HEADLINES

Economy

UK: Consumers treat themselves to small luxuries. UK credit and debit card spending barely grew in 2024 as cautious consumers treated themselves to small luxuries, concerts and travel while cutting back on food and big-ticket purchases, according to research that provides a warning sign for the Labour government's growth ambitions. In trends set to continue next year, spending on essentials increased just 0.9% in 2024, down from 3.9% last year, due to weak supermarket and fuel sales, a Barclays report tracking card transactions showed. (The Star)

China: Services activity jumps as stimulus lifts local demand. China's services activity expanded at the fastest pace in nine months while the manufacturing sector grew for a third straight month, signalling improving domestic demand after Beijing's stimulus blitz. The official non-manufacturing PMI rose to 52.2 in Dec, significantly higher than forecast. (Bloomberg)

China: To achieve 2024 GDP growth target, Xi says. China's economy is expected to have expanded around 5% in 2024, President Xi Jinping said. At a New Year's event, Xi said proactive macroeconomic policies would be extended into 2025, the state news agency Xinhua reported. Xi added that Beijing would deepen its reforms, expand high-level opening up and coordinate development and security. (RTT)

Japan: Bank notes circulation drops again. The year-end balance of bank notes in circulation in Japan is estimated at JPY124,077.8bn in 2024, falling for the second straight year, according to BoJ data. A stack of JPY10,000 bills equivalent to the value would be 1,240km high, about 328 times higher than 3,776m Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in the country. The balance of bank notes in circulation is the total value of bank notes held at homes, in corporate vaults and elsewhere. (The Star)

India: Nov infrastructure output grows 4.3% on-year. India's infrastructure output grew 4.3% YoY in Nov, helped by strong construction activity. In Oct, infrastructure output, which makes up 40% of India's industrial production and tracks activity across eight sectors, grew at a revised 3.7%. Cement output climbed 13% YoY in Nov compared with a 3.1% increase in Oct, and steel production grew 4.8%, against a revised 5.2% increase a month earlier. (Reuters)

South Korea: Exports climb 8.2% in 2024, sets record. South Korea's exports advanced 8.2% YoY in 2024 to set a new annual record on robust shipments of semiconductors, data shows. Outbound shipments came to USD683.8bn last year, compared with the previous record of USD683.6bn set in 2022, according to the data compiled by the Trade, Industry and Energy Ministry. Imports fell 1.6% YoY to USD632bn, resulting in a trade surplus of USD51.8bn. (The Star)

Singapore: Growth beats estimates as PM Wong flags global risks. Singapore's PM Lawrence Wong said the country's economy performed better than expected in 2024, building a strong foundation for the city state to confront a more complex international environment next year. GDP expanded 4%, Wong said in his New Year's message. That beat the trade ministry's Nov forecast for an expansion of around 3.5%. (Bloomberg)

Markets

Cahya Mata Sarawak: Aborts joint development of hotel, serviced apartments in Kuching Isthmus. Cahya Mata Sarawak has aborted its joint venture project to build a four-star hotel and serviced apartments in Kuching Isthmus, a business district in Kuching, Sarawak, with its JV partners. Shareholders of the JV company, Isthmus Developments SB, mutually decided to abort the project as it is "no longer desired by the shareholders", CMSB said. "Hence, the JV agreement shall cease to be valid and effective from Dec 31, 2024," CMS said. The partners inked the JV agreement back in December 2010 to build, manage and own a 381-room hotel with 96 units of serviced apartments on a 10.5-acre land in Isthmus Kuching - comprising two plots of land supplied by CMS Land. (The Edge)

KLCCP: Upsizes Sukuk Murabahah Programme to RM2bn. KLCC Property Holdings (KLCCP) wholly owned subsidiary Suria KLCC SB has upsized its sukuk murabahah programme to RM2bn from RM600m in nominal value. KLCCP said Suria KLCC successfully made an issuance of sukuk murabahah amounting to RM600m in nominal value with a 10.5-year tenure and a periodic profit rate of 4.00% per annum. The proceeds will be utilised by Suria KLCC to refinance the first issuance of RM600m made on 31 Dec 2014, soon after the programme was established on Nov 19, 2014. (Bernama

Binasat: Divests 51% stake in struggling unit for RM5.9m. Binasat Communications has entered into an agreement with Susjaya Sdn Bhd to sell its entire 51% equity interest in Borderless Connection SB (BCSB), representing 510,000 shares, for RM5.92m in cash. Upon completion, BCSB will cease to be a subsidiary of Binasat. BCSB is primarily involved in utility infrastructure services and the EPCC of solar facilities, Based on the latest audited financial statements for the 10-month period ending December 31 2023, BCSB posted a loss after tax of approximately 669,000. However, in the unaudited financial statements for the nine-month period ending September 2024, BCSB reported a profit after tax of approximately RM143,000. (The Malaysian Reserve)

MYMBN: Can't fulfill RM2.5m bird's nest exports due to DVS suspension. MYMBN says there are orders for RM2.5m to China which it is unable to fulfil due to the temporary suspension. On Dec 26, MYMBN announced that it had received a notice from Malaysia's Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) about the temporary suspension of bird's nest exports to China, which took effect on 25 Dec. The company said i that the temporary suspension has disrupted its operations, supply chain, and revenue streams linked to the China market, which is one of the company's key export destinations. MYMBN is unable to fully quantify the financial impact of the temporary suspension at this juncture as the situation in relation to the suspension remains fluid. (Business Times)

Permaju Industries: In capital reduction bid. Permaju Industries Bhd has proposed a capital reduction of up to RM258m via the cancellation of its issued share capital "which is lost and unrepresented by available assets". The company said the RM258m credit from the cancellation will offset its accumulated losses. It said that any remaining balance will be credited to the company's retained earnings and used as deemed fit by its board. (The Star)

MARKET UPDATE

The KLCI might open lower today after US stock indices closed mostly lower Tuesday as the market delivered a downbeat finish on the final day of another milestone-shattering year on Wall Street. The S&P 500 gave up an early gain to finish down 0.4%. The benchmark index, which set 57 record highs in 2024, racked up a 23.3% gain for the year. This was its second straight year with a gain of more than 20%. The last time the index had as big a back-to-back annual gain was 1998. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 0.9%. Big Tech stocks led this year's rally, pushing the Nasdaq to a yearly gain of 28.6%. The Dow, which is far less weighted with tech, rose 12.9% for the year. Receding inflation, which has gotten closer to the Fed's 2% target, helped energize Wall Street, raising hopes that the central bank would deliver multiple interest rate cuts into next year, which would ease borrowing costs and fuel more economic growth. Still, after three interest rate cuts in 2024, the Fed has signalled a more cautious approach heading into 2025 with inflation remaining sticky as the country prepares for President-elect Donald Trump to transition into the White House. Trump's threats to hike tariffs on imported goods have raised anxiety that inflation could be reignited as companies pass along the higher costs from tariffs. Indices in Europe mostly rose. Asian markets ended mixed, with exchanges in Tokyo and Seoul closed for New Year holidays. Back home, the KLCI added 4.65 points or 0.28% to 1642.33.

Source: PublicInvest Research - 2 Jan 2025