Copper prices fell Wednesday on the news that China is moving to limit the amount of credit available in the country in order to make sure that inflation does not spiral out of control.
Despite some analyst predictions that demand for the metal used in construction and manufacturing will remain strong, the new reports have spurred concern that demand will fall.
Also hurting copper prices was the news that US housing starts dropped by 4 percent in December, from November levels.
March copper was down 9 cents to $3.36 per pound in New York trade, while three-month copper dropped $145 to $7,387.50 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange.
Other base metals prices also fell in London as aluminium fell $29 to $2,257.50 per tonne, zinc was down $61 to $2,441.50 per tonne, lead was $86 lower to $2,386.50 per tonne, tin fell $137.50 to $17,775 per tonne and nickel dropped $410 to $18,802.50 per tonne.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Leader inked US$ 107 m 230kV power project in Cambodia
The Star :
Leader Universal Holdings Bhd will embark on a US$107mil power transmission project in Cambodia next month, said group managing director Datuk Sean H’ng Chun Hsiang.
He told StarBiz that construction work for the first phase of the project would kick off immediately after Chinese New Year.
Leader, through its subsidiary Cambodian Transmission Ltd, inked the deal for the project with state-owned power company Electricite du Cambodge (EDC) yesterday, which commissioned the group to build a 230-kv power transmission system from North Phnom Penh to Kampong Cham on a build-operate-transfer basis.
Under the agreement, Leader will build, manage and maintain the transmission line for 25 years before returning it to the government. “Under the agreement, Leader will build two substations and a power transmission line in three phases,” H’ng said.
He said the first phase, involving the construction of a substation in Kampong Cham, was scheduled for completion in July 2011 while the construction of the North Phnom Penh substation under the second phase was slated to be completed by March 2012. “The final phase, which involves the commissioning of the 110-km transmission line from the North Phnom Penh substation to the Kampong Cham substation, will be completed in December 2013,” he said.
Leader would fund the project with internally generated funds and bank borrowings, he said, adding that the bank loans “are now in place.”
The master plan for power generation in Cambodia allowed a four-fold increase in installed capacity over the next five years, according to H’ng. “The forecast for the power load in Cambodia is that it will grow to 2,315MW in 2024 from 740MW in 2010, which is a more than a three-fold increase within 14 years, growing at a 8.5% per year growth rate,” he said.
On Leader’s 100MW coal-fired power project in Sihanoukville, H’ng said the project should be operational in 2012. “We have a 30-year build-own-operate concession to supply electricity to EDC,” he said.
Leader Universal Holdings Bhd will embark on a US$107mil power transmission project in Cambodia next month, said group managing director Datuk Sean H’ng Chun Hsiang.
He told StarBiz that construction work for the first phase of the project would kick off immediately after Chinese New Year.
Leader, through its subsidiary Cambodian Transmission Ltd, inked the deal for the project with state-owned power company Electricite du Cambodge (EDC) yesterday, which commissioned the group to build a 230-kv power transmission system from North Phnom Penh to Kampong Cham on a build-operate-transfer basis.
Under the agreement, Leader will build, manage and maintain the transmission line for 25 years before returning it to the government. “Under the agreement, Leader will build two substations and a power transmission line in three phases,” H’ng said.
He said the first phase, involving the construction of a substation in Kampong Cham, was scheduled for completion in July 2011 while the construction of the North Phnom Penh substation under the second phase was slated to be completed by March 2012. “The final phase, which involves the commissioning of the 110-km transmission line from the North Phnom Penh substation to the Kampong Cham substation, will be completed in December 2013,” he said.
Leader would fund the project with internally generated funds and bank borrowings, he said, adding that the bank loans “are now in place.”
The master plan for power generation in Cambodia allowed a four-fold increase in installed capacity over the next five years, according to H’ng. “The forecast for the power load in Cambodia is that it will grow to 2,315MW in 2024 from 740MW in 2010, which is a more than a three-fold increase within 14 years, growing at a 8.5% per year growth rate,” he said.
On Leader’s 100MW coal-fired power project in Sihanoukville, H’ng said the project should be operational in 2012. “We have a 30-year build-own-operate concession to supply electricity to EDC,” he said.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Buy 75 sen ... Sell 80 sen
I analyse some stock, and value it at RM 1
I buy at 75 sen yesterday and sell it at 80 sen today.
I analyse some stock, and value it at 50 sen
I buy at 75 sen yesterday and sell it at 80 sen today.
I don't analyse the stock, don't know it value.
I buy at 75 sen yesterday and sell it at 80 sen today.
One thing for certain, I make 5 sen in one day.
