20100325 1810 FCPO EOD Daily Chart Study.

FCPO closed : 2575, changed : +15 points, volume : lower.
Bollinger band reading : side way downside biased.
MACD Histrogram : continue rising, seller reducing exposure.
Support : 2570, 2550, 2521 level.
Resistant : 2590, 2620, 2650 level.
Comment :
FCPO traded side way range bound within a 28 point range with lesser volume changed hand ended the day higher. Side way range bound downside biased market suggestion remained unchanged from the daily chart reading stand point.
When to buy : buy at support or weakness with quick cut loss and profit target.
When to sell : sell at resistant or strength with larger cut loss and profit target. 

20100325 1729 FKLI EOD Daily Chart Study.

FKLI closed : 1317.5, changed : +4.5 points, volume : lower.
Bollinger band reading : side way range bound little upside biased.
MACD Histrogram : recovering, buyer taking chances.
Support : 1312, 1307, 1300, 1295 level.
Resistant : 1318, 1325, 1330 level.
Comment :
Closed at the high FKLI traded within a 6 points range lower volume market. Daily chart outlook remained unchanged with continue side way range bound little upside biased market.
When to buy : buy at support or weakness with quick cut loss and profit target.
When to sell : sell at resistant or strength with quick cut loss and profit target.

20100325 1417 FKLI Mid Day Hourly Chart Study.

FKLI closed : 1316, changed : +3 points, volume : high.
Bollinger band reading : side way range bound little upside biased.
MACD Histrogram : hovering a zero line level, buyer seller still in battle.
Support : 1312, 1307, 1300, 1295 level.
Resistant : 1318, 1325, 1330 level.
Comment :
FKLI traded firmed in sustaining volume despite negative development in major Asia and overnight Down Jones market. Hourly chart suggesting market to go side way range bound testing support and resistant to identify the underlying market strength.

20100325 1409 FCPO Mid Day Hourly Chart Study.

FCPO closed : 2560, changed : unchanged, volume : low.
Bollinger band reading : side way downside biased.
MACD Histrogram : up and down, not much action from both buyer and seller .
Support : 2550, 2521, 2500 level.
Resistant : 2570, 2590, 2620 level.
Comment :
Another quiet morning session on FCPO that ended unchanged within a 24 points range market.
Hourly chart reading looks a little downside biased within a side way range bound market.

20100325 1130 Malaysia Corporate News.

Splash, which is 40% owned by Gamuda, is making a cash offer of RM10.8bn to the federal government and the Selangor state government to take over all the water concessionaires in the state. Splash indicated that it was compelled to bring closure to the impasse that has lasted more than three years.

• It proposes that the water tariff rate remain at the current level, with only a 2-3% annual increase or 9% every three years. Tariffs will be 35% lower than Syabas’s tariff as there is no need to implement Syabas’s 37% water tariff hike. 
• Upon the takeovers, Splash will be solely in charge of the combined operations and maintenance (O&M), including the operations of the water distribution and will require a 30-year concession period from 2010. Splash will undertake future capex and opex of the entire operations but stated that capex related to the Interstate Water Transfer Scheme (IWTS) will be borne by PAAB. (BMSB)

Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said the government has agreed to implement in stages, the mandatory sales of biofuel from June next year. The programme involving a blend of 5% palm oil-based methyl ester and 95% petroleum diesel, would be implemented in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Southern Perak, Western Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Northern Johor.

• The government made the decision on the implementation of the biofuel programme, tagged, the "B5 Programme" on 17 Feb this year. Dompok said oil companies had requested the government to implement the mandatory sales of biofuel beginning June next year, as they needed time to plan their capital expenditure to sell this type of fuel. (Bernama)

Pakatan Rakyat (PR) would urge the federal government to revoke approvals given to NFOs to hold special draws and reduce the number of weekly ordinary draws from three times a week to twice a week to curb gambling in the country. DAP Youth chief Anthony Loke said PR would send a memorandum to PM Datuk Seri Najib Razak and hoped that all MPs would give bipartisan support for the proposal. (Financial Daily) Although special draws are allocated at the discretion of the government, such allocations have been an annual feature in recent years. The NFOs have promoted special draws as a more effective way to pad the government’s tax coffers than tax hikes.

