said yesterday on RMC radio. The number of unemployed actively looking for a job stood at 2.54m at the end of July.
Unemployment in France will rise to 11.2% in 2010 from 9.7% this year and 7.4% in 2008, the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development predicted on June 24. The French economy will shrink 3% this year and grow just 0.2% in 2010, the OECD said. (Bloomberg)
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Japan’s exports fell for an 11th month in August as the economic recovery struggled to gain traction. Shipments abroad dropped 36% y-o-y compared with a 36.5% decline in July, the Finance Ministry said yesterday in Tokyo. From a month earlier, exports fell 0.7%, the second straight decrease. Yesterday’s report suggests the boost in overseas demand that helped the economy expand in 2Q09 may be moderating as governments exhaust stimulus spending. The y-o-y drop in exports was in line with the 36.5% forecast by economists. The 0.7% monthly decline may have been overstated by the country’s Obon holidays, a period when Japanese often take vacations to honour ancestors and which isn’t factored into the seasonal calculation, the Finance Ministry said. Imports fell 41.3% y-o-y in August, leaving a trade surplus of 185.7bn yen (US$2bn). (Bloomberg)
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South Korea’s consumer confidence stayed unchanged at the highest level in seven years in September as extra government spending and cheap borrowing costs spurred the nation’s economic recovery. The sentiment index was unchanged at 114 from August, the Bank of Korea said in Seoul yesterday. The figure is the highest since 3Q02, when the bank began publishing its confidence survey on a quarterly basis. An index figure of more than 100 indicates optimists exceed pessimists. The consumer confidence index was based on a survey of 2,200 households in 56 major cities, conducted by mail and telephone between Sept. 11 and Sept. 18. (Bloomberg)
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* * * * *
Tycoon Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan and Tan Sri Chua Ma Yu agreed to take part in the initial public offering (IPO) of Wynn Macau Ltd on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange by investing US$80m and US$70m respectively. Quek’s involvement is via Guoco Management Co Ltd and GuoLine Group Management Co Ltd, while Chua’s vehicle is CMY Capital Markets Sdn Bhd. Wynn Macau said CMY’s stake could amount to almost 5% of the offered shares while Guoco and GuoLine could collectively hold 5.3% based on a mid-point offer price of HK$9.30 and assuming the over-allotment option was not exercised. The IPO involves floating 1.25bn shares at HK$8.52-HK$10.08 each. (StarBiz)
* * * * *
The non-interested directors of Kumpulan Jetson Bhd (KJB) have advised shareholders to reject the conditional takeover offer by Superior Pavillion Sdn Bhd (SPSB) and Odyssey Wealth Sdn Bhd (OWSB) for the group’s securities. In an independent advice circular (IAC), KJB said its non-interested directors concurred with its independent adviser Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd (KIBB) that shareholders reject the offer as the prevailing market prices of the shares, ICULS and warrants were significantly higher than the offer prices, adding that it was more beneficial for the securities’ holders who wished to realise their investment to do so in the open market. As such, the non-interested directors turned down SPSB and OWSB’s joint offer for the remaining KJB shares. (Financial Daily)
* * * * *
Green Packet Bhd hopes to double the number of its subscribers by the end of the year, while continuing to widen its coverage within Peninsular Malaysia, said its subsidiary Packet One Networks Malaysia Sdn Bhd’s (P1) chief executive officer Michael Lai. The company is investing almost RM1bn over a period of five years to boost its coverage. It has invested around RM300m since 2008 and plans to invest a further RM700m by 2012 towards expanding coverage in West Malaysia from 30% to 35% by the end of the year. The company also hopes to double its subscriber base from 80,000 in August to 160,000 by year-end through its “Cut Now” campaign along with two or three more initiatives ahead. (Financial Daily)
* * * * *
HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd has become the first custodian bank to be approved by Bursa Malaysia as a lending representative under the Securities Borrowing and Lending Negotiated Transaction (SBLNT) model that was launched on Aug 17. The bank’s role will include the submission of clients’ requests to Bursa Clearing to be appointed as an approved lender, receipt of instructions for lending transactions and subsequent termination, pre-matching of SBL transactions with counterparties and provide timely status updates and updating the SBLNT system for lending contracts entered into by clients. HSBC Malaysia said with the new framework, the bank could act as an intermediary on behalf of its clients for lending activities. It said the new model could improve the liquidity of the securities and borrowing market in Malaysia, making it more attractive for market participants. (Financial Daily)
* * * * *
Penang Port Sdn Bhd’s (PPSB) existing ferry and port operations will be split and placed under a common holding company in a restructuring exercise that will facilitate the listing of just the port operations on Bursa Malaysia securities, said PPSB executive director Datuk Ahmad Ibni Hajar. He said the move was instructed by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) under the Prime Minister’s Department as a condition towards PPSB seeking listing in the next few years. Ahmad said thought PPSB’s board has yet to meet on the matter, the Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Finance had given their approvals to the restructuring exercise, which could take about a year to be completed. (Financial Daily)
* * * * *
International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed says that Malaysia’s exports are beginning to see signs of recovery. The pick-up in export demand suggests early signs of a global recovery, following the impact of the global financial crisis that had caused the current sluggish export performance. Demand for electronic and electrical (E&E) sectors has been sluggish between the end of last year and the 1H09. However, Mustapa said that at a recent meeting with players from the E&E sector, it was pointed out that additional orders were recorded as well as the need for more foreign labour. (BT)
* * * * *
