Fed pledges to keep rates low until it achieves maximum employment
Updated 09:08, 17-Sep-2020
CGTN

The Federal Reserve building in Washington, D.C., U.S. /VCG
The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at the record-low level of near zero and signaled to maintain this target range until at least 2023.
The recovery has progressed more quickly than generally expected, but overall activity remains well below its level before the pandemic and the path ahead remains highly uncertain, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said at a virtual news conference Wednesday afternoon, after the Fed's two-day policy meeting.
The central bank chief noted roughly half of the 22 million jobs that were lost in March and April have been regained as many people returned to work, and unemployment rate remained elevated at 8.4 percent as of August. He added that the level of unemployment is probably 3 percent higher than the official data, considering those people who are misidentified as employed and the declined labor force participation.
Looking ahead, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed's policy setting body, projected the unemployment rates to continue to decline, according to the latest economic projections.
The median projection for unemployment rate is 7.6 percent at the end of this year, and 4 percent by the end of 2023. It's still above the historically low of 3.5 percent the country experienced before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Inflation, meanwhile, is expected to reach 1.2 percent by the end of this year, and will gradually pick up before reaching two percent by the end of 2023.
The central bank also noted that the path of the economy will depend significantly on the course of the virus.
"The ongoing public health crisis will continue to weigh on economic activity, employment, and inflation in the near term, and poses considerable risks to the economic outlook over the medium term," the Fed said in its latest FOMC statement.
In light of these assessments, the FOMC decided to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 0.25 percent, a level which hasn't been unchanged since March.
The committee expects it will be appropriate to maintain this target range until labor market conditions have reached levels consistent with the Committee's assessments of maximum employment and inflation has risen to two percent and is on track to moderately exceed 2 percent for some time, according to the statement.
When asked to explain the specifics about inflation overshooting, Powell told reporters that "we're resisting the urge to try to create some sort of a rule or a formula here."
"We want to achieve inflation that averages two percent over time," said the Fed chairman. "And if we do that, inflation expectations will be right at two percent and that will help us achieve two percent inflation over time and avoid the situation where the central bank loses its ability to support the economy."
Powell also noted that more fiscal support is likely to be needed to support economic recovery, as unemployment rate remains high, numerous small businesses are struggling, and state and local governments are in dire financial situation.
"It will take a while to get back to the levels of economic activity and employment that prevailed at the beginning of this year, and it may take continued support from both monetary and fiscal policy to achieve that," he said.
OECD lifts economic outlook on stronger-than-expected U.S., Chinese recoveries
CGTN
The global economy appears to be recovering from the coronavirus slump faster than thought only a few months ago thanks to improving outlooks for China and the United States, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said on Wednesday.
The world economy is on course to contract 4.5 percent this year, the organization said, which was up from the 6 percent contraction that it forecast in June.
Provided the virus is kept from spreading out of control, the global economy will bounce back into growth next year by expanding 5 percent, trimmed from a June forecast of 5.2 percent, the Paris-based policy forum said.
However, a stronger resurgence of the virus or more strict measures to contain it could chop 2-3 percentage points from the 2021 outlook, the OECD warned.
The OECD said its forecasts were built on the assumption that local outbreaks would continue and would be targeted with local action rather than nationwide lockdowns. It also assumed a vaccine would not be widely available until late next year.
The OECD said governments and central banks' actions to support households and companies' incomes had helped avert worse downturns and should therefore be kept up as outbreaks keep appearing sporadically.
Its brighter overall outlook for this year masked big differences between major economies, with the United States, China and Europe seen performing better than feared while India, Mexico and South Africa may do worse as they struggle to contain the virus.
As the first country to experience the outbreak and having moved swiftly to control its spread, China was forecast to be the only country in the G20 group of economic powers to see growth this year with an increase of 1.8 percent, up from a June projection of a contraction of 2.6 percent.
