MARKET ROUNDUP (Source Bloomberg)

U.S. Stocks Rise Amid German Bailout Ruling, Fed Bets: as a German court cleared the way for Europe's bailout fund and investors weighed prospects for stimulus measures from the Federal Reserve. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 0.2 percent to 1,436.56 at 4 p.m. in New York, near a four-year high set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 9.99 points, or 0.1 percent, to 13,333.35 today. About 6.2 billion changed hands on U.S. exchanges today, 2.5 percent above the three-month average.

European Stocks Rise to 14-Month High After German Ruling: after Germany's top constitutional court cleared the way for the ratification of the euro area's permanent bailout fund. France's CAC 40 advanced 0.2 percent, Germany's DAX Index (DAX) rallied 0.5 percent, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 lost 0.2 percent.

Oil Trades Near Two-Day Low as U.S. Stockpiles Unexpectedly Gain: after a government report showed an unexpected increase in stockpiles in the U.S., the world's biggest crude user. Oil for October delivery was at $96.87 a barrel, down 14 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 8:52 a.m. Sydney time. The contract yesterday slipped 16 cents to $97.01, the lowest close since Sept. 10. Front-month prices are 2 percent lower this year.



CORPORATE NEWS

KPJ plans to buy Sri Manjung Specialist Centre: via its subsidiary Ipoh Specialist Hospital Sdn Bhd, plans to buy the entire stake in Sri Manjung Specialist Centre Sdn Bhd for RM14.25 million cash.

P&O gets BNM nod for talks with Sanlam: to commence preliminary talks with Sanlam Ltd on the possible divestment of an equity stake in Pacific & Orient Insurance Co Bhd. Sanlam, one of the largest financial services group in South Africa and is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange

Btimes

Resorts World Sentosa penalised for breaching casino law: indirect subsidiary Resorts World Sentosa Pte Ltd (RWS) has been fined $S600,000 (RM1.5mil) by the Singapore Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA) for partially reimbursing the annual entry levy paid by local patrons.

Sarawak plywood prices seen rising: are likely to rise by 5% to 10% in the next three months or so as demand from Japan continues to pick up. Japan, Sarawak's largest plywood market, increased its imports from the state by about 5% to 1.31 million cu m worth RM2.37bil last year, from 1.25 million cu m valued at RM1.87bil in 2010.

StarbIz

Source:Jupiter Security Research 14 September 2012