Malaysia has asked petroleum companies to bear the extra cost of selling diesel blended with palm oil from Jun-11 to kick-start sales of the green fuel after a four-year delay. The country has struggled to implement a mandate to push the blended fuel and support the palm oil industry that was first introduced in 2007 as the government was reluctant to subsidise biofuel blends to match diesel prices at the pump.

• Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said the green fuel, a blend of 5% palm and 95% diesel petroleum, will be introduced in stages in the central states in Peninsular Malaysia. 
• "The biofuel mandate implementation will support palm oil prices and enable planters, especially the smallholders, to reap economic benefits," said Dompok. Eventually, the mandate will be extended to other states and take up half 0.5m tonnes of the country's total annual crude palm oil production. No time-frame was given. (Reuters)

Despite several challenges especially the high cost of producing bio-fuel, the Sime Darby is walking its talk and taking the lead in showing Malaysians that biodiesel will be fuel of the future. The group had its fleet of diesel engine cars and four-by-four vehicles, used by its senior managers and staff, filled with Bio-N, the palm based biofuel produced by the group.

• In what was considered a symbolic launch in the usage of biofuel, the group had Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities Tan Sri Bernard Dompok filling up the vehicles with the biofuel at its biodiesel plant in Carey Island here. 
• It was to take the lead in using biofuel and also reflect their commitment to the usage of enviromental friendly fuel, said Sime Darby Plantation's MD, Datuk Azhar Abdul Hamid. (Bernama)

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is in the final stage of assessing applications for up to nine new banking and insurance licences, and expects to conclude the process by April. "Sometime in May or early June, the announcement would be made," Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz said.

• She said the applicants were institutions from Europe, the Middle East and Asia. On the insurance sector, she said, it should consolidate in order to have a more significant role in the local financial system and economy. (Bernama)

RHB Investment Management (RHBIM) has bagged the most innovative product in Malaysia at the Asia Asset Management 2009 Best of the Best Awards in Hong Kong recently. The winning fund, the RHB China Averaging Capital Protected Fund, which was launched in Mar-09, is a 100% capital protected fund in ringgit. The fund is a unique capital protected fund that accumulates investments during the first 12 months and then participates in the growth of China over the next 24 months. (BT)

Telekom Malaysia (TM) has unveiled "UniFi", the new brand for its next-generation high speed broadband service. TM's UniFi high speed broadband packages comprise triple-play services of high speed Internet, video (IPTV), and phone, with speeds of 5Mbps, 10Mbps and 20Mbps.

• The IPTV service which makes up part of the value-add bundled service will be delivered via an 8Mbps connection exclusively and in addition to the data speeds subscribed by the customers. With IPTV, customers can enjoy 22 linear channels, Video-On-Demand and interactive services such as games and tourism information. (Bernama)

Billet prices into Southeast Asia hit US$600 per tonne cfr as the market accepted offers that were described last week as "crazy". Billet bookings have risen to US$565-600 per tonne cfr, up from US$520-545 cfr last week, tracking the growth in international prices and scrap prices, said sources in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

• Volumes were thin and the highest deals were reported for Russian material at US$590- 600 cfr, sources said. Offers continued to push higher this week to US$585-635 cfr from Malaysia, Taiwan, Russia and Turkey. Billet offers to Vietnam were the highest in the region, touching US$605-635 cfr for material from Russia, Turkey, Taiwan and Malaysia. 
• In Malaysia and Singapore, offers for billet were slim; Malaysian mills increased their offers to US$585-600 per tonne fob this week, up from $550 fob last week. (Metal Bulletin)

SP Setia says its target of RM2bn sales this year will be driven mainly by projects on the home front. "About RM1.9m will come from Malaysia and the remaining RM100m from Vietnam," SP Setia president and CEO Tan Sri Liew Kee Sin said.

• Liew said that SP Setia's sales represent less than 5% of the total market and he hopes to increase this share by ensuring that the group maintains its sales growth of 20% a year. He foresees the Malaysian property market being resilient despite an expected normalisation of interest rates in the next one to two years. (BT)

Permaju Industries unit Cergazam Sdn Bhd has been appointed by the Naza Group as an authorised Chevrolet retailer for 3S (sales, service and spare parts) operations at four locations in the country. Permaju said it had signed a short-term agreement with Naza's unit Pavillion Crest Sdn Bhd. The four locations are namely in Petaling Jaya, Bukit Mertajam, Penang and Johor Bahru.

