HEADLINES

Economy

US: Trade deficit narrows slightly to USD69.4bn in March. The US trade deficit edged slightly lower in the month of March, according to a report released by the Commerce Department. The Commerce Department said the trade deficit narrowed to USD69.4bn in March from a revised USD69.5bn in Feb. Economists had expected the trade deficit to inch up to USD69.1bn from the USD68.9bn originally reported for the previous month. The report said the value of imports slumped by 1.6% to USD327.0 bn in March after surging by 2.3% to USD332.4bn in Feb. (RTT)

US: Factory orders surge in line with estimates in March. New orders for US manufactured goods surged in line with economist estimates in the month of March, according to a report released by the Commerce Department. Factory orders shot up by 1.6% in March after jumping by a downwardly revised 1.2% in Feb. Economists had expected factory orders to spike by 1.6% compared to the 1.4% surge originally reported for the previous month. The sharp increase in factory orders came as durable goods orders soared by 2.6% in March after climbing by 0.7% in Feb. Orders for transportation equipment led the way higher, skyrocketing by 7.8%. (RTT)

US: Labor costs rise by most in a year as productivity cools. US labor costs increased in the first quarter by the most in a year as productivity gains slowed, potentially adding to risks inflation will remain elevated. Unit labor costs, or what a business pays employees to produce one unit of output after taking into account changes in productivity, climbed at a 4.7% annual rate. That marked a notable jump after muted gains in the second half of 2023. Productivity, or nonfarm employee output per hour, rose at a 0.3% annualized rate after an upwardly revised 3.5% gain in the prior period, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed. (Bloomberg)

EU: Italy factory activity deteriorates in April. Italy's manufacturing sector returned to contraction territory in April after a slight expansion in the previous month, survey results from S&P Global showed. The seasonally adjusted HSBC Manufacturing PMI dropped to 47.3 in April from 50.4 in March. Any score above below indicates contraction. New orders fell at a solid pace in April amid weak demand conditions across the sector. Meanwhile, new export orders dropped markedly due to falling demand from European markets. (RTT)

EU: German automotive industry less pessimistic on outlook. Confidence among companies in Germany's automotive industry improved in April though they remained concerned about a lack of orders, a survey by the ifo institute showed. The business climate for Germany's automotive industry rose to -1.5 points from -5.3 points in March. Companies in Germany's automotive industry rate their current business situation as slightly better, but more importantly, their outlook once again turned much less pessimistic than in March. (RTT)

Hong Kong: Q1 GDP expands 2.7% on year, tight financial conditions seen. Hong Kong's economic grew 2.7% in the first quarter on the year, official advance estimates showed, driven by an increase in visitor arrivals and private consumption. That compared with 4.3% growth in the fourth quarter and a revised 4.2%, 1.6% and 2.8% growth in third, second and first quarters, respectively. On a seasonally adjusted quarterly basis, the economy increased 2.3% in Jan-March, compared to 0.2% growth in Oct-Dec. Private consumption expenditure increased by 1.0% in the quarter, compared to 3.5% growth three months earlier.. (CNA)

Indonesian: Inflation slows slightly to 3.0%. Indonesia's CPI eased marginally in April after rising in the previous two months, data from the statistics bureau showed. The CPI climbed 3.00% YoY in April, following a 3.05% increase in March. The expected rate was 3.06%. Further, the inflation rate has remained within the central bank's target range of 1.5%-3.5%. Meanwhile, core inflation rose somewhat to 1.82% in April from 1.77% a month ago. Economists had forecast a growth rate of 1.76%. The annual price growth in food items softened to 7.04% from 7.43%. (RTT)

India: Manufacturing growth remains strong on robust demand. India's manufacturing activity expanded at the secondfastest pace in three-and-a-half years, bolstered by strong demand conditions, survey results from S&P Global showed. The seasonally adjusted HSBC Manufacturing PMI dropped to 58.8 in April from 59.1 in March. Nonetheless, a score above 50.0 indicates expansion. Indian goods producers received strong demand in April from both internal and foreign customers. However, the domestic market remained the main driver of growth. The sharp upturn in total new orders was spurred by healthy demand trends and successful marketing campaigns. (RTT)

