US: Weekly jobless claims unexpectedly dip to 230,000. First time claims for US unemployment benefits unexpectedly declined in the week ended April 22nd, according to a report released by the Labour Department. The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 230,000, a decrease of 16,000 from the previous week's revised level of 246,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 248,000 from the 245,000 originally reported for the previous week. (RTT)
US: Economic growth slows in first quarter as businesses draw down inventories. US economic growth slowed more than expected in the first quarter as an acceleration in consumer spending was offset by businesses liquidating inventories in anticipation of weaker demand later this year amid higher borrowing costs. The first decline in private inventories in 1-1/2 years reported by the Commerce Department in its snapshot of first-quarter gross domestic product on Thursday is potentially good news for the economy this quarter as it faces a possible recession by year end. (Reuters)
US: Pending home sales slump unexpectedly in March. Contracts to buy US previously owned homes tumbled unexpectedly in March to snap a three-month rebound, raising a caution flag about what had appeared to be a nascent recovery in a housing market that has been clobbered by rising interest rates. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on signed contracts, fell 5.2% last month to 78.9, the lowest since Dec. (Reuters)
EU: Eurozone economic sentiment improves modestly on manufacturing rebound. Eurozone economic confidence improved marginally in April as the weakness in industry was more than offset by improvement in confidence among consumers and services providers. The economic sentiment index, or ESI, rose to 99.3 in April from 99.2 in the previous month, data from the European Commission showed. (RTT)
EU: Italy consumer confidence at 14-month high. Italy's consumer confidence strengthened for the third straight month in April, reaching its highest level in more than a year, survey results from the statistical office Istat showed. The consumer sentiment index improved to 105.5 in April from 105.1 in the previous month. That was in line with economists' expectations. This was the highest reading since Feb 2022, when it was 112.4. (RTT)
EU: Spain 1Q jobless rate rises to 13.26%. Spain's unemployment rate increased more-than-expected in the three months ended March, data published by the statistical office INE showed. The unemployment rate rose to 13.3% in the first quarter from 12.9% in the fourth quarter of 2022. That was above the 12.9% rate expected by economists. In the same period last year, the jobless rate was 13.7%. The number of unemployed people increased to 3.127m in the March quarter from 3.024m in the Dec quarter. (RTT)
EU: Spain retail sales growth accelerates to 9.5%, strongest in 22 months. Spain's retail sales expanded at the fastest pace in nearly two years in March, thanks to a sharp rise in the turnover of non-food products, data from the statistical office INE showed. Retail sales posted an annual growth of 9.5% in March, much faster than the 4.1% gain in the previous month. Further, this was the strongest rate of growth since May 2021, when sales had surged 19.5%. (RTT)
China: Industrial profits continue to fall. China's industrial profits continued to decline in Jan to March period as falling prices and weaker demand dragged profit margins, official data showed. Industrial profits decreased 21.4% in the first quarter from the last year, the National Bureau of Statistics reported. This was much bigger than economists' forecast of 12.0% decrease and also followed a drop of around 23.0% in Jan to Feb period. (RTT)
Japan: Leading index rises more than estimated. Japan's leading index improved slightly more than initially estimated in Feb, the latest data from the Cabinet Office showed. The leading index, which measures future economic activity, rose to a 4-month high of 98.0 in Feb from 96.7 in the previous month. The latest reading was revised up slightly from the 97.7 seen in the flash report published on April 7. (RTT)
Japan: Unemployment rate jumps to 2.8% in March. The jobless rate in Japan came in at a seasonally adjusted 2.8% in March, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said. That was well above forecasts for an increase of 2.5% and up from 2.6% in Feb. (RTT)