• Naza is the new sole and exclusive authorised distributor for Chevrolet cars here, after it signed a distributor sales and service agreement with General Motors Co (GM), which had parted ways with its original partner DRB Hicom. It has been reported that Naza plans to increase the dealership network to 18 by the end of this year from the current eight, including five Naza-owned dealerships. (The Edge Daily)

Petronas has strongly denied reports that it has made a big discovery of an oil field which is said to be one of the biggest in the world. “We adopt a well-established reporting process whereby we make progress report to the board and stake holders as well as to the Government. There is no way we are hiding any information with regards to the discovery as we have no intention to hide any news,” exploration and production business vicepresident Ramlan A Malek told a media briefing yesterday. Former Petronas chairman Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah had reportedly claimed that Petronas had discovered a huge tract of oil reserve that could significantly reduce oil prices. (Star)

Firefly is proposing to increase its flight frequency to twice daily for the Ipoh-Singapore from one daily flight currently. MD Datuk Eddie Leong said the proposal was based on the high demand for the route which records a 90% take-up each flight. Firefly was also scheduled to receive three more ATR72-500 aircraft costing US$18m each at the end of this year and this will further support the company's plan to expand its network and increase passenger number. (Bernama)

The initial public offering (IPO) of Oversea Enterprise, owner of “Restoran Oversea”, has received a good response, with its public tranche of 12m shares oversubscribed by 10.3x. Oversea said it received 4,186 applications for 135.4m shares with a total value of RM31.1m, for the public tranche of 12m shares. Oversea is slated for listing on the ACE Market on 1 Apr. (BT, Bernama)

AEON Credit Service has appointed Yasuhiro Kasai, 38, as its new MD from 20 Apr 10. He replaces Naruhito Kuroda, who will assume a new role in Tokyo, Japan. Kasai is currently the head of operating management division of the company. (BT)

20100325 1116 Malaysian Economic News.

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) raised the country’s 2010 economic forecast from 2-3% to 4.5-5.5%, pledging that its monetary policy will continue to support growth even as it begins to “normalize” interest rates amid an “uneven” global recovery. Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz said that the economy can surpass the government's forecast growth rate for this year, following new measures which are expected to be announced next week and further improvement in the global economy.

• The main contribution to 2010’s growth would come from the expected strengthening in domestic demand (3.2%), driven mainly by the private sector, with favourable domestic conditions, including improvements in the labour market, rising disposable incomes and sustained consumer confidence, supporting a further expansion in private consumption.
• Inflation is expected to remain modest at an average of 2.0-2.5% this year. This projection reflects the improving economic conditions and takes into account the possible adjustments to administered prices and subsidy restructuring by the government.
• In strengthening Malaysia's economic development via capital flows, local companies should be encouraged to invest abroad to ensure the country's long-term competitiveness. Investments abroad by Malaysian companies can be expected to continue to remain sizeable in the future and this development is in response to the changing structure and competition in the region and in the global economy. (Bloomberg, Bernama)

While the current monetary policy remains supportive and accommodative to growth, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) will continue to monitor the need to raise the benchmark interest rate, amid an “uneven” global recovery. “This is an assessment that we will continue to monitor because while we are seeing very strong growth taking place in the Asian region, the developed world still plays a major part of the global economy. Therefore, we have to monitor closely and as our growth strengthens we will decide whether we will continue with the normalization of interest rates,” BNM said. (StarBiz)

The financial system is expected to remain resilient gong forward even as downside risks remain during the recovery in the international and domestic economic and financial environment. “The bank will continue to ensure readiness of its supervisory and surveillance capacity in detecting, monitoring and assessing emerging risks and threats to the stability of the Malaysian financial system to ensure timely and appropriate policy responses,” Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM).

• BNM is provided with adequate legal backing to effectively discharge its role and responsibilities in addressing current and future challenges in safeguarding financial stability. "The bank is entrusted with the responsibility to regulate and supervise financial institutions under its purview, provide oversight over the money and foreign exchange markets, exercise oversight over the payment systems and promote a sound, progressive and inclusive financial system," it said. (Financial Daily, Bernama)

The new blueprint being drawn up for the financial sector will help realise the nation's vision of becoming a developed economy by 2020. "To realise the nation's vision of becoming a high-income economy, the financial sector has an important role towards supporting this transition.