But some people could not tell the different between the 3 scenario.
Including me ?
*
I buy at 75 sen yesterday and sell it at 80 sen today.
I analyse some stock, and value it at 50 sen
I buy at 75 sen yesterday and sell it at 80 sen today.
I don't analyse the stock, don't know it value.
I buy at 75 sen yesterday and sell it at 80 sen today.
One thing for certain, I make 5 sen in one day.
But some people could not tell the different between the 3 scenario.
Including me ?
*
Final Thoughts
In a rising market, everyone makes money and a value philosophy is unnecessary. But because there is no certain way to predict what the market will do, one must follow a value philosophy at all times. By controlling risk and limiting loss through extensive fundamental analysis, strict discipline, and endless patience, value investors can expect good results with limited downside. You may not get rich quick, but you will keep what you have, and if the future of value investing resembles its past, you are likely to get rich slowly. As investment strategies go, this is the most that any reasonable investor can hope for.
The real secret to investing is that there is no secret to investing. Every important aspect of value investing has been made available to the public many times over, beginning in 1934 with the first edition of Security Analysis. That so many people fail to follow this timeless and almost foolproof approach enables those who adopt it to remain successful. The foibles of human nature that result in the mass pursuit of instant wealth and effortless gain seem certain to be with us forever. So long as people succumb to this aspect of their natures, value investing will remain, as it has been for 75 years, a sound and low-risk approach to successful long-term investing.
*
The real secret to investing is that there is no secret to investing. Every important aspect of value investing has been made available to the public many times over, beginning in 1934 with the first edition of Security Analysis. That so many people fail to follow this timeless and almost foolproof approach enables those who adopt it to remain successful. The foibles of human nature that result in the mass pursuit of instant wealth and effortless gain seem certain to be with us forever. So long as people succumb to this aspect of their natures, value investing will remain, as it has been for 75 years, a sound and low-risk approach to successful long-term investing.
*
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Oil prices fall as hurricane Ida fades, US$ climbs
Published: Wednesday November 11, 2009 MYT 7:44:00 AM
Oil prices fall as hurricane Ida fades, US$ climbs
NEW YORK:
Oil prices fell Tuesday as workers headed back to deep sea platforms that were bypassed by a rapidly weakening storm in the Gulf of Mexico. Ida, once a Category 1 hurricane, was downgraded to a tropical storm Monday and then lost even that status Tuesday as its winds lost their punch. Producers like Royal Dutch Shell and Anadarko reported no damage to facilities and said flights bringing workers back to abandoned platforms and rigs would begin Tuesday.
Benchmark crude for December delivery fell 38 cents to settle at $79.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Even on Monday, when Tropical Storm Ida posed a potential threat to Gulf platforms, it appeared that the affects of a weakened dollar played a more significant role as oil prices rose $2 to $79.43.
The dollar tumbled so far to start the week, a person holding a euro could trade it in for $1.50, the first time the U.S. currency has been that weak since July. Because crude is traded in dollars, that means an investor could trade in euros for dollars and buy oil for a relative bargain. Even though there are huge supplies of crude right now, the sagging dollar allows investors to buy oil and pay for storate, selling the oil months later when the price is right. On Tuesday, however, the dollar regained ground and crude prices fell.
The response to oil company activity in the Gulf ahead of the storm was muted.
Companies shut down 30 percent of oil production and 27 percent of natural gas production and evacuated about 18 percent of nearly 700 platforms, according to the U.S. Minerals Management Service.
In the past, that would have been enough to send prices soaring by $5 to $10 per barrel.
Last year, U.S. retail gasoline prices spiked when hurricanes Ike and Gustav cut off supply routes, particularly in the Southeast. But Ida was weak compared with those storms and demand for fuel is not much better.
Prices at the pump edged lower overnight, falling 0.6 cents to $2.658 a gallon, according to auto club AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. The Energy Department late Monday reported that retail gasoline prices fell for the first time in five weeks.
The International Energy Agency lowered its global oil demand forecast as well on Tuesday from 106 million barrels per day to 105 million barrels per day. New technologies that have opened up vast reserves of natural gas will lead to a glut in supply for at least the next several years, the IEA said.
Natural gas for December delivery plunged 4 percent, or 20.3 cents, to settle at $4.467 per 1,000 cubic feet on Nymex. In other Nymex trading, heating oil fell a penny to settle at $2.0523 a gallon. Gasoline for December delivery fell less than a penny to settle at $1.9774 a gallon.
