20101101 0853 Malaysia Corporate News.

Kumpulan Jetson director seeking legal advice against removal
Chow Chee Kin, the director at Kumpulan Jetson Bhd who was recently asked to vacate his position, says he is seeking legal advice on the matter. “I am talking to my lawyers. I am still figuring out on what grounds are they dismissing me,” he told StarBizWeek. There were calls to remove Chow from the board of the construction outfit last week, believed to be initiated by managing director Datuk Teh Kian An, seen as the head of one of the two camps within the company. Chow said he was served a letter of termination on 8 Oct. When contacted, Teh declined comment. Last Friday, Jetson announced to Bursa Malaysia that it would convene an EGM on 29 Nov to remove Chow as director. (StarBiz)

Cheaper Toyota Prius
UMW Toyota Motor has slashed the price of Toyota Prius by 20% to RM139,900 following the tax-free incentive on hybrid cars announced recently. The Prius price in Sabah and Sarawak is RM141,500 owing to the higher logistics costs, UMW Toyota said in a statement. The Prius was originally sold at RM175,000 (including insurance). UMW Toyota president Kuah Kock Heng said the move was in line with the Government's move in extending better tax incentives to hybrid cars under the 2011 Budget. "Compared to the 2009 Budget, the 2011 Budget extends full exemptions of import duty and 50% reduction in excise duty on hybrid cars," he said. (BT)

VW hopes to conclude talks with DRB-Hicom by year-end
Europe’s biggest vehicle manufacturer Volkswagen Group hopes to conclude negotiations with DRB-Hicom Bhd on the proposed partnership to produce Volkswagen vehicles in Malaysia by year-end. Volkswagen Group Malaysia SB managing director Andreas Prinz said that so far, the negotiations were promising with several working groups looking at different aspect of the venture – the production, government incentive and product feasibility. (Malaysian Reserve) 

CIMB: Represents Malaysia in deal with China. CIMB Group (as the representative bank for Malaysia) along with other major Asean financial institutions, have signed a framework agreement with the China Development Bank Corp (CDBC) to set up the China-Asean Interbank Association (CAIBA). CAIBA was set up to achieve a mutually-beneficial social and economic development between China and Asean by promoting mutual trade and investment. It can provide relevant financial services for infrastructure construction and other projects supported by the governments of China and Asean countries. Initial members of CAIBA consist of renowned financial institutions which have influence in their own countries, as well as in South-East Asia. (Source: The Star)

IOI Corp: Chairman sees CPO hitting RM3,300, to expand palm oil ops in China. IOI Corp Bhd group executive chairman Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng said the wet weather caused by the La Nina phenomenon will likely push crude palm oil (CPO) futures to RM3,300 per tonne by 1Q2011. Lee said that RM3,400 is possible if La Nina sets in and current CPO futures had not taken the weather into consideration yet. Separately, IOI Corp Bhd is looking to expand into China's downstream business of palm oil when the timing is right. As at June 30, the group has four refineries with a total refining capacity of approximately 3.7m tones. (Source: The Edge Financial Daily, The Star)

Sunway REIT: Shops for RM500m deals to expand. Sunway Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), the largest property trust in Malaysia is shopping for assets worth at least RM500m each in a quest to double its size within the next five years. The focus would be in the retail sector, where shopping malls and commercial properties stand to gain the most from a growing local economy. Sunway REIT has also identified properties owned by parent Sunway worth RM2.5b to be injected into the REIT over the course of seven years. (Source: The Malaysian Reserve)

Tenaga: Looks at Mid-East market. Tenaga's move overseas could likely bring back a spark of investor interest. According to industry sources, the national power provider could secure a deal in the Middle East by as early as year-end. According to reports, Tenaga is close to securing the rights to build a new combined cycle gas turbine in Egypt together with a local Egyptian partner. Tenaga is also bidding for plants in Saudi Arabia. (Source: The Edge Financial Weekly)

UBG: Today is UBG's last trading day. Today is the last trading day for UBG Bhd prior to its suspension tomorrow and subsequent delisting from Bursa Malaysia that will wipe out market capitalisation of more than RM1.2b (as of Friday). Javace Sdn Bhd and Sheikh Tarek Essam Ahmad Obaid had earlier launched a take-over and now hold 90.09% of the issued and paid-up share capital of UBG. Javace Sdn Bhd, which is wholly owned by PetroSaudi International Ltd, Seychelles, and PetroSaudi CEO Sheikh Tarek had in last December offered to acquire all voting shares in UBG not already owned by Javace and parties acting in concert with it for RM2.50 per offer share. (Source: The Star)

Consumer: New moves over hypermarket stakes. The potential purchase of stakes in two major hypermarkets under a partnership between government-linked investment companies (GLICs) and local retailers is being studied, according to the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) report. This forms part of the initiative to facilitate local businesses to acquire stakes in foreign retail businesses. Interested parties are already speaking to funds and banks on the next step. (Source: Business Times)