Meanwhile, the U.S. economy, the world's biggest, was also forecast to fare better this year than previously feared with a contraction of 3.8 percent, still dire but far better than the -7.3 percent forecast previously.
good for uems.... australia is one of uems's major markets for its property development :)
Australian unemployment falls, raising recovery hopes
Thursday, 17 Sep 2020 10:52 AM MYT Australia is experiencing its first recession in almost 30 years, prompting the government and central bank to embark on a vast stimulus spending programme to avert a full-blown depression. — AFP pic Australia is experiencing its first recession in almost 30 years, prompting the government and central bank to embark on a vast stimulus spending programme to avert a full-blown depression. — AFP pic
SYDNEY, Sept 17 — Australia’s unemployment rate fell slightly to 6.8 per cent in August, spurring hopes that the worst of a coronavirus-fuelled recession may have passed.
The country’s statistical agency said today that unemployment had fallen 0.7 points from the 7.5-per cent rate posted in July, with the economy adding 111,000 more jobs.
Australia is experiencing its first recession in almost 30 years, prompting the government and central bank to embark on a vast stimulus spending programme to avert a full-blown depression.
Around a million people have lost their jobs and many more have been forced to take pay cuts or seen hours slashed.
Today’s figures smashed economists’ forecasts of a rise in the unemployment rate to around 8 per cent.
But beyond the headline figure — which is seasonally adjusted — there was some cause for concern.
The number of people present in the job market, hours worked and underemployment remained largely unchanged — pointing to an economy still in serious pain. — AFP
Bagus! Australian unemployment falls, raising recovery hopes
Thursday, 17 Sep 2020 10:52 AM MYT
UEM Sunrise acquires prime development site in Melbourne for AU$43 mln KUALA LUMPUR, June 19 -- UEM Sunrise Bhd has acquired a prime development site at 21-53 Hoddle Street, Collingwood, Melbourne for AU$43 million (RM1=AU$2.93).
The company, in a statement today, said the 5,390-square metre inner east site, which is currently home to a Melbourne auto dealership, was purchased from Jowett Properties and will be transformed into a mixed-use development.
Managing director and chief executive officer Anwar Syahrin Abdul Ajib said the acquisition of the landmark Collingwood site signals UEM Sunrise’s new chapter in Melbourne and continuation of its active presence in the Australian market following the success of its Aurora Melbourne Central and Conservatory projects.
“There’s no doubt that Collingwood has evolved into a go-to residential and commercial precinct, thanks to its close proximity to the central business district (CBD), vibrant café culture and wonderful sense of community.
“UEM Sunrise looks forward to bringing our development expertise and vision to the area, delivering quality residences and commercial spaces for Melbourne’s growing population and helping stimulate job creation via the project’s delivery,” said Anwar Syahrin, adding that the new site forms part of a broader expansion strategy for UEM Sunrise.
He said the Melbourne commercial and residential sector continues to remain strong despite challenges posed by COVID-19, with the Victorian government committed to ongoing development and approval of shovel-ready projects.
“We are optimistic when it comes to strategic and well-positioned opportunities,” he said.
UEM Sunrise, one of Malaysia’s leading property developers, most recently completed its AU$800 million flagship Australian project, Aurora Melbourne Central in the Melbourne CBD.
The residential component of the project had strong sales success, with 95 per cent of stock selling out within two weeks of launch and 100 per cent of the project sold prior to completion.
Aurora Melbourne Central also achieved a 98 per cent settlement rate for its residences to date.
KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 17): UEM Sunrise Bhd achieved more than RM400 million in sales and bookings in less than two months after the launch of its ‘The Happy Chase’ campaign.
UEM Sunrise managing director and CEO Anwar Syahrin Abdul Ajib said: “We were persistent in pivoting our strategies to continue building the awareness and interest of our products and the UEM Sunrise brand during the movement control order (MCO) and conditional MCO period.”
“We knew that there was pent-up demand from the buyers and their confidence in our products, that we were able to convert much of this leads and interest to actual bookings — showing that our efforts are paying off,” said Anwar in a press statement.
According to the developer, popular projects in the campaign include Residensi AVA, the eco-living condominium suites, which has seen a take-up rate of 55% for the first of two towers. Residensi AVA forms the first phase of Kiara Bay, the 73-acre flagship waterfront development of UEM Sunrise in Kepong.