In London, Brent crude for December delivery fell 27 cents to settle at $76.50 on the ICE Futures exchange. - AP
*
Oil prices fall as hurricane Ida fades, US$ climbs
NEW YORK:
Oil prices fell Tuesday as workers headed back to deep sea platforms that were bypassed by a rapidly weakening storm in the Gulf of Mexico. Ida, once a Category 1 hurricane, was downgraded to a tropical storm Monday and then lost even that status Tuesday as its winds lost their punch. Producers like Royal Dutch Shell and Anadarko reported no damage to facilities and said flights bringing workers back to abandoned platforms and rigs would begin Tuesday.
Benchmark crude for December delivery fell 38 cents to settle at $79.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Even on Monday, when Tropical Storm Ida posed a potential threat to Gulf platforms, it appeared that the affects of a weakened dollar played a more significant role as oil prices rose $2 to $79.43.
The dollar tumbled so far to start the week, a person holding a euro could trade it in for $1.50, the first time the U.S. currency has been that weak since July. Because crude is traded in dollars, that means an investor could trade in euros for dollars and buy oil for a relative bargain. Even though there are huge supplies of crude right now, the sagging dollar allows investors to buy oil and pay for storate, selling the oil months later when the price is right. On Tuesday, however, the dollar regained ground and crude prices fell.
The response to oil company activity in the Gulf ahead of the storm was muted.
Companies shut down 30 percent of oil production and 27 percent of natural gas production and evacuated about 18 percent of nearly 700 platforms, according to the U.S. Minerals Management Service.
In the past, that would have been enough to send prices soaring by $5 to $10 per barrel.
Last year, U.S. retail gasoline prices spiked when hurricanes Ike and Gustav cut off supply routes, particularly in the Southeast. But Ida was weak compared with those storms and demand for fuel is not much better.
Prices at the pump edged lower overnight, falling 0.6 cents to $2.658 a gallon, according to auto club AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. The Energy Department late Monday reported that retail gasoline prices fell for the first time in five weeks.
The International Energy Agency lowered its global oil demand forecast as well on Tuesday from 106 million barrels per day to 105 million barrels per day. New technologies that have opened up vast reserves of natural gas will lead to a glut in supply for at least the next several years, the IEA said.
Natural gas for December delivery plunged 4 percent, or 20.3 cents, to settle at $4.467 per 1,000 cubic feet on Nymex. In other Nymex trading, heating oil fell a penny to settle at $2.0523 a gallon. Gasoline for December delivery fell less than a penny to settle at $1.9774 a gallon.
In London, Brent crude for December delivery fell 27 cents to settle at $76.50 on the ICE Futures exchange. - AP
*
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Weak US$ at 15-month low pushes gold to new high
Published: Tuesday November 10, 2009 MYT 8:01:00
Weak US$ at 15-month low pushes gold to new high
NEW YORK:
Gold prices climbed to another new high Monday as the U.S. dollar sank to a 15-month low.
Gold for December delivery soared as high as US$1,111.70 on the New York Mercantile Exchange before settling at $1,101.40 an ounce, up $5.70, or 0.5 percent.
The gains came as the ICE Futures US dollar index, which measures the dollar against other currencies, dropped more than 1 percent to its lowest level since August 2008. The dollar weakened after finance ministers from the Group of 20 countries pledged over the weekend to maintain their stimulus efforts and keep interest rates low to further a global economic recovery. The G-20 leaders did not address how they might support currencies that have fallen in response to low rates. U.S. rates are near zero, which has contributed to the dollar's decline.
Gold, meanwhile, is seen as a hedge against the weak dollar and inflation, which investors fear could become a problem down the road if the greenback keeps falling.
"Short-term traders are looking at gold as an inverse play on the dollar," said Nicholas Brooks, head of research and investment strategy at ETF Securities in London.
Other commodities that are bought and sold in dollars have benefited from the greenback's slide because foreign investors can buy more with less money.
In other Nymex trading, December silver rose 10.5 cents to $17.48 an ounce, while December platinum rose $19 to $1,364 an ounce.
December copper futures added 1.5 cents to $2.9675 a pound.
In addition to the weaker dollar, jitters over tropical storm Ida helped support higher energy prices Monday. However, forecasters say the storm will likely weaken and bypass most drilling platforms and refineries in the Gulf of Mexico.
Light, sweet crude for December delivery rose $2 to settle at $79.43 a barrel.
Heating oil futures rose 5.92 cents to $2.0627 a gallon and gasoline futures gained 5.75 cents to $1.9818 a gallon.
Grain prices surged on the Chicago Board of Trade.
December wheat futures jumped 22.75 cents to $5.20 a bushel, while corn for December delivery rose 19 cents to $3.86 a bushel.