• The blueprint will also be an enabler, driver and catalyst of economic growth, with an enhanced capacity to contribute positively to the economic transformation process," said the central bank. (Bernama)

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has commenced the implementation of a three-year Business Plan, developed last year, as part of the organisational transformation to become more strategy-focused and performance driven. This is supported by the increased organisation-wide clarity of the strategic results and enhanced cross functional collaboration required to deliver these results," said Governor, Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz.
·    She highlighted that a structured and robust talent assessment process has been also put in place and is accomplished by a more dynamic and differentiated reward system to ensure incentives are appropriately aligned. (Bernama)

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) will continue to work on reconciling new international banking standards, which were developed following the global financial crisis last year, with the domestic market. The global financial crisis had prompted the Basel Committee of Banking Surpervision (BCBS) to introduce risk-sensitive capital and liquidity reforms. (Financial Daily)

As many as 2.3m or 48% of applicants who applied for credit cards were cleared by institutes of credit card issuing firms last year. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the rate revealed that issuing of credit cards was not done on whim and fancy as Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) conducted checks on the processes of evaluation and issuing of credit cards related to financial institutions so that the process was above board. (Bernama)

Strategic brand creations will be more crucial for Malaysian companies to be players in the global market as the nation moves into the next phase of development and further integrate with the global economy, says Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Muhkriz Mahathir.

• He said the government's direction would focus on building Malaysian brands into global as it translates into greater competitiveness for Malaysian products and services. (Bernama)

China should be given the option to manage the yuan on its own despite pressures from US lawmakers to allow the currency to appreciate. Malaysia, which is China’s largest trading partner from South-East Asia, is looking forward to an “orderly adjustment” of the yuan, said Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz. “We don’t want to see destabilizing implication from any sudden changes to the foreignexchange rate,” she noted. (Malaysian Reserve)

20100325 1107 Global Economic News.

US new home sales fell to a record low in February, as the glut of foreclosed homes and a weak economy dampened the housing market.

• New-home sales fell 2.2% to a seasonally adjusted rate of 308,000 last month, compared to a upwardly revised annual rate of 315,000 in January. It was the lowest rate since the government began keeping records in 1963 and marked the fourth straight month of declines. 
• A consensus of economists expected February sales to rise to an annual rate of 315,000. New-home sales were down 13% from February 2009. (CNN Money)

US durable goods orders printed +0.5% in February (+3.9% in Jan), marking its third gain in a row, but this was slightly less than anticipated and suggests a slower take-off in the economy than some expected. Excluding transportation orders printed +0.9% (-0.6% in Jan), and excluding defense printed +1.6% in a sixth gain. These are consistent with economic recovery. Boeing Corp. reported 47 new orders after 10 in January, and non defense aircraft orders were up 32.7%. (Xinhua)

The US Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey showed refinancing activity was down 7.1%, the purchase index up 2.7% and the Market Composite down 4.2%. (Xinhua)

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Thomas Hoenig said a proposal to strip the Fed of supervision over 5,000 banks would worsen the next financial crisis by denying policy makers information about the firms. The central bank draws on insights from bank oversight while making monetary policy, Hoenig said. (Bloomberg)

Fitch Ratings downgraded Portugal for the first time, cutting its rating by one notch and warning that further reductions were possible. Douglas Renwick, associate director at Fitch, said: “A sizeable fiscal shock against a backdrop of relative macro- economic and structural weaknesses has reduced Portugal’s creditworthiness.

• Despite the downgrade, Portugal's debt is still considered investment grade and still a few notches above its rating of crisis-stricken Greece. Portugal’s government seeks to push through an austerity plan aimed at slashing the budget deficit from 9.3% of GDP last year to 2.8% in 2013. (Associated Press)

China’s government needs evidence of a “very certain” recovery before it can roll back stimulus measures adopted during the crisis, central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said.