Malaysia’s domestic demand is showing clear signs of recovery from the fiscal stimulus and an accommodative monetary policy, says Bank Negara governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz. Zeti expects an improvement in external demand in the third quarter and an expansion in gross domestic product (GDP) in the next three months, adding that there would be a revision in the country’s growth forecast in Budget 2010, to be tabled in parliament next month. The government expects the economy to shrink as much as 5% in 2009. The country’s economic contraction eased to 3.9% in the second quarter from a 6.2% decline in the first quarter. Zeti said interest rates were also “appropriate” as government stimulus and improving overseas demand had helped boost economic recovery. (StarBiz)
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Stocks slumped Thursday, falling for the second straight session, as a surprise drop in existing home sales and tumbling commodity prices gave investors a reason to sell into a rally that pushed the major gauges to one-year highs. Stocks gained in the early going after the Labour Department reported that jobless claims fell for the third week in a row. But the market abandoned gains after the housing report. A slide in oil and gold shares on the back of a stronger dollar dragged on commodity stocks. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.4% (-41.1 pts, close 9,707.4). The Nasdaq lost 1.1% (-23.8 pts, close 2,107.6) and the S&P 500 lost 0.9% (-10.1 pts, close 1,050.8). U.S. light crude oil for October delivery fell US$3.08 to settle at US$65.98 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. (CNNmoney)
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Sales of existing U.S. homes unexpectedly fell last month for the first time since March, signalling the housing recovery will be slow to gain speed. Purchases dropped 2.7% in August to a 5.1m annual rate, the second-highest level in the last 23 months, the National Association of Realtors said yesterday in Washington. The median price dropped 12.5% from August 2008. Existing home sales were forecast to rise to a 5.35m annual rate, according to the median forecast of 74 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The number of unsold homes on the market dropped 11% to 3.6m in August. At the current sales pace, it would take 8.5 months to sell those houses, the fewest since April 2007. (Bloomberg)
* * * * *
The number of Americans filing first-time claims for jobless benefits dropped unexpectedly last week to the lowest in two months, another sign firings are slowing as the economy pulls out of the recession. Applications fell by 21,000 to 530,000 in the week ended Sept. 19, from a revised 551,000 the week before, Labour Department data showed yesterday in Washington. The total number of people collecting unemployment insurance fell in the prior week to 6.14m, lower than forecast. Economists forecast weekly claims would rise to 550,000 from a previously reported 545,000, according to the median of 44 projections in a Bloomberg News survey. Estimates ranged from 510,000 to 565,000. Continuing claims were forecast to rise to 6.18m. The report showed the four-week moving average of initial applications, a less volatile measure, fell to 553,500 last week, the lowest since January, from 564,500. (Bloomberg)
* * * * *
German business confidence rose to a 12-month high in September, indicating Europe’s largest economy will gather strength after exiting its worst recession since World War II. The Ifo institute in Munich said yesterday its business climate index, based on a survey of 7,000 executives, rose to 91.3 from 90.5 in August. That’s the highest reading since September last year. Economists expected a gain to 92, the median of 40 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey showed. The index reached a 26-year low of 82.2 in March. While the Bundesbank predicts a “strong pickup” in 3Q09, the recovery could falter when stimulus measures expire and as unemployment rises. (Bloomberg)
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Germany cut its program of debt sales as the end of the recession helped boost the finances of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government before national elections. The nation reduced proposed issuance of bonds and bills in 4Q09 by 22% to 59bn euros (US$87bn), the Frankfurt-based Federal Finance Agency said yesterday in a statement. The change is “based on improved funding conditions and reduced borrowing requirements of the Financial Market Stabilisation Fund,” the agency said on its web site. Germany initially planned to issue a record 346bn euros of debt this year, a 57% increase from 220bn euros in 2008. The 4Q09 reduction will lower this year’s total to 329bn euros, still an all-time high. Redemptions in the next three months will be 69bn euros, the agency said yesterday. (Bloomberg)
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The number of jobseekers in France rose by about 40,000 in August and will climb further in the months ahead as companies trim payrolls to reduce costs, Labour Minister Xavier Darcos said. The increase was “maybe 40,000,” Darcos said yesterday on RMC radio. The number of unemployed actively looking for a job stood at 2.54m at the end of July.
Unemployment in France will rise to 11.2% in 2010 from 9.7% this year and 7.4% in 2008, the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development predicted on June 24. The French economy will shrink 3% this year and grow just 0.2% in 2010, the OECD said. (Bloomberg)
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Japan’s exports fell for an 11th month in August as the economic recovery struggled to gain traction. Shipments abroad dropped 36% y-o-y compared with a 36.5% decline in July, the Finance Ministry said yesterday in Tokyo. From a month earlier, exports fell 0.7%, the second straight decrease. Yesterday’s report suggests the boost in overseas demand that helped the economy expand in 2Q09 may be moderating as governments exhaust stimulus spending. The y-o-y drop in exports was in line with the 36.5% forecast by economists. The 0.7% monthly decline may have been overstated by the country’s Obon holidays, a period when Japanese often take vacations to honour ancestors and which isn’t factored into the seasonal calculation, the Finance Ministry said. Imports fell 41.3% y-o-y in August, leaving a trade surplus of 185.7bn yen (US$2bn). (Bloomberg)
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South Korea’s consumer confidence stayed unchanged at the highest level in seven years in September as extra government spending and cheap borrowing costs spurred the nation’s economic recovery. The sentiment index was unchanged at 114 from August, the Bank of Korea said in Seoul yesterday. The figure is the highest since 3Q02, when the bank began publishing its confidence survey on a quarterly basis. An index figure of more than 100 indicates optimists exceed pessimists. The consumer confidence index was based on a survey of 2,200 households in 56 major cities, conducted by mail and telephone between Sept. 11 and Sept. 18. (Bloomberg)
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