January soybeans gained 17 cents to $9.72 a bushel.
Prices for cotton, coffee and orange juice also rose.
- AP
Weak US$ at 15-month low pushes gold to new high
NEW YORK:
Gold prices climbed to another new high Monday as the U.S. dollar sank to a 15-month low.
Gold for December delivery soared as high as US$1,111.70 on the New York Mercantile Exchange before settling at $1,101.40 an ounce, up $5.70, or 0.5 percent.
The gains came as the ICE Futures US dollar index, which measures the dollar against other currencies, dropped more than 1 percent to its lowest level since August 2008. The dollar weakened after finance ministers from the Group of 20 countries pledged over the weekend to maintain their stimulus efforts and keep interest rates low to further a global economic recovery. The G-20 leaders did not address how they might support currencies that have fallen in response to low rates. U.S. rates are near zero, which has contributed to the dollar's decline.
Gold, meanwhile, is seen as a hedge against the weak dollar and inflation, which investors fear could become a problem down the road if the greenback keeps falling.
"Short-term traders are looking at gold as an inverse play on the dollar," said Nicholas Brooks, head of research and investment strategy at ETF Securities in London.
Other commodities that are bought and sold in dollars have benefited from the greenback's slide because foreign investors can buy more with less money.
In other Nymex trading, December silver rose 10.5 cents to $17.48 an ounce, while December platinum rose $19 to $1,364 an ounce.
December copper futures added 1.5 cents to $2.9675 a pound.
In addition to the weaker dollar, jitters over tropical storm Ida helped support higher energy prices Monday. However, forecasters say the storm will likely weaken and bypass most drilling platforms and refineries in the Gulf of Mexico.
Light, sweet crude for December delivery rose $2 to settle at $79.43 a barrel.
Heating oil futures rose 5.92 cents to $2.0627 a gallon and gasoline futures gained 5.75 cents to $1.9818 a gallon.
Grain prices surged on the Chicago Board of Trade.
December wheat futures jumped 22.75 cents to $5.20 a bushel, while corn for December delivery rose 19 cents to $3.86 a bushel.
January soybeans gained 17 cents to $9.72 a bushel.
Prices for cotton, coffee and orange juice also rose.
- AP
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Palm Oil reserves ~ Sep 09 : 1.58 m tons
November 5, 2009 23:00 UTC+8
Crude Palm Oil Ends Down on Rising Inventories – Range Bound Trade
The benchmark January crude palm oil futures contract on BMD closed at MYR2,247 a metric ton, down MYR13 or -0.58%, little changed from the opening level of MYR2,260 after trading in a narrow range throughout the day on fears of rising inventories and spillover weakness from crude and soyoil.
Palm oil reserves were at 1.58 million tons at end-September, according to Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) estimate.
Cash palm olein for January/February/March traded at $690/ton and $687.50/ton, while April/May/June traded at $697.50/ton and $700/ton. Cash CPO for prompt shipment was offered MYR60 lower at MYR2,180/ton.
*
Crude Palm Oil Ends Down on Rising Inventories – Range Bound Trade
The benchmark January crude palm oil futures contract on BMD closed at MYR2,247 a metric ton, down MYR13 or -0.58%, little changed from the opening level of MYR2,260 after trading in a narrow range throughout the day on fears of rising inventories and spillover weakness from crude and soyoil.
Palm oil reserves were at 1.58 million tons at end-September, according to Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) estimate.
Cash palm olein for January/February/March traded at $690/ton and $687.50/ton, while April/May/June traded at $697.50/ton and $700/ton. Cash CPO for prompt shipment was offered MYR60 lower at MYR2,180/ton.
*
Saturday, November 7, 2009
BNM Reserves ~ 30 Oct 09 : RM 334.6 b
*
The international reserves of BNM amounted to RM334.6 billion
(equivalent to USD96 billion) as at 30 October 2009.
*
The reserves position is sufficient to finance 9.9 months of retained imports
and is 3.9 times the short-term external debt.
*
The international reserves of BNM amounted to RM334.6 billion
(equivalent to USD96 billion) as at 30 October 2009.
*
The reserves position is sufficient to finance 9.9 months of retained imports
and is 3.9 times the short-term external debt.
*
Kinsteel profit down on lower steel prices
Saturday November 7, 2009
Kinsteel profit down on lower steel prices
Kinsteel Bhd posted a net profit of RM19.8mil in the third quarter ended Sept 30,
which was only a third of RM58mil it made in the previous corresponding period.
Revenue was almost halved at RM458mil from RM845mil registered a year ago.
