MO R N I N G C O F F E E -  Friday, May 4, 2012

U.S. and European market roundup
Stocks turned lower and the U.S. dollar trimmed gains against the yen after the Institute for Supply Management said its services sector index fell to 53.5 in April from 56.0 the previous month. The report missed economists' forecasts of a reading of 55.5, according to a Reuters survey. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.

Fears that the labor market recovery was stalling eased a bit on Thursday after data showed the number of
Americans filing new claims for jobless aid fell more than expected last week. The Labor Department said initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 27,000 to a seasonally adjusted 365,000The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.5 %, S&P 500 dropped 0.8 % and Nasdaq composite average slid 1.2 %.

NYMEX-Crude ends lower for 2nd day on data indicating slowing economic growth and on increased OPEC production that the group's secretary general said is intended to curb high prices.June crude fell $2.68, to settle at $102.55 a barrel, the biggest one-day percentage loss since Dec. 14, 2011.

-Reuters

France's CAC 40 lost 0.1 %, U.K.'s FTSE 100 rose 0.2 % and Germany's DAX slid 0.2 %. European stocks were little changed as company earnings were offset by comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi who said policy makers didn't discuss lowering interest rates this week. The central bank kept its benchmark interest rate at a record low of 1%.

-Bloomberg

Corporate News Headlines
BCorp increases stake in Atlan: has emerged as a substantial shareholder in Atlan Holdings Bhd following the acquisition of a 7.9% stake in the latter for RM85 million or RM4.25 a share via direct business transaction (DBT) yesterday.

Pharmaniaga Q1 net profit up 87%: an improved net profit of RM29.1mil for its first quarter ended March 31, 2012. Pharmaniaga declared an interim dividend of 7.5 sen per share.

APFT market pilot training courses in region: cadet now can do the CAE MPL course locally instead of in Canada. It has secured a five-year contract form CAE Inc to support the first and second phase of CAE's four-phase MPL training programme for budget carrier AirAsia Bhd.

-SunBiz

Scomi Marine plans capital repayment of 18.5c a share: the corporate exercise would involve the reduction of the par value of the shares from RM1 each to 45 sen by canceling 55 sen from each share.

Press Metal secures RM350m loan from Maybank, RHB Bank: for the aluminium smelting plant project in Samalaju Industrial Park.

Airport Q1 passenger traffic up 6.5%, says MAHB: recorded a total volume of 16 million movements for the first quarter of 2012, international and domestic passenger movements registered a growth of 6.4% and 6.5% respectively.

-StarBiz

Hartalega sees lower glove prices: World's biggest nitrile glovemaker Hartalega Holdings Bhd expects glove prices to slide as much as five per cent in the immediate months.

TM eyes 1,000 subscribers a month with Panasonic tieup: yesterday signed a collaborative arrangement agreement to empower local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through various joint initiatives.

Takaful Malaysia set to grow market share: will look to mergers and acquisitions to grow its market share but only after the risk-based capital (RBC) framework for takaful operators is finalised by 2013.

-Btimes

QUILL CAPITA TRUST first quarter net profit rose 5% from a year earlier, helped by higher revenue and lower operating expenses. In a statement to the exchange, Quill said net profit came to RM8.07 million in the quarter to March 31, 2012 from RM7.68.

-FinancialDaily

Source:Jupiter Securities Research 04 May 2012