Tuesday, May 25, 2010

MBMR result ~ 2010 1st Quarter : EPS 16 sen

Tuesday May 25, 2010
MBM plans RM100mil network expansion


KUALA LUMPUR: MBM Resources Bhd plans to spend RM100mil over the next three years to expand its distribution network.

Managing director Looi Kok Loon said this year, RM20mil was allocated to expand its Perodua, Hino and Volkswagen (VW) dealerships.

“MBM will set up 3S centres (sales, service and spare parts) in Butterworth, Ipoh, Shah Alam, Johor Baru, Batu Pahat and Kota Kinabalu to deliver growth potential,” Looi said after the company AGM yesterday.

Looi said MBM's 86%-owned subsidiary, Federal Auto Holdings Bhd, would make a significant investment in VW dealerships in Petaling Jaya and Johor Baru to reassert its multi-brand strategy in driving growth.

On the financial year ending Dec 31, 2010, Looi said the group was optimistic based on the positive first quarter results to March 31. MBM yesterday reported net profit of RM40mil on revenue of RM363.8mil compared with RM9.4mil and RM246.1mil in the previous corresponding period.

“We expect the second and third quarters to remain positive due to the outstanding orders and also the full impact of VW and Hino dealerships in 2010,” Looi said.

He said the first quarter numbers would be indicative of the trend for the rest of the year, adding that volume gains and the stronger ringgit would continue to support the group.

In notes accompanying its results filing, MBM cited the recovery in sales, the spillover of orders for new models launched last year and contributions from additional dealerships as having a positive impact on its overall performance for the quarter. - Bernama

Looi also said MBM was constantly looking for new brand partners as it had the economies of scale, assets and people. MBM is involved in distributorship and dealership of major international brands of vehicles in Malaysia.

Saturday, May 22, 2010

BNM Reserves ~ 14 May 10 : RM 314.1 b

The international reserves of Bank Negara Malaysia amounted to RM314.2 billion (equivalent to USD96.1 billion) as at 14 May 2010.

The reserves position is sufficient to finance 8.3 months of retained imports and is 4.4 times the short-term external debt.

UMW Pre-Tax Profit Up 146 Per Cent In 1st Quarter

KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- UMW Holdings Bhd's pre-tax profit for its first quarter ended March 31, 2010, rose 146 per cent to RM305.094 million from RM123.737 million in the same quarter last year.

The significant profit increase was due to higher sales volume and improved margins from a favourable model mix achieved by the automotive segment, said UMW in a statement Thursday.

As a result, the net profit for the first quarter of 2010 surged from the RM66.0 million registered in the same quarter of 2009 to RM132.9 million, it said.

UMW said the group revenue of RM3,033.2 million for the first quarter was 29.1 per cent higher than the RM2,349.8 million achieved in the preceding year's corresponding quarter.

The increase was due to the strong economic growth and improved consumer and business confidence which resulted in higher demand for its Toyota vehicles, industrial and heavy equipment as well as automotive parts, it said.

Total Toyota and Perodua vehicle sales of 70,550 units represented 47.9 per cent of the total industry volume of 147,415 units reported by the Malaysian Automotive Association for the first quarter of 2010.

The recent trade data indicated that economic growth for 2010 could be much stronger than expected, the group said.

All major sectors recorded robust expansion and both exports and imports had shown steady gains in the first quarter of 2010, a sign that the economy was on the path to a strong recovery, it said.

UMW president and group chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Halim Harun said the automotive segment was poised for a strong growth in 2010 based on a progressively stronger momentum of recovery since the second half of 2009.

"We are confident of achieving the 2010 sales target of our automotive segment, which aims to sell a total of 264,000 Toyota and Perodua cars in 2010, or 48 per cent of the forecast total industry volume of 550,000 cars," he said.

Both the equipment and manufacturing and engineering segments are expected to benefit from the strengthening domestic and external demand, supported by improving regional economic conditions, particularly in the Asian region where UMW has presence.

Abdul Halim said the oil and gas segment is expected to turn around and make positive contributions to group profits in the second half of the year when some of its greenfield investments begin operations and generate income.

