Business & Markets 2012
Written by Surin Murugiah of theedgemalaysia.com
Wednesday, 06 June 2012 00:00
A + / A - / Reset
KUALA LUMPUR (June 6): The FBM KLCI could cautiously edge higher on Wednesday, following from its gains a day earlier when regional markets advanced on hopes of more action to help ease the eurozone debt crisis. However, sentiment is expected to remain fragile, with no firm solution in sight to the gloomy situation in the beleaguered eurozone.
Meanwhile, there is at least a one-in-three chance of Greece exiting the eurozone following the national elections on June 17, according to Standard & Poor's Rating Services (S&P). In a report published on Monday, S&P said this may be triggered by Greece rejecting reforms demanded by the European Commission, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and European Central Bank (ECB), with the consequent suspension of external financial support.
European equity markets edged lower in a volatile session on Tuesday, as investors balanced the uncertain prospects of decisive stimulus steps from Group of Seven (G7) policymakers, concerns about the eurozone crisis and a darkening technical picture.
Among the stocks that could be in focus are Bumi Armada Bhd, N2N CONNECT BHD [], INGRESS CORPORATION BHD [], MAGNA PRIMA BHD [] and MALAYSIA SMELTING CORPORATION [] Bhd (MSC).
Bumi Armada said its order book rose to over RM7 billion after its subsidiary Armada Marine Contractors Caspian Pte Ltd was awarded a charter contract in Turkmenistan by Momentum Engineering LLC. In a filing on Bursa Malaysia on Tuesday, Bumi Armada said its unit had secured a contract to lay 15km of pipelines in the Caspian Sea, off the coast of Turkmenistan.
N2N Connect has inked an agreement with the Philippines Stock Exchange Inc (PSE) to provide exchange-wide online trading, direct market access and advanced trading tools for the latter's trading participants (TPs) and their clients.
Ingress Corp said that its Thailand subsidiary Ingress Autoventures Co Ltd has received a Letter of Intent (LOI) from Nissan Motor Co Ltd for the supply of Inner Sash for a Nissan new model worth 133.2 million baht (RM13.4 million). Ingress said on Tuesday that the commencement of supply for the project is expected to be within the first quarter of financial year ending Jan 31, 2015, adding that the project duration was six years.
Magna Prima's unit Magna Ecocity Sdn Bhd has acquired 20 acres of land in Selangor for RM100 million from PCM Bina Sdn Bhd. "The proposed acquisition represents an opportunity for MPB Group to strengthen its position and market presence in Klang Valley, particularly in the Shah Alam," it said in a filing on Bursa Malaysia on Tuesday.
MSC is venturing into the tin smelting sector in Africa, after acquiring a 40% stake in Africa Smelting Corporation Sprl (ASC) for US$400,000 (RM12.76 million). In a filing Tuesday, MSC said the acquisition was part of its objective to establish in smelting and marketing tin internationally.