Meanwhile, Frischia, a contemporary double-storey terraced home offering in Serene Heights Bangi, and phase 1A of Senadi Hills in Iskandar Puteri have seen 91% and 80% take-ups respectively since their launches in July.
The Happy Chase campaign is the group’s response to the enhancement of the government’s reintroduction of the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) as part of the Short-Term Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana) following the MCO to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. The campaign will continue until May 31, 2021 in line with HOC 2020.
It offers booking fees from as low as RM1, waiver on sales and purchase agreement and loan legal fees, and a multitude of other rewards including additional rebates and subsidies. Goodies include subsidised maintenance fees for up to two years, free kitchen cabinets and home appliances for selected participating projects.
Meanwhile, the group also launched The Happy Chase Gameshow hosted by popular TV presenter and actor Baki Zainal, together with UEM Sunrise in-house property consultants to present the latest HOC 2020 and UEM Sunrise project updates. Posts of the game show broadcasted live on the UEM Sunrise Facebook page over the past four consecutive Saturdays attracted a total of 219,000 viewers.
“We want to thank our customers for their continued confidence in UEM Sunrise homes. The support shown by these house buyers have bolstered us here in UEM Sunrise to continue giving ‘soul’ to the homes we build and the environment that we design and construct,” said Anwar.
Anwar added that the support from homebuyers gives the group the momentum to capitalise on the positive trend and to continue with its new launches including Allevia, an exclusive high-rise development in the heart of Mont’Kiara; Plot B of Solaris Parq, the office tower component of the 18.76-acre mixed-development masterplan; and Verna, the latest double-storey terraced home offering in Serene Heights Bangi.
flying again UEM Sunrise Bhd achieved more than RM400 million in sales and bookings in less than two months after the launch of its ‘The Happy Chase’ campaign, which will run until May 31, 2021. The campaign is the group’s response to the enhancement of the Government’s reintroduction of the Home Ownership Campaign as part of the Short-Term Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana) following the Movement Control Order to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
a remarkable Q3 probably UEM Sunrise Bhd achieved more than RM400 million in sales and bookings in less than two months after the launch of its ‘The Happy Chase’ campaign, which will run until May 31, 2021. The campaign is the group’s response to the enhancement of the Government’s reintroduction of the Home Ownership Campaign as part of the Short-Term Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana) following the Movement Control Order to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
khazanah can do something via uems. uems has plenty of lands. LaBrooy says what Malaysia lacks, as far as industrial space goes, is that the state and federal governments have not looked into bringing in large industries into the country.
“There are no big industries, no big industrial real estates for foreigners to come and take positions. It’s very fractured. It’s small and there are no big picture stories. We need to get more people involved.
“Government-linked companies can play a big role in this by identifying large tracts of land to open up to foreign investors.”
Najib Razak - Syarikat milik Khazanah, UEM Sunrise mula Sep 11, 2019 - Syarikat milik Khazanah, UEM Sunrise mula berkembang ke ... Harga AUS$70 juta Ini hanya akan memberi sedikit keuntungan sahaja .