• “If you can be sure about the recovery, and then some of the extraordinary stimulus policies can gradually fade out,” Zhou said. “On the other hand, you should know that it’s not a w-shape recovery,” with a renewed slowdown following the current rebound, he said. 
• Withdrawal of fiscal and monetary stimulus needs “sequencing,” the People’s Bank of China governor also said. “For many nations, the consensus is fiscal policies should be phased out lastly.”
• China will coordinate with other countries, especially the G-20 nations, on a stimulus exit, Zhou said, adding that G-20 leaders will assess the status of the economic recovery at a summit in Canada in June. (Bloomberg)

Japan’s exports climbed at the fastest pace in 30 years in February, as shipments abroad increased 45.3% yoy (40.8% in Jan). The surge was partly due to a favourable year-onyear comparison. In February 2009, shipments abroad tumbled a record 49.4% as global trade froze. Exports fell a seasonally adjusted 1.7% from January. (Bloomberg)

Indonesia needs to demonstrate that it can sustain its economic policy framework in order to achieve an investment-grade debt rating, according to Fitch Ratings. “That kind of policy sustainability despite changes in personnel and government is a feature of highrated sovereigns,” Fitch director Andrew Colquhoun said. (Bloomberg)

Europe’s service and manufacturing industries expanded at the fastest pace in 2 1/2 years in March as reviving global demand prompted companies to step up output. A composite index based on a survey of euro-area purchasing managers in both industries rose to 55.5 from 53.7 in February. That’s the fastest pace since Aug 07. Economists forecast a gain to 53.8. (Bloomberg)

European industrial orders unexpectedly declined 2.0% mom in January (+0.8% in Dec 09) led by a slump in demand for capital goods such as machinery. From the year-earlier month, January industrial orders rose 7.0% (9.5% in Dec 09). Economists forecast an increase of 1.8% mom and 13.9% yoy for January. (Bloomberg)

South Korea’s consumer confidence declined for a second month in March, a sign the nation’s economic recovery may be slowing. The sentiment index fell to 110 from 111 in February, marking the lowest level since Jul 09 when it was 109. (Bloomberg)

Japan’s parliament yesterday approved a record US$1.0tr budget for the fiscal year from April, with an all-time high of ¥44.3tr in new bond issuance underlining its public finance troubles. The government is resisting pressure to spend more on stimulating the economy, saying it should now manage to avoid sinking back into recession. But Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said it should still be ready to act if necessary given lingering downside risks such as unemployment. (Financial Daily)

India’s central bank will continue exiting stimulus after unexpectedly raising its benchmark interest rate last week, Governor Duvvuri Subbarao said. “It is better to take action now and continue the exit Strategy. We may have to sacrifice on growth in the near term,” Subbarao noted. (Bloomberg)

20100324 1814 FCPO EOD Daily Chart Study.

FCPO closed : 2560, changed : -31 points, volume : higher.
Bollinger band reading : side way downside biased.
MACD Histrogram : rising paused. seller refuse to leave.
Support : 2550, 2521, 2500 level.
Resistant : 2570, 2590, 2620 level.
Comment :
Improved volume and volatility FCPO eased lower due to weaker soy oil and crude oil futures price and a stronger US Dollar exchange rate. Daily chart shows that the upward correction could have possibly stop and market may resume it downward movement from here waiting for tomorrow price movement for confirmation. Expect market to trade side way range bound downside biased in the near term.
When to buy : buy at support or weakness with quick cut loss and profit target.
When to sell : sell at resistant or strength with larger cut loss and profit target. 

20100324 1723 FKLI EOD Daily Chart Study.

FKLI closed : 1313, changed : +1 point, volume : slightly lower.
Bollinger band reading : side way range bound little upside biased.
MACD Histrogram : recovering, buyer taking chances.
Support : 1312, 1307, 1300, 1295 level.
Resistant : 1318, 1325, 1330 level.
Comment :
Closed fraction a point higher FKLI trade side way ranging within a 7.5 point range. Daily chart reading continue to show a side way range bound little upside biased market development.
When to buy : buy at support or weakness with quick cut loss and profit target.
When to sell : sell at resistant or strength with quick cut loss and profit target.

20100324 1257 FKLI Mid Day Hourly Chart Study.

