Economy

US: New home sales fall sharply in June. Sales of new US singlefamily homes tumbled in June and sales in the prior month were weaker than initially estimated, suggesting the housing market was losing momentum amid soaring prices that are being driven by an acute shortage of properties. New home sales dropped 6.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 676,000 units last month, the Commerce Department said. May’s sales pace was revised down to 724,000 units from the previously reported 769,000 units. Economists had forecast new home sales, which account for a small share of US home sales, increasing 3% to rate of 800,000 units in June. (Reuters)

EU: German Ifo business confidence deteriorates unexpectedly. German business confidence weakened unexpectedly in July as supply bottlenecks and concerns over rising coronavirus infections weighed on the economy, survey results from the ifo Institute revealed. The business climate index fell to 100.8 in July from a revised 101.7 in June. The score was forecast to rise to 102.1 from June's initially estimated value of 101.8. Assessment of companies regarding their current business situations improved in July, while their expectations for the coming months were significantly less optimistic. (RTT)

UK: Needs current stimulus at least for several quarters, BoE's Vlieghe Says. The current monetary stimulus should be maintained for several quarters at least, and probably longer, Gertjan Vlieghe, an external monetary policy committee member of the Bank of England said. Although the expected peak in inflation looks to be higher than previously projected, Vlieghe said the view remains the same that this peak is likely to be temporary. Inflation is driven by supply bottlenecks and base effects, both of which are set to wane next year. Second, the UK is not out of the woods yet in terms of the virus and its impact on the economy. (RTT)

Japan: Manufacturing PMI slows to 52.2 in July - Jibun. The manufacturing sector in Japan continued to expand in July, albeit at a slower pace, the latest survey from Jibun Bank revealed with a manufacturing PMI score of 52.2. That's down from 52.4, although it remains above the boom-or-but line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. Both output and new order growth eased to sixmonth lows in the latest survey period amid rising COVID-19 cases and ongoing delays in receiving raw materials. (RTT)

Hong Kong: Exports increases in June. Hong Kong's merchandise exports accelerated in June, data from the Census and Statistics Department showed. Exports rose 33% YoY in June, following a 24% increase in May. Imports gained 31.9% annually in June, following a 26.5% increase in the previous month. The trade deficit widened to HKD40.455bn in June from HKD33.341bn in the same month last year. In May, the deficit was HKD25,464bn. Exports to the Mainland, the US and the EU all accelerated in growth, while those to other Asian markets also expanded by varying degrees. (RTT)

South Korea: 2Q GDP grows at fastest annual pace in a decade. South Korea’s economy expanded at the fastest annual pace in a decade in the second quarter thanks to a pick-up in consumption, data from the Bank of Korea showed. Gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 5.9% YoY in the April-June after rising 1.9% in the first quarter, just shy of 6.0% growth tipped in a survey (Reuters)

Singapore: Industrial production rises in June. Singapore's industrial production increased in June, data from the Economic Development Board showed. Industrial output grew 27.5% YoY in June, following a 27% rise in May. Production was forecast to increase 26.8%. Excluding biomedical manufacturing, industrial production gained 24.8% yearly in June, after a 25.4% rise in the preceding month. (RTT)

Indonesia: Easing of COVID-19 curbs seen driven by economics. Indonesia's decision to relax some COVID-19 curbs this week, despite reporting record-high deaths in recent days, is being driven by social and economic concerns rather than epidemiological advice, public health experts said. As the country grapples with the worst coronavirus outbreak in Asia, President Joko Widodo announced that while overall curbs in place since July would be extended for a week, some measures would be eased. (RTT)

Markets

Serba Dinamik (Neutral, TP: RM0.44): Names Nexia SSY as new external auditor. Serba Dinamik has nominated Nexia SSY PLT to be its new external auditor. The position is vacant following the resignation of KPMG. Nexia SSY will audit Serba Dinamik's financial accounts FY21. This was subject to among others, professional clearance from KPMG in accordance to Section 320 By-Law of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants, said Serba Dinamik. (NST)

BCM Alliance: Partner rLoop win USD200m order for virus reduction devices from Euro-China Tech. BCM Alliance and partner rLoop Ltd have received a letter of offer from Euro-China Technology Achievement Transformation (Tianjin) Co Ltd (EC Tech) to buy 100k units of virus attenuation devices with a total sale of USD200m (RM845m). (NST)

SCIB: JV accepts RM138.5m contract for Terengganu roadworks. Sarawak Consolidated Industries’ JV with Sasoakai Resources SB has accepted a contract for the maintenance of roadworks in Terengganu valued at about RM138.5m. On Feb 2021, SCIB entered a JV agreement in relation to the maintenance of roadworks contract in Terengganu on a concession basis. (StarBiz)

T7 Global: Secures mini ROV underwater services contract. T7 Global secured a contract to provide mini remotely operated vehicles (ROV) underwater services for Pioneer Pegasus SB (PPSB). It had on 12 July received the LoA from the PanMalaysia contract holder PPSB. With this contract, T7 Global will provide underwater inspection and maintenance services for 10 platforms accumulatively in Sabah and Sarawak using mini ROV. (NST)

DNeX: Completes acquisition of 60% interest in SilTerra from Khazanah. Dagang Nexchange (DNeX) announced that it has completed the acquisition of 60% equity interest in SilTerra from Khazanah. Following completion of the acquisition, DNeX is now the majority shareholder of SilTerra. Together with its partner, CGP Fund, the group is confident in its ability to transform SilTerra into a competitive global semiconductor technology player that will be able to capitalise on strong demand for semiconductor chips globally, Group MD Syed Zainal added. (The Edge)

UMW: Expects minimal sales for UMW Toyota and Perodua in July, amid prolonged lockdown. UMW is expecting minimal sales for both UMW Toyota Motor (UMWT) and Perodua in July, amid the prolonged lockdown. The ongoing FMCO 3.0 has adversely impacted the domestic automotive sector, with only 1,921 units sold for June. “Of the total, UMWT delivered 85 vehicles, while Perodua sold 1,009 units. (The Edge)

Unisem: Ipoh plant impacted by EMCO closure. Unisem expects about 2% of its total annual output volume to be affected as its plant in Pulai Jaya industrial estate has been ordered to shut down for two weeks due to the EMCO, until Aug 8. “However since Unisem is under the electrical & electronics, essential services sector, the company had applied and appealed to the authorities to be allowed to operate during this EMCO period,” it said. (The Edge)

MARKET UPDATE

The FBM KLCI might open flat today after Wall Street and European equities swung between modest gains and losses on Monday ahead of the US central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting this week. The blue-chip S&P 500 index extended Friday’s gains to close at yet another high, edging up 0.2% on the day. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite traded flat ahead of big technology companies’ second-quarter earnings announcements. Keeping a lid on large gains on Wall Street was a sharp sell-off in US-listed stocks exposed to China after Beijing cracked down on domestic education companies — a move expected to hit overseas investors. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China index, which tracks Chinese companies listed in the US, tumbled more than 6% on Monday following an 8.5% drop on Friday. In Europe, the continent-wide Stoxx 600 index down 0.1% and Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax ended 0.3% weaker.

Back home, the FBM KLCI closed 10.91 points or 0.72% lower at 1,512.53, as most component stocks succumbed to selling pressure as the country reports higher Covid-19 cases. Elsewhere in the region, the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index fell 2.34% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index tumbled 4.13%; Seoul's Kospi dropped 0.91%.

Source: PublicInvest Research - 27 Jul 2021