30 Largest Securities Account Holders For Ordinary Shares As At 30/04/2020 No Name No of Shares Held 1 UEM GROUP BERHAD 2,997,491,779 2 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (TEMPATAN) SDN. BHD. URUSHARTA JAMAAH SDN. BHD. (1) 348,871,500 3 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (TEMPATAN) SDN. BHD. EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND BOARD 202,113,137 4 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (TEMPATAN) SDN. BHD. GREAT EASTERN LIFE ASSURANCE (MALAYSIA) BERHAD (PAR 1) 53,985,500 5 HSBC NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. JPMCB NA FOR THE NATIONAL FARMERS UNION MUTUAL INSURANCE SOCIETY LTD. 39,671,909 6 HSBC NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. JPMCB NA FOR VANGUARD EMERGING MARKETS STOCK INDEX FUND 26,801,900 7 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. CBNY FOR NORGES BANK (FI 17) 23,618,700 8 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (TEMPATAN) SDN. BHD. GREAT EASTERN LIFE ASSURANCE (MALAYSIA) BERHAD (PAR 3) 22,714,300 9 HSBC NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. JPMCB NA FOR VANGUARD TOTAL INTERNATIONAL STOCK INDEX FUND 20,092,955 10 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. CBNY FOR EMERGING MARKET CORE EQUITY PORTFOLIO DFA INVESTMENT DIMENSIONS GROUP INC. 19,126,845 11 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (TEMPATAN) SDN. BHD. EXEMPT AN FOR AIA BHD. 18,478,200 12 LIEW SWEE MIO @ LIEW HOI FOO 17,300,000 13 DB (MALAYSIA) NOMINEE (ASING) SDN. BHD. THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON FOR DELAWARE GROUP GLOBAL & INTERNATIONAL FUNDS DELAWARE EMERGING MARKETS FUND 17,000,000 14 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. CBNY FOR DIMENSIONAL EMERGING MARKETS VALUE FUND 16,753,445 15 CARTABAN NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. EXEMPT AN FOR STATE STREET BANK & TRUST COMPANY (WEST CLT OD67) 15,100,800 16 AMANAHRAYA TRUSTEES BERHAD PUBLIC ITTIKAL SEQUEL FUND 12,835,400 17 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. CBLDN FOR POLUNIN EMERGING MARKETS SMALL CAP FUND, LLC 10,659,934 18 AMANAHRAYA TRUSTEES BERHAD PUBLIC ISLAMIC DIVIDEND FUND 10,376,500 19 AMANAHRAYA TRUSTEES BERHAD PUBLIC SAVINGS FUND 9,090,300 20 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. EXEMPT AN FOR CITIBANK NEW YORK (NORGES BANK 1) 8,793,100 21 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. CBNY FOR DFA EMERGING MARKETS SMALL CAP SERIES 8,599,800 22 HSBC NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. EXEMPT AN FOR BANK JULIUS BAER & CO. LTD. (SINGAPORE BCH) 8,361,365 23 CITIGROUP NOMINEES (TEMPATAN) SDN. BHD. EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND BOARD (RHBISLAMIC) 7,900,000 24 AMANAHRAYA TRUSTEES BERHAD PUBLIC ISLAMIC EQUITY FUND 7,639,600 25 DB (MALAYSIA) NOMINEE (ASING) SDN. BHD. BNYM SA/NV FOR NFU MUTUAL GLOBAL GROWTH FUND 7,500,000 26 UOB KAY HIAN NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. EXEMPT AN FOR UOB KAY HIAN PTE. LTD. ( A/C CLIENTS ) 6,508,747 27 DB (MALAYSIA) NOMINEE (ASING) SDN. BHD. SSBT FUND ZYEF FOR VANGUARD GLOBAL EX-U.S. REAL ESTATE INDEX FUND 6,492,365 28 CARTABAN NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. STATE STREET LONDON FUND OD75 FOR ISHARES PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY 4,825,300 29 DB (MALAYSIA) NOMINEE (ASING) SDN. BHD. THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON FOR DELAWARE VIP TRUST DELAWARE VIP EMERGING MARKETS SERIES 4,748,132 30 CARTABAN NOMINEES (ASING) SDN. BHD. SSBT FUND J724 FOR SPDR S&P EMERGING MARKETS ETF 4,739,288 Total 3,958,190,801
We also redeemed 123.3 million UEM Sunrise Redeemable Convertible Preference Shares (UEMS RCPS) issued to UEM Group Berhad (UEM Group), our majority shareholder, in October 2015 at a redemption value of RM150 million. The redemption was funded by internally generated funds. The balance 669.2 million UEMS RCPS are expected to be converted into new UEM Sunrise ordinary shares at RM1.60 per UEMS RCPS for one ordinary share. Upon the maturity of the UEMS RCPS in October 2020, UEM Group’s shareholding in UEM Sunrise will increase to a potential 69.6%.
