Previous Day Highlights

FBM KLCI closed in negative territory due to profit taking activities during the last minutes of trading. The benchmark index lost 0.04% or 0.55 points to end at 1,460.07. Losers were led by HLFG, TENAGA and AMBANK. Market breadth was negative with 535 losers against 386 gainers. Total volume stood at 3.21bn shares valued at RM2.02bn.

Key regional markets ended mostly lower. Nikkei225, HSI and SHCOMP lost 0.75%, 1.34% and 1.13% to close at 32,991.08, 18,202.07 and 3,122.35 respectively. STI added 0.12% to finish at 3,226.59 respectively.

Wall Street closed mixed as fears of higher interest rates pressure. The DJIA gained 0.17% to end at 34,500.73. S&P500 and Nasdaq lost 0.32% and 0.89% to close at 4,451.14 and 13,748.83 respectively.

News For The Day

Bank Negara maintains OPR at 3%, as expected

Bank Negara Malaysia’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the overnight policy rate (OPR) unchanged at 3%. “At the current OPR level, the monetary policy stance remains supportive of the economy and is consistent with the current assessment of the inflation and growth prospects,” the central bank said in a statement.– The Star

Destini gets RM19.0m contract from Ministry of Defence

Destini’s wholly-owned subsidiary Destini Prima SB has secured a RM19.0m contract from the Ministry of Defence Malaysia for the procurement, supply and delivery of Forges de Zeebrugge rocket motor. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, Destini said the contract tenure is for a period of two years starting from Sept 6, 2023 to Sept 5, 2025.– The Star

Mah Sing to venture into industrial real estate development

Mah Sing Group’s units have signed a shareholders’ agreement with The South Sea Capital SB (TSSC) to form a JV to venture into industrial real estate properties development. Mah Sing’s wholly owned subsidiaries Nova Legend Development SB (MS1) and Jastamax SB (MS2) had on Thursday signed the agreement with TSSC, to jointly carry out the business relating to industrial real estate property development, land acquisition, ownership, operation, management, and leasing through a JV arrangement. MS1 and MS2 will hold 50% and 20% equity interest respectively in the JV company, named Mah Sing South Sea Industrial Development SB.-The Edge Markets

SkyWorld buys 1.3-acre land in Ho Chi Minh City for RM68m

Skyworld Development’s wholly owned subsidiary, SkyWorld Development (Vietnam) Company Limited (SkyWorld Vietnam) has proposed to acquire 1.3 acres of land in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam for RM67.9m cash. The project company is currently carrying out relevant legal procedures to register and implement a project comprising 24-storey apartment building on the land with an estimated GDV or RM310.4m. –The Star

MN Holdings wins RM23.8m contract from TNB

MN Holdings has secured a substation engineering contract worth RM23.8m from TNB to establish a new 132 kilovolt (kV) main intake substation (PMU) Bekok Switching Station in Johor. “Under the substation engineering contract, MN Power will supply, erect, test and commission the 132 kV PMU Bekok Switching Station including remote end substation work complete with relevant primary, secondary and all associated civil works. “The contract is expected to be completed in 540 days from the commencement date,” said MN Holdings.-The Star

Our Thoughts

Wall Street struggled to close on a mixed note as sentiment remains affected by the likelihood of more rate hikes by the Feds later this month attributed to the still strong labour market. As a result, though the DJI Average added 57 points, the Nasdaq lost 124 points despite the US 10-year yield easing to 4.25%. In Hong Kong, the HSI continue to slide as it lost almost 250 points in view of China’s weak exports in August underpinning hopes for more aggressive stimulus. Meanwhile, the Chinese Yuan also declined to a 15-year low from averaging 6.4 earlier this year to currently 7.3/US$1 or a drop of 18%. Back home, the FBM KLCI ended flat due to some late barging hunting activities despite the regional weakness. Although we believe sentiment to stay cautious in view of the external factors, we remain positive that accumulation of stocks to persist hence expect the index to hover within the 1,460-1,470 range today.

Source: Rakuten Research - 8 Sept 2023

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