Previous Day Highlights

FBM KLCI closed lower due to profit-taking activities. The benchmark index declined 0.15% or 2.39 pts to close at 1,613.25. Majority of sectors were positive with health care (+2.2%), energy (+1.0%), and construction (+0.7%), leading the gainers; while losers were seen in plantation (-0.5%), and REIT (-0.3%). Market breadth was positive with 574 gainers against 465 losers. Total volume stood at 3.18bn shares valued at RM2.83bn.

Major regional indices trended mixed. HSI gained 1.56%, to end at 19,865.85. SHCOMP increased 1.05%, to close at 3,404.08. Nikkei 225 eased 0.77%, to finish at 39,091.17. STI slid 0.69%, to close at 3,796.16.

Wall Street closed mixed following a stronger November job data. The DJIA dropped 0.28%, to end at 44,642.52. Nasdaq rose 0.81%, to close at 19,859.77. S&P500 rose 0.25%, to finish at 6,090.27.

News For The Day

EPF becomes significant unitholder in KIP REIT

The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has become a substantial unitholder of KIP Real Estate Investment Trust following the successful conclusion of the group’s recent private placement. With its current stake of over 6%, EPF’s standing as a substantial unitholder further solidifies its confidence in KIP REIT’s strategic direction and growth potential. - The Edge Market

ITMax inks JV with Aim-Force to develop smart parking

ITMax System has entered into a joint venture with Aim-Force for the development of smart parking enforcement solutions and enterprise mobility software and technologies for various projects. ITMAX shall have a 70% shareholding in the JV, named Enforcemax, while Aim-Force will own the remaining 30%. Enforcemax shall own any smart parking enforcement solutions and the derivatives developed via the joint venture, while ITMAX and Aim-Force shall actively participate in the growth and expansion of Enforcemax. - The Edge Market

OSK unit to purchase development land in Kedah

OSK Holdings' indirect 99.93% subsidiary has inked a deal to acquire five tracts of land measuring about 133.76ha in Kuala Muda, Kedah, from Central Kedah Properties for RM72m. The land acquisition forms a critical component of its long-term business strategy as it will enhance its landbank for future development projects. - The Star

Crescendo seals land sale in Johor, to data centre operator

Crescendo Corp is selling five plots of freehold vacant land in Iskandar Puteri, part of the Nusa Cemerlang Industrial Park, to Data Cloud Innovation (DCI), a unit of UK-based Magma Holding Company Ltd, for RM120.1m cash. The sale follows Crescendo’s strategy to support data centre development in Johor. This contributed to the company’s record-high 2QFY24 net profit of RM429.9m, largely driven by data centre land sales in the Nusa Cemerlang Industrial Park. - The Edge Market

SNS Network inks MoU with Mimos on AI collaboration

SNS Network's wholly-owned subsidiary SNS Network (M) has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Mimos to explore potential collaboration on independent validation and verification and practical AI use cases for an AI factory. The AI collaboration aims to leverage the computational capabilities of SNS Networks' AI GPU-as-a-Service to drive innovation and enhance the development of AI solutions tailored to enterprise needs. - The Star

Our Thoughts

Wall Street ended on a mixed note although sentiment remains bullish of a rate cut notwithstanding a stronger monthly job data along with a higher unemployment rate of 4.2% for November from 4.1%. Meanwhile, the US 10- year yield eased to 4.149%. In Hong Kong, the HSI jumped to almost the 20,000 mark as traders are gearing up for the Chinese economic policy meeting scheduled sometime this month aiming to revive domestic consumption and tackle the trade war with US. Back . home, the FBM KLCI took a breather to close lower after a 3-day uptrend. Though the index is still stuck within the consolidation phase, we remain hopeful that accumulation of stocks to continue as the local bourse is currently hovering at alluring valuations of 14.5x PER based on 2025 figures. As such, we expect the index to hover within the 1,615-1,625 range today.

Source: Rakuten Research - 9 Dec 2024

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