Some members of the investment community have relayed their concerns over Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd’s dividend sustainability, and the ability of the group to uphold its commitment to distributing at least 75% of its annually reported net profit to shareholders. These are understandable concerns, given that Astro has plenty of financial commitments denominated in US dollars.

Astro Malaysia's US dollar exposure, debt

Malaysia’s political twists & turns (2018 to 2022)

KUALA LUMPUR (April 18): CIMB Group Holdings Bhd has hired Ernst & Young to conduct an independent review on the transfer of US$7 million cash by its chairman Datuk Seri Nazir Razak to Barisan Nasional politicians before the General Elections in 2013.

Speaking to a room packed with ...

CIMB conducts independent review on Nazir's transfer of fund to Barisan Nasional politicians

KUALA LUMPUR (April 21): Malaysian Institute of Economic Research's (MIER) Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI) avoided recording new all-time lows for three consecutive quarters as the index rose by 9.1 points in the first quarter of 2016 to 72.9 points, from the preceding quarter.

MIER exec...

Consumer sentiment rises to 72.9pts in 1Q, but still far from optimistic

KUALA LUMPUR (April 28): Government-linked private equity fund Ekuiti Nasional Bhd (Ekuinas) posted a gross portfolio return of RM591.3 million for its Ekuinas Direct (Tranche I) Fund, which translates into a gross annualised internal rate of return (IRR) of 14.8% and a net annualised IRR of 10.9...

Ekuinas funds exceed 12% IRR target for six straight years in 2015

KUALA LUMPUR (May 25): UMW Holdings Bhd's 51%-owned UMW Toyota Motor Sdn Bhd is spending roughly RM2 billion to build a new passenger car manufacturing plant in Bukit Raja, Selangor. The new plant, which is 670,000 sq m in size, will also produce energy-efficient vehicles.

UMW Toyota Mo...

UMW Toyota Motor to invest RM2b for new manufacturing plant

KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 7): AmFunds Management Bhd, or more commonly known as AmInvest, has rated Malaysia's real estate investment trust (REIT) as "underweight", despite seeking to double its investment to RM500 million in that asset class by next March.

Chief investment officer of equities...

AmInvest wants to increase exposure to REITs but rates M'sia as underweight

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 10): Malaysia's Auditor General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang said the Government was "racing to catch up" with new digital regulations, as the public and private sectors contend with cybersecurity and data-breach risks.

Ambrin said this would lead to new and emerging laws on t...

Malaysia's Auditor General says 'growing need for cybersecurity risks to be addressed'

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on October 13, 2016.

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Rating Corp Bhd (MARC) has revised the rating outlook on Celcom Networks Sdn Bhd’s (CNSB) RM5 billion sukuk to “negative” from “stable” on its parent Celco...

MARC revises outlook on Celcom unit’s RM5b sukuk to negative

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on October 13, 2016.

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Top Glove Corp Bhd’s net profit fell 36.1% to RM65.64 million or 5.24 sen a share in the fourth financial quarter ended Aug 31, 2016 (4QFY16), from RM102.76 mil...

Top Glove 4Q net profit down 36% on lower ASP

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activities fell to the lowest in a decade in 2023. According to the “Global M&A Report” published by Bain & Co, the total M&A market fell by 15% year on year last year to US$3.2 trillion, the lowest in a decade.

M&A activities hit a low in 2023, pickup expected this year

(April 24): Goldman Sachs Group Inc. shares rose to a record on Tuesday, eclipsing their previous closing high set more than two years ago.

The investment banking giant reported first-quarter earnings last week that included a massive profit beat, which one analyst heralded as a “near-p...

Goldman Sachs shares rise to notch first record high since 2021

(April 24): Digital payments company Block Inc., formerly known as Square, has finished the development of its Bitcoin mining chip as Chief Executive Jack Dorsey continues to advocate for a more accessible and decentralized system — an effort he’s championed since 2021.

The three-nanome...