Markets

Yinson: Secures single largest term loan of USD1.3bn to finance Agogo FPSO delivery. Yinson Production, the offshore production business unit of Yinson Holdings, has closed the limited recourse term loan facility of up to USD1.3bn (RM6.2bn) for the pre- and post-delivery financing of the Agogo floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which will be deployed in Angola. Yinson Production CFO Markus Wenker said the term loan facility is the company's single largest financing to date. (The Edge)

Protasco: Gets offer from HK firm to buy its university unit. Protasco said it has received an offer to buy its unit Ikram Education SB which owns the Infrastructure University Kuala Lumpur (IUKL). Shares of Protasco surged following the announcement and gained as much as 10% to 27 sen, its highest since 28 Dec 2023. Hong Kong-based Star Teenagers International Group Ltd (STI) has paid an unspecified earnest deposit for the acquisition. STI will have three months to conduct due diligence on Ikram Educatio. (The Edge)

Pasukhas: Bags RM57m contract for data centre construction in Selangor. Pasukhas Group has clinched a RM57m contract to construct a data centre in Selangor. The mechanical and electrical engineering services provider disclosed that its wholly owned subsidiary, Pasukhas SB (PSB), received a signed copy of the LOA from an undisclosed multinational technology corporation based in the US. The project is slated to begin post-LOA acceptance and aims for completion by 30 June 2025. The project is also expected to positively impact the company’s future earnings. (The Malaysian Reserve)

JAKS: Partners with China’s CALB for battery energy storage opportunities. JAKS Resources has teamed up with CALB Group Co Ltd (CALB) to explore opportunities in the battery energy storage system market, focusing on Southeast Asia. Through its subsidiary, JAKS Solar Power Holdings SB, aims to collaborate with CALB on cross-border renewable energy projects in Malaysia and establish a JV for producing and integrating battery modules/packs using CALB battery cells. CALB, is a Li-ion battery manufacturer based in China. (The Malaysian Reserve)

BHIC: Secures RM43m contract for navy submarine in-service support. Boustead Heavy Industries Corp (BHIC), which is 65% indirectly owned by LTAT, has secured a contract worth RM43.6m from the Ministry of Defence for in-service support for the Royal Malaysian Navy's Prime Minister Class submarines. The award is an expansion of the scope of work of an earlier contract awarded in May 2023, which amounted to RM99.8m and which ended in mid-Feb this year. (The Edge)

Sunzen Biotech: Terminates subscription agreement with Farmers International. Sunzen Biotech’s subsidiary, Ecolite Biotech Manufacturing SB, has terminated the subscription agreement with Farmers International Holding SB (FIHSB) due to unmet conditions. The termination was prompted by Farmers International’s failure to fulfil several conditions precedent within the specified period, including the execution of a shareholders’ agreement, personal guarantee, and obtaining consent from one of its financiers for the restructuring of a subsidiary. (The Malaysian Reserve)

MARKET UPDATE

The FBM KLCI might open stronger today after US stocks closed higher and trimmed their losses for the week. The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% Thursday, a day after swinging sharply when the Federal Reserve said it’s likely delaying cuts to interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite added 1.5%. Qualcomm, Carvana and other companies helped lead the market after reporting stronger results for the latest quarter than expected. Treasury yields eased in the bond market following reports on joblessness and worker productivity. Friday’s monthly update on the US job market will likely be more impactful. The economy is in a tight spot, where the hope is that it remains strong enough to stay out of a recession but not so strong that it worsens the already stalled progress on inflation. In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Asia and Europe. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 2.5%, while other markets in China were closed for a holiday. Bursa Malaysia ended firmer yesterday as bargainhunting activities emerged following today’s profit-taking. At the closing bell, the FBM KLCI rose 4.33 points or 0.28% to 1,580.30.

Source: PublicInvest Research - 3 May 2024