HEADLINES

Economy

US: New home sales slump; supply at more than 16-year high. Sales of new US single-family homes dropped to a six-month low in May as a jump in mortgage rates weighed on demand, offering more evidence that the housing market recovery was faltering. But the sting from the largest decline in sales in more than 1-1/2 years, reported by the Commerce Department, was softened by a sharp upward revision to data for April, which now shows sales rising instead of falling as previously estimated. Supply was the highest in more than 16 years. (Reuters)

EU: Austria manufacturing downturn deepens in June. Austria's manufacturing activity deteriorated at a faster pace in June amid accelerated declines in output, new orders, and employment, data produced by S&P Global showed. The UniCredit Bank Austria Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index dropped to 43.6 in June from 46.3 in the previous month. Any score below 50 indicates contraction in the sector. (RTT)

EU: Beating wage gains unnerve central Europe's rate-setters. Double-digit wage rises far outpacing average growth rates in the European Union have raised alarm among central Europe's monetary policymakers wary of a rebound in inflation as the region's economic recovery gains traction. The Czech National Bank is likely to slow the pace of rate cuts when it meets as wage growth and consumer demand raise inflation risks, following a shift down in the pace of easing by Hungary's central bank last week. (Reuters)

EU: French consumer confidence weakens in June. French consumer confidence weakened in June on rising concerns about future standard of living, monthly survey results published by the statistical office INSEE showed. The consumer confidence index fell to 89 in June, in line with expectations, from 90 in May. The indicator has remained well below its long-term average of 100. The balance of opinion on consumers' personal financial situation remained almost unchanged. (RTT)

UK: Retail sales go into reverse this month. British retail sales softened this month after a recovery in May, and stores expect another drop next month, an industry survey showed. The Confederation of British Industry's monthly retail sales balance, which measures volumes compared with a year ago, fell to -24 in June from +8 in May. Official data last week showed retail sales surged in May, after heavy rain kept shoppers away in April. Average wages are now rising faster than inflation and consumer sentiment in June had recovered to its highest since Nov 2021, according to figures from Britain's longest-running consumer confidence survey. (Reuters)

Australia: Inflation exceeds expectations in May. Australia inflation accelerated more than expected in May, suggesting the Reserve Bank will remain hawkish at the Aug meeting. Consumer price inflation rose to 4.0% in May from 3.6% in April, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported. Inflation was expected to rise to 3.8%. At the same time, core inflation that excludes volatile items and holiday travel also came in at 4.0% but it came down from 4.1% in April. Annual trimmed mean inflation accelerated to 4.4% in May from 4.1% in April. (RTT)

Markets

Samaiden: Inks partnership to develop solar street lighting systems. Samaiden Group said it is teaming up with a lighting solutions provider to implement solar street lighting systems. The company said it has signed an agreement with Gruppe Lighting Solution SB to implement lighting systems that incorporate solar panels, battery storage and smart grid technologies. The collaboration extends to smart city projects that integrate solar streetlights with Internet of Things (IoT) capabilities, which would significantly improve energy management and enhance urban services, said Samiden. (The Edge)

AR-REIT: To dispose of Cyberjaya asset. Amanahraya Real Estate Investment Trust (AR-REIT) is disposing of a free standing four storey purpose-built office building in Cyberjaya, Selangor to 4X Software SB for RM42.5m. AR-REIT said the proposed disposal is in line with its investment objectives to re-balance its portfolio towards new resilient and sustainable assets. The manager believes that after almost eight years of owning this property, it has maximised the income-generating potential of this asset and there is limited upside for future rental growth. (StarBiz)

CN Asia: To become largest shareholder in SMTrack via debt settlement. CN Asia Corp is set to acquire a significant stake in SMTrack through a debt settlement deal. The agreement involves SMTrack issuing 218m new shares at 3.5 sen per share to settle a debt of RM7.6m owed by its subsidiary, SMT Turbojet Resources SB, to CN Asia’s subsidiary, Southborn Capital SB. SMTrack explained that the issue price of 3.5 sen per share represents a 10% discount to its five-day volume-weighted average market price of 3.89 sen as of 18 June. (The Malaysian Reserve)

G3 Global: Plans RM10m private placement for AIS3 project funding. G3 Global plans to raise RM9.8m through a private placement to fund its AIS3 project at KLIA and KLIA2. Of the total, RM6m will support ongoing and future projects, while RM3.4m is earmarked for immediate working capital. Specifically, RM4.2m is allocated to completing the AIS3 project, with RM1.9m set aside for future ICT projects targeting airports and healthcare sectors across Malaysia, Southeast Asia, and North Africa. (The Malaysian Reserve)

Sapura Energy: Grants chairman leave of absence amid unrelated MACC probe. Sapura Energy has granted chairman Datuk Mohammad Azlan Abdullah leave of absence with immediate effect to allow the 56-year-old to focus on ongoing investigations by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) regarding a matter unrelated to the oil and gas engineering group. In the absence of Mohammad Azlan, Sapura said it had appointed non-independent non-executive director Shahin Farouque Jammal Ahmad as the interim chairman until further notice. (The Edge)

Magma: Focuses on hospitality growth. Magma Group will continue to focus on its main operations in the hospitality sector, emphasising its flagship hotels like Impiana KLCC Hotel, Impiana Hotel Ipoh, Impiana Hotel Senai, and WOLO Kuala Lumpur. “Our focus remains on strengthening our core hospitality operations, leveraging our flagship properties to improve occupancy rates and average room rates (ARR). Additionally, we are committed to maintaining high standards of corporate governance and operational excellence.” group MD Datuk Seri Thomas Liang Chee Fong said. (StarBiz)

MARKET UPDATE

The FBM KLCI might open flat today after a mostly subdued day of trading Wednesday left stock indexes on Wall Street close to the all-time highs they set last week. The S&P 500 index rose 0.2% after drifting between small gains and losses most of the day. About 65% of the stocks in the benchmark index fell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished less than 0.1% higher, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.5%. Several big stocks helped offset the broader decline in the S&P 500. Amazon.com rose 3.9%, surpassing $2 trn in market value for the first time. The rise in the e-commerce giant’s stock market valuation comes a little more than a week after Nvidia hit $3 trn and briefly became the most valuable company on Wall Street. European shares slipped on Wednesday as government bond yields rose on concerns about persistent global price pressures ahead of a crucial U.S. inflation report, with investor focus also on French elections at the weekend. The pan-European STOXX 600 index reversed early gains to close nearly 0.6% lower, pressured by a rise in bond yields across the euro zone. Bursa Malaysia snapped seven consecutive days of losses to end higher today as bargain-hunting emerged following the recent sell-off. At the closing bell, the FBM KLCI rose 0.35% or 5.57 points to 1,590.95 from yesterday’s close of 1,585.38. In the region. In the region, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.3%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index tacked on 0.1% and Shanghai Composite index added 0.8%.

Source: PublicInvest Research - 27 Jun 2024