Based on the current positive economic outlook, UMW is optimistic that the financial performance of the group may exceed its internal revenue and profit targets set for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2010.

-- BERNAMA

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Auto Sales ~ Apr 10 : 48,706

Vehicle Sales Up 16.8 Per Cent In April

KUALA LUMPUR, May 17 (Bernama) -- Sales of passenger cars and commercial vehicles in April increased 16.8 per cent year-on-year to 48,706 units from 41,686 units, says the Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA).

It attributed the higher sales to the rush to take delivery of the vehicles before the hike in interest rate.

However, sale of cars and commercial vehicles in April was 7,433 units, down 13.2 per cent when compared with March as production could not meet the April delivery deadline.

Sales of passenger cars in April rose to 43,661 units from 37,810 units in the corresponding month last year while that of commercial vehicles rose to 5,045 units from 3,876 units, said MAA in a statement on Monday.

Sales of passenger vehicles in the first four months of this year increased to 176,718 units from 147,111 units in the corresponding period last year.

Sales of commercial vehicles in the same period shot up to 19,403 units from 14,964 units previously.

For Jan-April period, total industry volume was up to 196,121 units from 162,075 units in the same period last year.

MAA said total vehicle production in April jumped to 49,666 units from 39,574 units in April last year.

Passenger vehicles production in April increased to 46,045 units from 36.562 units in April last year while commercial vehicles increased to 3,621 units from 3,012 units.

Passenger vehicles production in the four-month period rose to 176,686 units from 138,890 units in the same period last year while that of commercial vehicles went up to 16,127 units from 14,693 units.

For May sales forecast, sales volume is expected to be maintained at April level but higher than May last year.

-- BERNAMA

Friday, May 7, 2010

Sarawak Cable to raise RM9.1m from IPO

Friday May 7, 2010
Sarawak Cable plans two new products
By SHARIDAN M. ALI
sharidan@thestar.com.my


( Notes : Leader Universal own 25% of Sarawak Cable as the later being an associate)

KUALA LUMPUR: Sarawak Cable Bhd, a power cable manufacturer, aims to raise RM9.1mil from its initial public offering (IPO).

Managing director and chief executive officer Aaron Toh Chee Ching said the proceeds would be used to produce and commercialise two new products – low-voltage aerial bundled cables and low-voltage two-core twin twisted cables – by year-end.

“To boost our production capacity, we are investing in three additional machineries and equipment that will see our production capacity increase by 47%,” he said after the company’s prospectus launch yesterday.

The event was officiated by Second Minister of Planning and Resource Management and Minister of Public Utilities of Sarawak Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hassan.

Sarawak Cable’s IPO involves the sale of 19 million 50 sen shares to approved bumiputra investors and a public issue of 13 million new shares, of which six million are made available for the public and the remainder for eligible directors, employees and business associates. All shares are offered and issued at 70 sen each.

The company seeks to list on the main market of Bursa Malaysia on May 25. CIMB Investment Bank Bhd is the advisor, underwriter and placement agent.

“Post-IPO, our 50%-owned dormant subsidiary Sarawak Power Solutions Sdn Bhd will seek to venture into power-related and renewable energy industry,” said Toh.

He said that after the listing, Sarawak Energy Bhd would hold a 16% stake in Sarawak Cable.

“Our orderbook stands at RM64.2mil as at April, of which the bulk is due by year-end,” he said.

On a proforma basis, Sarawak Cable posted a profit after tax of RM8.1mil on a revenue of RM89.8mil for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2009.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

News You Could Use

(paste from BB notes)

Stocks are crashing, so you turn on the television to catch the latest market news. But instead of CNBC or CNN, imagine that you can tune in to the Benjamin Graham Financial Network. On BGFN, the audio doesn't capture that famous sour clang of the market's closing bell; the video doesn't home in on brokers scurrying across the floor of the stock exchange like angry rodents. Nor does BGRN run any footage of investors gasping on frozen sidewalks as red arrows whiz overhead on electronic stock tickers.