Areca Capital Sdn Bhd CEO Danny Wong concurs that the local stock market remains intact, and does not foresee a huge correction. “Other than the technology and glove stocks, the market has not run up a lot. Right now, investors are looking forward to 3Q corporate results and measures from the upcoming Budget 2021.”
OTHERS ISSUANCE OF RM350.0 MILLION ISLAMIC MEDIUM TERM NOTES ("IMTN") PURSUANT TO AN ISLAMIC MEDIUM TERM NOTES PROGRAMME ("IMTN PROGRAMME"), WHICH TOGETHER WITH AN ISLAMIC COMMERCIAL PAPER PROGRAMME ("ICP PROGRAMME") SHALL HAVE AN AGGREGATE NOMINAL VALUE OF UP TO RM2.0 BILLION (WITH A SUB-LIMIT OF RM500.0 MILLION IN NOMINAL VALUE FOR THE ICP PROGRAMME) UNDER THE SHARIAH PRINCIPLE OF MURABAHAH (VIA A TAWARRUQ ARRANGEMENT)
UEM SUNRISE BERHAD
Type Announcement Subject OTHERS Description ISSUANCE OF RM350.0 MILLION ISLAMIC MEDIUM TERM NOTES ("IMTN") PURSUANT TO AN ISLAMIC MEDIUM TERM NOTES PROGRAMME ("IMTN PROGRAMME"), WHICH TOGETHER WITH AN ISLAMIC COMMERCIAL PAPER PROGRAMME ("ICP PROGRAMME") SHALL HAVE AN AGGREGATE NOMINAL VALUE OF UP TO RM2.0 BILLION (WITH A SUB-LIMIT OF RM500.0 MILLION IN NOMINAL VALUE FOR THE ICP PROGRAMME) UNDER THE SHARIAH PRINCIPLE OF MURABAHAH (VIA A TAWARRUQ ARRANGEMENT) UEM Sunrise Berhad (“UEMS”) wishes to announce that it has successfully completed its issuance of RM350.0 million in nominal value of IMTN under the IMTN Programme established in 2012.
The IMTN has a tenure of 3 years and will mature on 21 September 2023. The proceeds from the IMTN will be utilised for UEMS’ Shariah-compliant general corporate purposes.
owned by khazanah, no issue with financing. 5148 UEMS UEM SUNRISE BERHADOTHERSOTHERS ISSUANCE OF RM350.0 MILLION ISLAMIC MEDIUM TERM NOTES ("IMTN") PURSUANT TO AN ISLAMIC MEDIUM TERM NOTES PROGRAMME ("IMTN PROGRAMME"), WHICH TOGETHER WITH AN ISLAMIC COMMERCIAL PAPER PROGRAMME ("ICP PROGRAMME") SHALL HAVE AN AGGREGATE NOMINAL VALUE OF UP TO RM2.0 BILLION (WITH A SUB-LIMIT OF RM500.0 MILLION IN NOMINAL VALUE FOR THE ICP PROGRAMME) UNDER THE SHARIAH PRINCIPLE OF MURABAHAH (VIA A TAWARRUQ ARRANGEMENT) You are advised to read the entire contents of the announcement or attachment. To read the entire contents of the announcement or attachment, please access the Bursa website at http://www.bursamalaysia.com
UEM Sunrise Bhd achieved more than RM400.0m in sales and bookings in less than two months after the launch of its ‘The Happy Chase’ campaign, which will run until 31st May 2021. The campaign is the group’s response to the enhancement of the Government’s reintroduction of the Home Ownership Campaign as part of the Short-Term Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana) following the Movement Control Order to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. (The Edge)
Location and address of property Brief description and existing use Area (sq meters) Tenure and year of expiry Age of building (years) Net book value as at 31/12/2019 RM’000 Date of revaluation/ acquisition Iskandar Puteri (fka Bandar Nusajaya) Iskandar Development Region Johor Darul Takzim Land held for property development and development in progress 20,351,272 Freehold - 2,344,627 1995 HSD 64677 PTD 108319 & HSD 64682 PTD 108325 GM 1408, Lot 1033 GM 1410, Lot 1080 Mukim Senai District of Kulai Johor Darul Takzim Land held for property development 10,116,200 Freehold - 901,031 6-Oct-15 PTD 26684-26689 26691-22693 Mukim Batu Daerah Kuala Lumpur Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur Land held for property development 269,237 Leasehold expiring on 29-Dec-2112 - 770,775 