FKLI closed : 1314, changed : +2 points, volume : high.
Bollinger band reading : side way upside biased.
MACD Histrogram : weakening, buyer lock in profit.
Support : 1312, 1307, 1300, 1295 level.
Resistant : 1318, 1325, 1330 level.
Comment :
Traded in convincing volume FKLI opened higher followed by profit taking activities press price down to ended the first session marginally higher. Hourly chart reading shows that market is corrently having a downward correction as price touched the upper Bollinger band level during the opening session. Expect a side way range bound correction market with a little upside biased.

20100324 1244 FCPO Mid Day Hourly Chart Study.

FCPO closed : 2577, changed : -14 points, volume : low.
Bollinger band reading : side way downside biased.
MACD Histrogram : weakening, low buying and selling interest.
Support : 2570, 2550, 2521 level.
Resistant : 2590, 2620, 2650, 2670 level.
Comment :
Quiet FCPO traded lower in thin volume tight range. Hourly chart outlook remain side way range bound testing support and resistant level.

20100324 0944 Malaysia Corporate News.

A month after Alliance Bank Malaysia group CEO Datuk Bridget Lai resigned, two other top executives have submitted their resignations. Alliance Bank said the two were Sachi Ratnajoothy, executive vice president / CEO of Alliance Investment Bank and head of financial markets at Alliance Bank as well as Lok Eng Hong, the head of dealing, equity markets at Alliance Investment Bank. A source close to the bank said the resignations of Sachi and Lok were not related to Lai’ departure. (StarBiz) Any further resignations of key personnel in the bank would be, to certain extent, negative for the earnings prospects of the group, especially after the departures of the group CEO and COO.

Former British Prime Minister Sir John Major commended Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak for his candour and being straightforward with foreign fund managers here in outlining the state of the Malaysian economy and listening to their concerns.

• "Malaysia is in very good hands indeed, based on what the Malaysian Prime Minister has been telling foreign fund managers at the Credit Suisse Asian Investment conference here Tuesday and his commitment to change Malaysia into a truly developed economy," he said. 
• Major, a special adviser to Credit Suisse, was addressing a dinner function hosted by CIMB and the financial services group where Najib was guest of honour after the highlevel conference which brought together some 100 top-notch regional fund managers.
• Najib had back-to-back meetings with fund managers as well as captains of industry and delivered a keynote address at a luncheon which was moderated by Major.
• Najib said he took cognizance of what changes fund managers wanted to see in the Malaysian capital market. The Prime Minister said that after intense deliberations with the fund managers, he had a good sense now of how they perceived Malaysia.
• He said it was crucial to make them understand why Malaysia needed to be more competitive, stronger economically and thereafter emerge as an attractive investment destination. "This is what the New Economic Model (NEM) is all about, which will set the future direction in terms of the economic transformation of Malaysia," he said.
• Najib said that the NEM, to be unveiled on March 30, should be nothing short of a transformation and should not be merely an incremental change. "I believe we should move right across the board so that there is a massive transformation of Malaysia in due course," he said.
• To this end, he called on foreign fund managers to invest in Malaysia for the long haul and expressed confidence that the country would emerge as an exciting prospect for them and the investors. (Bernama)

Khazanah Nasional will explore international acquisitions in Asia instead of high-profile purchases of Western companies, said Azman Mokhtar, managing director of the Malaysian state investment agency yesterday.

• It will target buying opportunities in South-east Asia, especially Indonesia and Singapore, as well as in China, India and the Middle East, Mr Azman said outside a Credit Suisse Group AG-sponsored conference. 
• Khazanah currently makes 12% of its investments outside Malaysia, rising from zero five years ago. International operations of companies it has stakes in, such as the country's second-largest bank CIMB Group Holdings Bhd, will take the percentage to about 20%, he said.
• 'It's a gradual approach,' Mr Azman said. 'It will continue to rise.' Khazanah as 'a sovereign development fund' and its international investments will be more geographically focused because of the company's mandate, he said. (SBT)

CIMB-Principal Asset Management aims to manage assets worth RM30bn by year-end, as it is confident that the total asset value under its care is poised to expand by some 30% this year. CIMB-Principal, a joint venture between CIMB Group and US-based Principal Financial Group, managed funds worth RM22.1bn as of last year. (BT)

The resignation of EON Capital's chairman Tan Sri Syed Anwar Jamalullail and Yeo Kar Peng is now official with the central bank's clearance. Bank Negara's has only approved only two out of four independent directors who resigned last week to leave.