Instead, the image that fills your TV screen is the facade of the New York Stock Exchange, festooned with a huge banner reading: "SALE! 50% OFF!" As intro music, Bachman-Turner Overdrive can be heard blaring a few bars of their old barn-burner, "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet." Then the anchorman announces brightly, "Stocks became more atractive yet again today, as the Dow dropped another 2.5% on heavy volume - the fourth day in a row that stocks have gotten cheaper. Tech investors fared even better, as leading companies like Microsoft lost nearly 5% on the day, making them even more affordable. That comes on top of the good news of the past year, in which stocks have already lost 50%, putting them at bargain levels not seen in years. And some prominent analysts are optimistic that prices may drop still further in the weeks and months to come."

The newscast cuts over to market strategist Ignatz Anderson of the Wall Street firm of Ketchum & Skinner, who says, "My forecast is for stocks to lose another 15% by June. I'm cautiously optimistic that if everything goes well, stocks could lose 25%, maybe more."

"Let's hope Ignatz Anderson is right," the anchor says cheerily. "Falling stock prices would be fabulous news for any investor with a very long horizon. And now over to Wally Wood for our exclusive AccuWeather forecast."


Quote from :
The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham
Revised edition with commentory by Jason Zweig

Malaysia 2010 Q1 GDP growth more than 10%

Thursday May 6, 2010
Malaysia's Q1 GDP growth at 10-year high

The country’s economy is likely to register growth of more than 10%
in the first three months of the year
– an achievement not seen in the last 10 years.
The latest economic indicators show a positive trend.

Exports in March grew by 36.4% beating the market forecast of 22.4%.
Imports rose by 45.3% (forecasts were around 30%).

Crude ends under $80 for the first time since mid March

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Oil prices settled under $80 a barrel on Wednesday, pulled down by a stronger U.S. dollar, concerns about the political unrest in Greece and the state of other European economies, and a higher-than-expected rise in crude inventories.

Crude oil for June delivery slumped $2.77, or 3.4%, to $79.97 a barrel on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. That is the lowest price for a most-active contract since March 15, according to FactSet Research.

Losses were deeper mid-morning and in the last hour of trading.

"People are worried that the bull market is over, that maybe we are seeing the tipping point," said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research, in Winchester, Mass.

Macroeconomic backdrop and the falling euro at the center of their concerns dominated trading.

Investors are feeling that prices pushing towards $90 a barrel recently were not "appropriate for this point in the economic recovery," Lynch said. "People were wondering when it would be time to sell, and it looks like the sell-off is here."

The euro fell to $1.2825 but came off lows hit earlier in the session, while the dollar index /quotes/comstock/11j!i:dxy0 (DXY 83.96, -0.12, -0.14%) rose 0.9% to 84.06.

Worries about a potential debt crisis in Europe flared up again Wednesday as Moody's Investors Service placed Portugal's debt under review for a possible downgrade and violence erupted in Greece following a nationwide strike. Three people were killed after fires broke out at riots near an Athens bank. Read more on Greek violence.

The Energy Information Administration on Wednesday said crude-oil inventories rose 2.8 million barrels in the week ended April 30, which included a 1.7 million increase in inventories in Cushing, Okla., the delivery point for Nymex oil.

Analysts surveyed by Platts had expected crude stocks to increase by 1.54 million barrels.

Gasoline stockpiles rose by 1.2 million, the EIA said, when the expectation was of a modest rise of 200,000 barrels.

Refineries operated at 89.6% of their operable capacity, the EIA said. The refinery utilization rate expected by the analysts polled was 88.66%.

Gasoline futures were the worst-hit among energy products on Monday. Gasoline for June delivery declined 10 cents, or 4.4%, to $2.22 a gallon, reverting to prices last seen in late March.

Natural gas for June delivery retreated 2 cents, or 0.6%, to $3.99 per million British thermal units.

Analysts polled by Platts expect the EIA to report an increase by 80 to 84 billion cubic feet for natural gas in storage in the week ended April 30. The agency releases its weekly report on natural-gas storages Thursday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern.

Oil trimmed some its losses earlier after the April ISM nonmanufacturing index. The index came in under expectations at 55.4, unchanged with March's level, but investors took heart it didn't show an economic contraction.