Parkson: Vietnam unit to file for bankruptcy, only remaining store to close. The Parkson group is to exit the Vietnam market after operating there for 18 years as it is not commercially feasible to continue its operations in the country, said Singapore-listed Parkson Retail Asia Ltd (PRA), a 67.96%-owned subsidiary of Parkson Holdings. Parkson Vietnam Co Ltd will file an application to a court in Ho Chi Minh City for the commencement of voluntary bankruptcy proceedings on Friday (28 April). (The Edge)
Sunview: Acquires 20% stake in Winstar for RM12m. Sunview Group has entered into a share sale agreement and shareholder agreement to acquire a 20% shareholding in Winstar Aluminium Manufacturing SB for RM12m. Its wholly-owned subsidiary, Vafe System SB, had acquired the stake from Chua Nyok Chong. The acquisition of Winstar is in line with the group’s long-term strategy to create a sustainable ecosystem in the renewable energy industry. (StarBiz)
Sunway REIT: Plans acquisitions in the UK, Japan and Australia. Sunway REIT Management SB is eyeing to expand its market presence with overseas acquisitions in the UK, Japan and Australia in the near future in line with its strategies as outlined in its TRANSCEND 2027 (TC2027) roadmap. Sunway REIT has moved into policy level to implement the process now that the framework has been developed. Many considerations need to be taken into account such as the currency exchange and tax transparency. (StarBiz)
Bintai Kinden: Gets notice of facility cancellation. Four of Bintai Kinden Corp’s existing Malayan Banking (Maybank) financing facilities totalling RM188m have been either cancelled or suspended. Maybank had notified its wholly-owned subsidiary Kejuruteraan Bintai Kindenko SB of the cancellation or suspension. The suspension will have a negative impact on the company’s financial standing and or the company’s ongoing projects and the company is in the midst of sourcing for a new financier in financing the ongoing projects of the group. (StarBiz)
Lotte Chemical: Expects business environment to remain challenging. Lotte Chemical Titan Holding (Lotte) expects the business environment to remain challenging in the near future, amid the current market uncertainties. The supply of petrochemical products is expected to increase, in view of new capacity coming on stream this year. The company will monitor closely the global economic conditions and the aggregate supply and consumption patterns that correspond to the prospect of the petrochemical industry. (StarBiz)
Classita: Former directors of Classita withdraw legal challenge over legitimacy of EGM. Former directors of Classita Holdings have opted to withdraw their legal challenge against the legitimacy of an EGM held in June 2022. The EGM had resulted in the removal of these ex-directors, namely Loh Ming Choon, Jessie Wong Siaw Puie, Sin Hock Min, Mohamad Hanafiah Zakaria, and Koo Chen Yeng, who happens to be the daughter of Classita’s significant shareholder, Datuk Seri Tee Yam @ Koo Tee Yam. During the Court of Appeal’s case management session earlier today, the ex directors requested the appeal to be struck off. (The Malaysian Reserve)
US stocks finished higher as strong results from Meta Platforms boosted tech-related names. The Dow advanced 524.29 points or 1.6% while the Nasdaq jumped 2.4% and the S&P 500 climbed 2%. It was the best day since January for the Dow and S&P 500. Meta shares leapt 13.9% after the company reported quarterly revenue that topped expectations and issued an upbeat forecast. Several analysts hiked their price targets following the release. Shares of other tech-related names such as Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft and Apple were also higher. European stock markets closed cautiously higher as strong corporate earnings overcame jitters around the US banking sector. The banking sector gained 1.1%, after Deutsche Bank and Barclays profits beat expectations. The French CAC rose marginally by 0.2% while the German DAX was flat. Meanwhile, Asian shares were mixed with the Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng Index rising 0.7% and 0.4% respectively. The Straits Times Index was down 0.4%.
Back home, FBM KLCI added 3.8 points to close at 1,418.05. Genting Malaysia via its unit Resorts World Miami LLC had entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement with Smart Miami City LLC. Based on the disposal consideration of USD1.22bn (RM5.43bn) of four parcels of land in Miami measuring 15.47 acres, the group expects to realise an estimated gain on disposal of USD966m (RM4.3bn). However, we are not expecting shareholders to be rewarded with special dividend as the group is setting aside the cash proceeds for general corporate and future investment purposes.
Source: PublicInvest Research - 28 Apr 2023
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