Jack Dorsey’s block finishes development of Bitcoin mining chip

(April 24): International Business Machines Corp. is in advanced talks to acquire software company HashiCorp Inc., according to people with knowledge of the matter.

IBM and HashiCorp could reach an agreement as soon as Wednesday, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussin...

IBM is in advanced talks to acquire software provider HashiCorp

(April 24): Tesla Inc. is accelerating the launch of more affordable models in a bid to arrest a deterioration in its profit margins and sales.

The electric-vehicle maker plans to start production on the cheaper cars before the second half of 2025, when it had previously pledged to begi...

Tesla to accelerate launch of cheaper cars after sales miss

(April 24): This was supposed to be the year that Vietnam reaped the benefits from one of its largest natural gas discoveries.

An estimated 150 billion cubic meters of the fuel, enough to power a city the size of Hanoi for decades, was discovered 50 miles (80 kilometers) from Vietnam’s ...

Xi’s armada is winning the battle for energy in South China Sea

SEOUL (April 24): Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, said the country will continue to build overwhelming and the strongest military power to protect its sovereignty and regional peace, the North's KCNA news agency reported on Wednesday.

Kim said a seri...

North Korea leader Kim's sister: we will build overwhelming military power

(April 24): U.S. stocks closed higher on Tuesday following positive earnings from top-tier companies and as investors were focused on quarterly results from Magnificent Seven and other megacap growth stocks.

Tesla kicked off the earnings cycle for technology heavyweights after markets c...

Wall Street closes higher as investors digest earnings, megacap outlook

LONDON (April 24): Ruthless Arsenal threw down the gauntlet in the Premier League title race with a 5-0 thrashing of London rivals Chelsea to roar three points clear at the top of the table on Tuesday.

Any remaining doubts about Arsenal's staying power were answered emphatically as Lean...

Arsenal hammer Chelsea to move three points clear at the top

NEW YORK/LONDON (April 24): Global shares rose on Tuesday, with investors on Wall Street focused on earnings reports from the U.S. megacaps, and the yen tumbled to multi-year lows against the dollar and the euro.

Treasury yields dipped after data showed U.S. business activity cooled to ...

Stocks gear up for Big Tech earnings; yen touches multi-year lows

Here is a brief recap of some business news and corporate announcements that made the headlines on Tuesday.

KomarkCorp, Topmix, PavREIT, Axis REIT, KIP REIT, Cypark, Crest Builders, Capital A, Gadang, Haily, DXN, Inta Bina, Comfort Gloves, AHB

KUALA LUMPUR (April 23):&nbsp;The Iskandar Regional Development Authority’s (IRDA) target to achieve&nbsp;cumulative investments of RM636 billion by 2030 is among Iskandar Malaysia’s strategies to assist the country in becoming one of the top 30 global economies and the top 12 in global competitiveness.

Iskandar Malaysia’s RM636b investment target to help propel country into world's top 30 economies — PM

Comfort Gloves Bhd said there was a fire at the glove maker’s newly-built three storey warehouse and packing department in Taiping, Perak on Tuesday morning.

“The cause of the fire and the actual extent of the damage are currently still unknown, pending the completion of police investigations into the fire and issuance of their report,” the group said in a bourse filing.

Comfort Gloves reports fire at new Taiping warehouse

While the opening of The Exchange TRX is anticipated to intensify competition in the malls sector, Pavilion Real Estate Investment Trust (PavREIT) said footfalls at its malls nearby — Pavillion KL and the connected Pavilion Elite — remain unaffected, and they are still enjoying over 95% occupancy rates.

PavREIT says Pavilion KL, Elite's footfalls unaffected by opening of TRX mall

The Malaysian Oil, Gas &amp; Energy Services Council (MOGSC) has called on oil and gas (O&amp;G) stakeholders, especially financial institutions, not to write off O&amp;G services and equipment (OGSE) players in the energy transition agenda, as they still have a role to play.