News that private-sector companies added 32,000 jobs in April, according to the ADP employment report released Wednesday, did little to change oil's direction. The increase in ADP employment was in line with expectations.

BNM Reserves ~ 15 Apr 10 : RM 313.1 b

The international reserves of Bank Negara Malaysia amounted to RM313.1 billion
(equivalent to USD95.7 billion) as at 15 April 2010.

The reserves position is sufficient to finance 8.8 months of retained imports
and is 4 times the short-term external debt.

Perodoa aims to increase Export

Perodua Aims To Increase Exports To 5 Per Cent In 3-5 Years

RAWANG, April 22 (Bernama) -- Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua) aims to increase its exports to five per cent in the next three to five years from the current two per cent, managing director Aminar Rashid Salleh said Thursday.

The company was also looking to sell 3,000 units to overseas markets this year, up from only 2,000 units car sold last year due to the global economic crisis, he said.

"We will increase gradually, because we need to tackle a few areas, particularly quality, cost and productivity," Aminar told a press conference after Perodua's line-off ceremony for 1.7 million vehicles in 17 years by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin.

"For the long term, we would like to increase it to about 10 per cent," he said.

To date, its export markets include Brunei, Fiji, Mauritius, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom, the company's biggest export market which makes up about 40 per cent.

Aminar said Perodua's focus was still in the Asean region as it wanted to take full advantage of the Asean Free Trade Area (AFTA).

"In the future, we are looking for countries where the regulations and standards are almost similar to those in Malaysia, making it easier for us to produce our vehicles in terms of emission control and safety requirements," he said.

Currently, Perodua is carrying out a feasibility study to enter the Thai market that will be completed in the third or fourth quarter this year and it will later look at opportunities in other Asean countries.

So far, the company has shipped 26,000 completely built-up (CBU) units under its Perodua badge, while 8,000 completely knocked down (CKD) units were shipped for Daihatsu in Indonesia.

It has recorded sales of a RM24 million since it started to export CKD components in 2003 to Pakistan, Indonesia and Japan.

"We would like to increase this to at least RM50 million over the next three years," Aminar said.

Also present at the event were International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed and Deputy Human Resources Minister Senator Datuk Maznah Mazlan.

The 1.7 millionth vehicle, an Alza standard variant, was rolled out at a simple yet significant ceremony.

Perodua employed 10,000 workers currently while its plant has the capacity to produce up to 250,000 vehicles a year on a two-shift cycle.

-- BERNAMA

Auto Sales ~ Mar 10 : 56,139

Vehicle Sales In March Up 25 Per Cent

KUALA LUMPUR, April 21 (Bernama) -- Sales of passenger cars and commercial vehicles in March 2010 increased 25 per cent year-on-year to 56,139 units from 44,896 units.

This brought the January to March sales higher by 27,026 units or 22 per cent when compared with the same period of 2009.

The Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA) attributed the higher sales to continued improvement in market sentiment and consumers' confidence.

Sales of passenger vehicles in March 2010 rose to 50,533 units from 40,680 units in the corresponding month last year while that of commercial vehicles rose to 5,606 units from 4,216 units, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

Sales of passenger vehicles in the first three months of the year increased to 133,057 units from 109,301 units in the corresponding period last year.

Sales of commercial vehicles in the same period went up to 14,358 units from 11,088 units previously.

For the three-month period, total industry volume rose to 147,415 units from 120,389 units in the same period of last year.

MAA said total production of vehicles in March 2010 rose to 51,579 units from 35,950 units in March last year.

Production of passenger vehicles in March increased to 47,729 units from 32,922 units in March last year while that of commercial vehicles increased to 3,850 units from 3,028 units.

Production of passenger vehicles in the three-month period rose to 130,641 units from 102,328 units in the same period last year while that of commercial vehicles went up to 12,506 units from 11,681 units.

Going forward, MAA said that sales volume for April 2010 is expected to continue the expansionary trend in the absence of no negative developments in the economy and the automotive market.

It also expects supply to be increased to fulfill outstanding orders.

-- BERNAMA