02-Apr-19 PTD 43305-43350, 43361-43437 44290-44505, 44520, 44533 Mukim Semenyih Daerah Ulu Langat Selangor Darul Ehsan Land held for property development 1,269,223 Freehold - 392,076 29-Sep-11 Solaris Dutamas 1 Jalan Dutamas 1 50480 Kuala Lumpur Building - Retail and Carpark 150,187 Freehold 9 391,100 25-Jul-11* GM 4733 Lot 149 Seksyen 58 Bandar of Kuala Lumpur Daerah Kuala Lumpur Land held for property development 6,434 Freehold - 324,221 4-Jun-11* Arcoris GM 9305 Lot 80199 Mukim Batu Daerah Kuala Lumpur Hotel, Retail and Carpark 66,397 Freehold 2 (Hotel), 3 (Retail and Carpark) 313,647 20-Mar-12 PN 102216 Lot 93720 Mukim Petaling Daerah Petaling Selangor Darul Ehsan Land held for property development 77,864 Leasehold expiring on 18-Sep-2093 - 119,269 03-Feb-18 PN 9988 Lot 1108 Pekan Kajang Daerah Ulu Langat Selangor Darul Ehsan Land held for property development 136,205 99 years lease expiring on 22-Dec-2090 - 99,663 14-Jun-11* PN 9989 Lot 1109 Pekan Kajang Daerah Ulu Langat Selangor Darul Ehsan Land held for property development 98,329 99 years lease expiring on 22-Oct-2090 - 63,041 14-Jun-11* PTD 4936-4955 and 7905 Mukim of Batang Padang Daerah Batang Padang Perak Darul Ridzuan Agriculture land 9,710,241 Leasehold expiring on 18-Aug-2109 - 76,192 19-Aug-10 Aurora Retail 224-252 La Trobe Street Melbourne, Australia Building - Retail 2,123 Freehold 2 88,574 24-Aug-18 * Revaluation date
tak pasti, kurangkan pegangan saham ataupun penswastaan.UEM Sunrise Bhd may be on the list of companies that Khazanah Nasional Bhd plans to pare down shareholding in.
uems is very rich in land too :) Lagenda also acquired 623 acres of land from UEM Sunrise Bhd located just next to the 229.73-acre land in Tapah last month. Altogether, Lagenda will have a combined total development area of 853 acres.
help to boost property sale here :) SHANGHAI -- Chinese companies are leading the charge in the recovery of Asian corporate earnings, accelerating the shift in the center of global economic power from the West to Asia.
During their most recent quarters, Chinese enterprises grew net profit by 43% from a year earlier, based on results from 201 top-performing, nonfinancial Asian companies. The number outpaces the overall Asian average of 34%.
China's companies have thrived recently for two reasons. The coronavirus pandemic seems to have accelerated the country's industrial transformation, putting its tech giants on top. The economic stimulus agenda rolled out by Beijing also appears to have been effective. Businesses involved in infrastructure projects have staged a dramatic comeback.
Chinese corporations account for 129 out of the 201 best-performing Asian businesses, accounting for about two-thirds of the total.
Sitting at the top of the list is China's biggest e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding, which boasted a net quarterly profit of $6.71 billion. Chief rival, chat app and game developer Tencent Holdings, also led the pack, reporting earnings of $4.67 billion.
In a display of the company's reach, Tencent's world championship esport tournament at a Beijing gymnasium on Aug. 16, which featured the multiplayer battle-arena game Honor of Kings, drew roughly 570 million online viewers.
Tencent Holdings has seen revenue from online gaming swell by 40%. (Photo by Yusho Cho)
Mobile games, such as Honor of Kings, have seen demand spike as consumers shelter at home during the pandemic. For the second quarter ended June, Tencent's online gaming revenue jumped 40% on the year to 38.2 billion yuan ($5.6 billion).