• This is to meet Bank Negara Malaysia's ruling that at least a third of the company's board is made up of independent directors. Meanwhile, Datuk Dr Mohd Shahari Ahmad Jabar and Rodney Gordon Ward will stay, probably until the new independent directors recently appointed by EONCap's shareholders are approved by Bank Negara. It is understood that the central bank has left it to the four to decide who will stay for the moment, just to ensure a functional board at all times. 
• In a separate statement, EONCap said it was unaware of any discussions concerning the sale of a stake in the company by any of its shareholders to a group of private investors from Abu Dhabi.(BT)

Mah Sing Group is looking for land in Sabah to build residential homes and villas for foreign buyers interested in the "Malaysia My Second Home" (MM2H) programme. Group MD Tan Sri Leong Hoy Kum said the company was seeking land in Kota Kinabalu to develop into a mixed range of properties, including villas and residential homes.

• "We decided on Sabah because we find that many foreigners are interested to buy properties there." The group is on track to meeting its RM1bn sales target for the year through several property developments in the Klang Valley, Penang and Johor. 
• We are on track to achieving our sales target, based on our performance in the first three months of this year during which we hit RM516m. That is 3x more than the RM170m sales achieved in the same period in 2009," Leong said.
• The group also plans to acquire at least 405ha in prime areas in Selangor and Johor Baru. "We have bought two pieces of land since the beginning of the year and are looking for more land to buy, especially in prime locations in Selangor." Mah Sing has a GDV and unbilled sales of RM6bn, which provides earnings visibility for about six to eight years. (BT)

Malaysian contractors are making inroads abroad, having directly been involved in 614 construction projects worth US$24.3bn (RM81bn) in several countries, Works Minister Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor said. "Of these, 489 projects worth US$9.3bn have been completed, while the remaining 125 projects are under construction," he said.

• He said local construction-based professional services companies have also shown remarkable performance globally, whereby out of 361 firms registered with the ministry's Professional Services Development Corp, 109 have started to make inroads, being involved in 412 overseas projects. "Of these, 208 projects that the local professional service providers are involved in have been completed," he said. (BT)

The government will review any proposals for sports betting in Malaysia, said PM Datuk Seri Najib Razak. "There are proposals but we'll see first," he said. It was reported that sports betting may soon be legalised in Malaysia. The Berjaya Group is seeking approval from the authorities to operate sports-betting activities in the country. (NST)

Globetronics will spend between RM60-70m as part of plans to boost the group's presence in the global light-emitting diode (LED) market. The company is spending on technology investment, capacity expansion and research and development (R&D) this year.

• This is part of the company’s plans to boost its presence in the global light-emitting diode (LED) market, said CEO Heng Huck Lee. This is also in line with Malaysia's aim to replace all traditional light bulbs by 2014 to LED, compact fluorescent lamps and fluorescent tubes due to their energy-efficient and environment-friendly nature. 
• Globetronics sees LED as its main source of growth, as it already supplies to the world's top five multinational light bulb companies. It ventured into LED in 2000 when it bought over ISO Technology S/B. Today, the LED business contributes about 20% of the group's revenue, or about RM100m a year, and it is slated to grow by 15% annually. By 2012, the global LED market is projected to reach a value of US$10bn with an average annual growth of between 20-25%. Countries such as Australia and Japan are already putting a ban on incandescent light bulb beginning this year. (BT)

Volkswagen Group Malaysia expects to finalise its plans to set up an assembly plant for its completely-knocked-down (CKD) models in Malaysia by first half of this year. Its MD, Andreas Prinz, said the company was currently considering various options, including local partners as well as the plant site.

• "Once finalised, it will take us about 15 to 18 months to set up our plant," he added. He said the plant would assemble CKD Volkswagen models for the local as well as the Asian markets. (Bernama)

Sindora Bhd, a Johor Corp subsidiary, is going into biotechnology in a big way, following its 60% equity acquisition of bio-fertiliser manufacturer Microwell. For starters, Sindora, which has eight companies under its belt, is setting up a RM36m biofertiliser factory in Bandar Tenggara, Johor, by mid-2011. Sindora chairman Tan Sri Muhammad Ali Hashim said the company's move into biofertiliser would help reduce its dependency on imported fertilisers. (BT)