“The decrease in revenue was mainly due to lower steel prices,” said the company.
*
In a separate statement, Perwaja Holdings Bhd, which is 37.3% owned by Kinsteel,
said it posted a net profit of RM13mil in the third quarter ended Sept 30
versus RM80.3mil made a year earlier.
Revenue fell to RM409mil from RM978mil previously.
It said the lower revenue and profit was mainly due to the lower steel prices
and decline in demand.
*
Kinsteel profit down on lower steel prices
Kinsteel Bhd posted a net profit of RM19.8mil in the third quarter ended Sept 30,
which was only a third of RM58mil it made in the previous corresponding period.
Revenue was almost halved at RM458mil from RM845mil registered a year ago.
“The decrease in revenue was mainly due to lower steel prices,” said the company.
*
In a separate statement, Perwaja Holdings Bhd, which is 37.3% owned by Kinsteel,
said it posted a net profit of RM13mil in the third quarter ended Sept 30
versus RM80.3mil made a year earlier.
Revenue fell to RM409mil from RM978mil previously.
It said the lower revenue and profit was mainly due to the lower steel prices
and decline in demand.
*
Friday, November 6, 2009
Bakun dam to power up electricity in October or November next year
*
KUCHING: The Bakun hydro dam project is expected to start generating electricity in October or November next year when the first of its eight turbines is commissioned. Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd’s general manager (civil) Tan Yong Long said each turbine could produce 300MW of electricity. He said the 205m-high concrete-faced rockfill dam, the world’s second highest after the 233m-high Shubuya dam in China, had an installed capacity of 2,400MW.
The bulk of the electricity will be exported to the peninsula through undersea submarine cables, the first of which is expected to be ready by 2016.
“The project’s main civil works are now 95% completed. The electrical and mechanical package is more than 90% complete,” he told a media briefing on the dam’s progress here on Wednesday night.
Sarawak Hidro, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ministry of Finance Inc, is the project developer and manager. Tan said the second turbine is expected to be commissioned three months after the first, and the dam would be fully operational by 2011. He said impounding was expected to start in January by the latest, and that it would take eight months for the water level at the reservoir to reach the minimum operational level for tests to be carried out.
The reservoir will have a surface area of 695 sq km – the size of Singapore – when the water level reaches the maximum operating level of elevation at 228m. The Bakun catchment area covers some 14,750 sq m, which is as big as Kelantan. Tan said biomass removal through open burning and covering 455ha of the reservoir was now 80% complete. The entire job would be finished by next month.
“Works to remove the biomass started in January. It is tedious and labour intensive.”
On the rescue of wildlife, he said ground monitoring work to build up the wildlife inventory started two months ago. The wildlife would be relocated with the help of the Sarawak Forestry Corporation.
Allaying fears on the dam’s safety, Tan said: “Earthquake is not an issue. It will not make the dam fail.” However, he said instruments to detect earthquakes would be installed.
*
KUCHING: The Bakun hydro dam project is expected to start generating electricity in October or November next year when the first of its eight turbines is commissioned. Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd’s general manager (civil) Tan Yong Long said each turbine could produce 300MW of electricity. He said the 205m-high concrete-faced rockfill dam, the world’s second highest after the 233m-high Shubuya dam in China, had an installed capacity of 2,400MW.
The bulk of the electricity will be exported to the peninsula through undersea submarine cables, the first of which is expected to be ready by 2016.
“The project’s main civil works are now 95% completed. The electrical and mechanical package is more than 90% complete,” he told a media briefing on the dam’s progress here on Wednesday night.
Sarawak Hidro, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ministry of Finance Inc, is the project developer and manager. Tan said the second turbine is expected to be commissioned three months after the first, and the dam would be fully operational by 2011. He said impounding was expected to start in January by the latest, and that it would take eight months for the water level at the reservoir to reach the minimum operational level for tests to be carried out.
The reservoir will have a surface area of 695 sq km – the size of Singapore – when the water level reaches the maximum operating level of elevation at 228m. The Bakun catchment area covers some 14,750 sq m, which is as big as Kelantan. Tan said biomass removal through open burning and covering 455ha of the reservoir was now 80% complete. The entire job would be finished by next month.
“Works to remove the biomass started in January. It is tedious and labour intensive.”
On the rescue of wildlife, he said ground monitoring work to build up the wildlife inventory started two months ago. The wildlife would be relocated with the help of the Sarawak Forestry Corporation.
Allaying fears on the dam’s safety, Tan said: “Earthquake is not an issue. It will not make the dam fail.” However, he said instruments to detect earthquakes would be installed.
*
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