Smartphone game developer NetEase also reported a 40% rise in its bottom line during the second quarter.
Chinese tech companies earned an aggregate net income of $56.8 billion last quarter, well above the $39.7 billion from a year earlier. Alibaba and Tencent combined turned in $11.3 billion. Those two companies alone earned more than what was generated at 21 leading South Korean companies ($8.9 billion) or 18 top Taiwanese corporations ($8 billion).
The recovery also extends to parts of China's manufacturing industry. Shanghai-based SAIC Motor reported a 27% bounce in net profit for the second quarter. Automobile sales in June outperformed the year earlier number as buyers who balked at car purchases earlier in the year returned to the market.
Construction equipment maker Sany Heavy Industry saw its bottom line swell 70%. State-owned contractors like China State Construction Engineering Corp. and China Railway Construction Corp. grew net income as well.
China was able to contain the spread of the coronavirus and restart economic activity earlier than other countries. The government also extended subsidies and expanded infrastructure investment to accelerate the recovery.

President Xi Jinping's administration front-loaded local government bond issuances and provided funding for public works projects, measures that boosted corporate earnings.
The Asian profit ranking is based on QUICK FactSet data covering 44,000 listed companies worldwide. It compares Asian nonfinancial companies that appear in a roster of 1,000 leading global enterprises. Net incomes from the three-month periods ending May, June and July have been converted into dollars.
Out of 1,000 global corporations that lead in net profit, nearly 730 are nonfinancial. Among that contingent, China and the rest of Asia make up 21%, a share up almost 4 points from a year earlier.
As Asia's presence in the global economy grows, China under Xi continues to stand defiant in friction with the U.S. The shrinking economic gap between the two countries appears to be fueling Beijing's confidence.
RHB Research sees an earnings recovery for the company in the second half of this year on the back of a potential pick-up in billings and property sales boosted by the government’s Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) 2020
PETALING JAYA: Analysts remain bullish on UEM SUNRISE BHD’s long-term outlook although some have lowered their earnings estimate on the property developer.
RHB Research sees an earnings recovery for the company in the second half of this year on the back of a potential pick-up in billings and property sales boosted by the government’s Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) 2020.
“In view of the weak first quarter (Q1) earnings, we cut our FY20-22 earnings forecast by 8%-15%. While we expect second-quarter earnings to also be disappointing, the second half of the year should see some recovery as billings pick up, ” it said in a report yesterday.
Meanwhile, CGS-CIMB Research maintained an “add” call on UEM Sunrise shares with a target price of 59 sen, which is 0.4 times of its FY21 price-to-book value (P/BV).
“We remain positive on UEM Sunrise due to its attractive valuation (0.3 times FY21 P/BV, lower than its peer average of 0.4 times) and improving balance sheet with the completion of the Australia projects and financing having been fully settled, despite weaker earnings in FY20F due to lumpy revenue recognition of its Australia projects in FY19, ” said CGS-CIMB Research.
Last week, UEM Sunrise said its earlier sales and gross development value (GDV) targets of RM2bil for this year could be impacted by the uncertainties in the economy.
The group posted a net loss of RM21.94mil for the first quarter ended March 31,2020, from a net profit of RM30.1mil in the same period last year.
It posted lower revenue of RM195.85mil compared with RM419.26mil a year ago as the ongoing construction works were at the early stages of progress.
CGS-CIMB said UEM Sunrise key projects lined up for the second half of this year include Allevia Mont’ Kiara (GDV RM542mil) and Senadi Hills Iskandar Puteri (GDV RM399mil).
“We view the RM2bil new sales target as too ambitious despite the positive measures announced under the Short-term Economic Recovery Plan amid an expected gross domestic product contraction and higher unemployment, ” it said
Meanwhile, UOB Kay Hian Research said that UEM Sunrise has unbilled sales to sustain earnings for next 1-1.5 years.
The group’s unbilled sales as of end-1Q20 stood at RM1.8bil.
