Economy

US: Weekly jobless claims once again dip to pandemic-era low. The Labor Department released a report showing a modest decrease in first-time claims for US unemployment benefits in the week ended August 28th. The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 340,000, a decrease of 14,000 from the previous week's revised level of 354,000. Economists had expected initial jobless claims to edge down to 345,000 from the 353,000 originally reported for the previous week. With the modest decrease, jobless claims once again fell to their lowest level since hitting 256,000 in the week ended March 14, 2020. (RTT)

US: Factory orders increase in July despite supply constraints. New orders for US-made goods rose in July, while business spending on equipment remained strong, signs that manufacturing was holding up despite persistent supply constraints and spending rotating back to services from goods. The Commerce Department said that factory orders increased 0.4% in July after advancing 1.5% in June. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast factory orders gaining 0.3%. (Reuters)

US: Trade deficit shrinks in July as imports fall. The US trade deficit narrowed more than expected in July as imports declined likely because of shortages and a shift in domestic spending from goods to services. The Commerce Department said that the trade gap fell 4.3% to USD70.1bn. Data for June was revised to show the deficit at USD73.2bn instead of USD75.7bn as previously reported. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a USD71.0bn deficit. Imports slipped 0.2% to USD282.9bn. (Reuters)

US: Second-quarter productivity revised lower. US worker productivity grew a bit more slowly than initially thought in the second quarter, the Labor Department said. Nonfarm productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, increased at a downwardly revised 2.1% annualized rate last quarter. It was previously reported to have advanced at a 2.3% pace. Economists polled by Reuters had expected productivity would be raised to a 2.4% rate. (Reuters)

EU: Eurozone producer price inflation accelerates in July. Eurozone producer price inflation accelerated further in July on higher energy prices, data from Eurostat showed. Producer prices increased 12.1% YoY in July, faster than the 10.2% rise seen in June. Economists had forecast an annual growth of 11%. Excluding energy, producer price inflation increased to 6.7% from 5.6% in the previous month. Energy prices advanced 28.9% annually and intermediate goods prices grew 12.6%. (RTT)

EU: Spain unemployment continues to decline. Spain unemployment declined for the sixth straight month in Aug, data from the labour ministry showed. The number of people out of work decreased by 82,583 in Aug, after falling 197,841 in the previous month. The latest fall was the biggest for the month of August. Compared to the same month in 2020, unemployment decreased 468,899, or -12.33%. (RTT)

South Korea: Q2 GDP expands 0.8% on quarter. South Korea's gross domestic product climbed a seasonally adjusted 0.8% on quarter in the 2Q of 2021, the Bank of Korea said in final reading. That was up from 0.7% in July's advance estimate and it follows the 1.7% in the previous three months. Real gross national income increased by 0.1% in the 2Q compared to the previous quarter. (RTT)

Markets

Southern Cable: Wins RM30m Telekom contract. Southern Cable Group has secured a contract from Telekom Malaysia to supply rectifier systems for its regional hubs. The 30-month contract was worth RM30m, Southern Cable said. The job was to supply, deliver, install, test and commission rectifier systems, including associated engineering services and accessories for TM’s regional hubs in Peninsular and East Malaysia. Rectifier is a device that converts electrical alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC). (StarBiz)

Ocean Vantage: Bags contract from Hibiscus Petroleum to develop H&M programme . Ocean Vantage Holdings (OVH) wholly-owned subsidiary Ocean Vantage Engineering SB (OVE) has bagged a contract for the development of Heart & Mind (H&M) programme for SEA Hibiscus in accordance with the guidelines of the Energy Institute. OVH said OVE has received a Letter of Award (LOA) dated Aug 11, 2021 from Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd's indirect wholly-owned unit SEA Hibiscus SB. The duration for the contract is three years with an option to extend for one year. (The Edge)

Paragon Globe: Inks MoU with Selgate to develop private specialist hospitals . Paragon Globe is exploring a potential collaboration with Selangor government-owned Selgate Corporation SB to develop private specialist hospitals. The group said it signed a MoU with Selgate’s property arm, Selgate Properties SB. The aim is to develop several private specialist hospitals in the country and to make available healthcare services. The MoU allows Paragon Globe to build the capabilities in the healthcare and wellness industry by leveraging Selgate’s experience and technical expertise (The Edge)

Bintai Kinden: Bintai Healthcare enters partnership with Scientillence . Bintai Kinden Corp's subsidiary Bintai Healthcare SB is collaborating with Scientillence SB for hemodialysis businesses in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. According to a statement issued by the group, Bintai Healthcare has signed an agreement with Scientillence to jointly develop and market medical products in the hemodialysis market, as well as to develop, invest, acquire or own dialysis centres, and other related renal care businesses. (StarBiz)

PPB: Banks on vaccination rollout progress for better financial performance in 2H . PPB Group is anticipating a pickup in its business segments for the remaining quarters of the year, as the nation’s mass vaccination rollout progresses. In a virtual media briefing today, PPB managing director Lim Soon Huat said the sharp rise in commodity prices in the quarter led to a significant increase in raw material costs of flour and feed products, with limited price-in mechanism, gross profit margin compression seen across the group’s sub-segments. (The Edge)

Symphony Life: Announces boardroom changes a week after EGM request by shareholder to remove directors. Symphony Life has announced a slew of boardroom changes, overtaking an initial proposal by its largest shareholder Theron Holdings SB to hold an EGM later this month to remove three directors. In several filings, the property developer announced the resignation of ED Ng Ying Yiing and independent nonexecutive director Loi Chee Fong. (The Edge)

Market Update

US markets were higher overnight as weekly jobless claims numbers dropped to its lowest since the start of the pandemic, indicating that the country’s economic recovery is well grounded. This comes a day before the official non-farm payrolls data which is being observed for clues on how fast the Federal Reserve will remove its easy monetary policy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 gained 0.4% and 0.3% while the Nasdaq Composite inched 0.1% higher. European markets were also higher as investors cast an eye west of Atlantic and drew strength from the jobless claims numbers. Oil and gas stocks were the major gainers on the continent, though most other sectors and major bourses also traded in positive territory. UK’s FTSE 100 was 0.2% higher as both Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 inched 0.1% higher. Asian markets were mixed earlier in the day with the only notable data point being Australia’s higher-than-expected trade surplus in July. The country’s benchmark ASX 200 was unenthused however, slipping 0.6%. Chinese regulators summoning and interviewing 11 ride-hailing firms asking them to rectify non-compliant behaviour did little to affect North Asian sentiment. The Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng indices gained 0.8 and 0.2% regardless. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.3%. The FBM KLCI fell for a 2nd consecutive day, down 0.3%.

Source: PublicInvest Research - 3 Sept 2021