Don't forget O&G services and equipment players in energy transition agenda, says industry association

The fatal collision between two Royal Malaysian Navy helicopters that killed 10 personnel abroad could be due to a failure in the critical points of the aircraft structure, aviation expert Assoc Prof Maj Dr Mohd Harridon Mohamed Suffian said.

Critical point failure could’ve led to fatal Lumut chopper crash, says expert

Chin Hin Group Bhd’s conditional mandatory takeover offer to acquire the remaining shares it does not own in Signature International Bhd has turned unconditional, after it aggregated more than 50% of the voting shares.

Chin Hin's MGO for Signature International turns unconditional as shareholding surpasses 50%

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EVENING 5: Five things you need to know today

KUALA LUMPUR (April 23): DXN Holdings Bhd posted a 43.23% rise in net profit to RM79.02 million for its fourth quarter ended Feb 29, 2024 (4QFY2024), from RM55.17 million a year ago, on the back of higher revenue.

Earnings per share rose to 1.59 sen from 1.14 sen, according to the healt...

DXN’s 4Q net profit up 43%, seeks to expand market presence in Brazil

The M503-3 Maritime Operations Helicopter (HOM) that was involved in a crash Tuesday morning was used for the first time in the flyby for the 90th Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM) Anniversary parade.

Downed HOM chopper used for the first time in flyby, says defence minister 

Ramssol Group Bhd, a human capital management (HCM) solutions provider, reported a near doubling of its first quarter profit mainly due to certain projects with higher profit margin and the distributorship of HCM licences.

Ramssol’s 1Q profit doubles as revenue surges on higher sales in Malaysia, Thailand

Sarawak’s strategic alliances with the UK's leading industry partners in the development of compound semiconductors will drive innovation to increase the capability of microchips to power new technologies and applications, said Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.

Sarawak eyeing partnership with UK companies to boost semicon capabilities

KOTA KINABALU (April 23): The Kibing Group has successfully exported its inaugural batch of solar glass manufactured in Sabah, totalling 672 tonnes, to Cambodia last Sunday (April 21).&nbsp;

Kibing Group exports 672 tonnes of Sabah’s first batch of solar glass to Cambodia

Inta Bina Group Bhd has bagged a contract worth RM169.67 million to develop a serviced apartment project in Country Heights.

Inta Bina bags RM170m serviced apartment job in Country Heights

KUALA LUMPUR (April 23): KIP Real Estate Investment Trust (KIP REIT), a trust which mainly manages retail and industrial properties, said its net property income (NPI) for the third quarter rose 10.1% from a year ago, mainly due to stronger performance from its retail properties.

KIP REIT’s 3Q net property income up 10.1%, to double AUM in three years

IPOH (April 23): The post-mortems of 10 victims of the tragedy of two helicopters colliding near the Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM) base in Lumut, currently being carried out at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital here, are expected to be completed by Wednesday (April 24) afternoon.

Helicopter tragedy: Victims’ post-mortems expected to be completed on April 24 afternoon

Axis Real Estate Investment Trust (Axis REIT) reported a 39.5% surge in its net trust income for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024 (1QFY2024), attributable to post-development contributions from its Bukit Raja Distribution Centre 2, and new tenancies in its Shah Alam Distribution Centre 3.

Axis REIT sees 40% jump in 1Q net trust income, to distribute 2.3 sen per unit

Wall Street's main indexes rose on Tuesday as some growth and chip shares gained, while stocks like General Motors and Spotify advanced on upbeat earnings updates ahead of quarterly reports from big technology companies.

Wall Street gains on bright earnings, megacaps' support

The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI’s (FBM KLCI) rise to its highest level this year at 1,567.57 points under the administration of the unity government, led by the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, confirms that the Malaysian economy will continue to strengthen.

Rafizi sees Malaysian economy strengthening alongside Bursa

US business activity cooled in April to a four-month low due to weaker demand, while rates of inflation eased slightly even as input prices rose sharply, suggesting some possible relief ahead as the Federal Reserve looks for signs that the economy is ebbing enough to bring inflation down further.

Kamarul Anwar

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Kamarul Anwar

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