“Despite the weak sentiment in the property market, we reckon the announced incentives for the property sector like the reintroduction of HOC, removal of real property gain tax and loan to value of 70% would be able to generate new sales for UEM Sunrise’s property sales.
“Also, UEM Sunrise guided that it will be reviewing the pricing of its property projects to ensure the pricing of its products is competitive with surrounding competitors, ” UOB Kay Hian said.
The research house foresees UEM Sunrise’s second-quarter results to soften due to the absence of domestic billings amid the movement control order.
Nonetheless, it expects gradual recovery in the second half of the year onward as UEM Sunrise is expected to gradually recognise the progress billings of its unbilled sales, deliver its Australian property (unbilled: RM500mil) and gradual improvement property sales boosted by the HOC 2020.
Uems will be a strong beneficiary of KL – Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) Project.
UEMS is the master developer of Gerbang Nusajaya which hosts Iskandar Puteri HSR station. Gerbang Nusajaya commands a gross development value (GDV) of RM42 billion.
Recent land disposals in Iskandar would allow the group to monetise its vast land bank in Iskandar Johor and redeploy the capital either to pare down its debt or invest in new land bank. This would result in positive earnings in the upcoming quarterly reports.
@ jackson88...to trap more ikan bilis... mgmt tak pandai buat bisnes, tapi pandai main dilaut makan ikan bilis...bukan pancing yo... dia pakai pukal... sekali hangus...
This book is the result of the author's many years of experience and observation throughout his 26 years in the stockbroking industry. It was written for general public to learn to invest based on facts and not on fantasies or hearsay....
Good123
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Posted by Good123 > 2020-09-17 10:53 | Report Abuse
Fed pledges to keep rates low until it achieves maximum employment
Updated 09:08, 17-Sep-2020
CGTN

The Federal Reserve building in Washington, D.C., U.S. /VCG
The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at the record-low level of near zero and signaled to maintain this target range until at least 2023.
The recovery has progressed more quickly than generally expected, but overall activity remains well below its level before the pandemic and the path ahead remains highly uncertain, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said at a virtual news conference Wednesday afternoon, after the Fed's two-day policy meeting.
The central bank chief noted roughly half of the 22 million jobs that were lost in March and April have been regained as many people returned to work, and unemployment rate remained elevated at 8.4 percent as of August. He added that the level of unemployment is probably 3 percent higher than the official data, considering those people who are misidentified as employed and the declined labor force participation.
Looking ahead, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed's policy setting body, projected the unemployment rates to continue to decline, according to the latest economic projections.
The median projection for unemployment rate is 7.6 percent at the end of this year, and 4 percent by the end of 2023. It's still above the historically low of 3.5 percent the country experienced before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Inflation, meanwhile, is expected to reach 1.2 percent by the end of this year, and will gradually pick up before reaching two percent by the end of 2023.
The central bank also noted that the path of the economy will depend significantly on the course of the virus.
"The ongoing public health crisis will continue to weigh on economic activity, employment, and inflation in the near term, and poses considerable risks to the economic outlook over the medium term," the Fed said in its latest FOMC statement.
In light of these assessments, the FOMC decided to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 0.25 percent, a level which hasn't been unchanged since March.
The committee expects it will be appropriate to maintain this target range until labor market conditions have reached levels consistent with the Committee's assessments of maximum employment and inflation has risen to two percent and is on track to moderately exceed 2 percent for some time, according to the statement.
When asked to explain the specifics about inflation overshooting, Powell told reporters that "we're resisting the urge to try to create some sort of a rule or a formula here."
"We want to achieve inflation that averages two percent over time," said the Fed chairman. "And if we do that, inflation expectations will be right at two percent and that will help us achieve two percent inflation over time and avoid the situation where the central bank loses its ability to support the economy."
Powell also noted that more fiscal support is likely to be needed to support economic recovery, as unemployment rate remains high, numerous small businesses are struggling, and state and local governments are in dire financial situation.
"It will take a while to get back to the levels of economic activity and employment that prevailed at the beginning of this year, and it may take continued support from both monetary and fiscal policy to achieve that," he said.
Source(s): Xinhua News Agency