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-- 28.410 MY Morning Wrap | MAHB Confirms Getting Privatisation Offer from Consortium Led by Khazanah
Good morning mooers! Here are things you need to know about today's market:
●S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow Jones reach new record highs
●Malaysia overtakes Thailand as Southeast Asia's second-largest car market
●Employment positions in Malaysia reach 6-year high with 1.5% annual growth in Q1
●Stocks to watch: MAHB, Axiata, MyEG
-moomoo News MY
Wall Street Summary
The S&P 500 broke 5,300 and joined the Nasdaq and Dow Jones in ending the day at new record highs after the CPI print. The $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ traded up 1.17% past an all-time high just after 4 PM EST, while the $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ opened at an all-time high and climbed 1.40% to close at 16,742.39. The $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ reached a record close of 39,908.07, up 0.88%. However, meme stocks have pulled back after a two-day rush.
Breaking News
Malaysia overtakes Thailand as Southeast Asia's second-largest car market
As of the first quarter of 2024, Malaysia's car sales have surpassed Thailand's for three consecutive quarters, making it Southeast Asia's second-largest car market after Indonesia, according to a report from Nikkei Asia. Malaysia's performance has made it a major battleground for Asian car manufacturers. Data shows that Malaysia has overtaken Thailand in terms of car sales, ranking third in the ASEAN-5 countries, after Indonesia and the Philippines. In the first quarter of this year, Malaysian car sales grew by 5% to 202,245 vehicles, while sales increased by 11% to a record-breaking 799,731 vehicles last year, mainly driven by the Perodua and Proton brands. In contrast, Thailand's sales have declined by 25% year-on-year, mainly due to an increase in non-performing loans and stagnant consumer interest.
Employment positions in Malaysia reach 6-year high with 1.5% annual growth in Q1
According to data from Malaysia's statistics department, the number of employment positions in the first quarter of this year reached a record high of 8.94 million, a 1.5% increase from 8.81 million in the same period last year. Dato' Sri Mohd Uzir Mahidin, chief statistician of the department, stated that the increase in employment positions indicates that domestic labor demand is expected to be more encouraging this year, as external demand and investment increase, which aligns with the forecast of Malaysia's economy growing from 4% to 5%.
In terms of employment positions by economic activity, the number of employment positions filled has increased from 8.61 million in Q1 last year to 8.75 million in Q1 this year, a 1.5% annual increase. The number of job vacancies in Q1 this year decreased slightly by 0.4% to 191,900 from 192,600 in Q1 last year. The agriculture sector recorded the highest growth at 4%, followed by the service sector at 1.8% and the manufacturing sector at 1.1%. The semi-skilled group accounted for the largest proportion of employment positions at 62.7%, followed by skilled positions at 25.1% and low-skilled positions at 12.2%. In Q1 this year, 32,100 employment positions were created, a 1.3% increase from 31,700 in Q1 last year.
Stocks to Watch
$AIRPORT(Delisted) (5014.MY)$: Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (KL:AIRPORT) has confirmed that it has received a takeover offer from a consortium led by its major shareholder Khazanah Nasional Bhd and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), in a deal worth over RM12 billion. The consortium, known as Gateway Development Alliance Sdn Bhd, also includes New York-based Global Infrastructure Partners and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. The consortium is offering RM11 per share to acquire all the remaining 1.12 billion MAHB shares not already held by them, representing approximately a 58.78% stake in the company.
$AXIATA (6888.MY)$: Axiata Group Bhd (KL:AXIATA), Malaysia's largest mobile telecommunications company by revenue, has signed a non-binding agreement with conglomerate Sinar Mas to explore merging their Indonesian units. The proposed merger between Axiata's XL and Sinar Mas' Smartfren is in the early stages of evaluation, according to an exchange filing by Axiata. The company added that both Axiata and Sinar Mas intend to remain as joint controlling shareholders of the merged entity.
$MYEG (0138.MY)$: The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has sold 21 million shares of e-government services provider MyEG Services Bhd (KL:MYEG), causing the EPF to cease being a substantial shareholder of the company. MyEG announced the transaction in a bourse filing, stating that it was carried out on May 10. The value of the transaction was not disclosed, but based on MyEG's closing price of 98.5 sen on May 10, the block of shares was estimated to be worth RM20.69 million. In an earlier filing on Tuesday, MyEG stated that the EPF was holding a total of 394.07 million shares in the company, which represented a 5.283% stake.
$MITRA (9571.MY)$: Construction and property developer Mitrajaya Holdings Bhd (KL:MITRA) has won a contract worth RM174.3 million to build a hospital in Shah Alam. The group's wholly-owned subsidiary, Pembinaan Mitrajaya Sdn Bhd, has accepted the contract from Avisena Healthcare Sdn Bhd. The contract is expected to be completed in 36 months, by May 21, 2027. Mitrajaya Holdings, which has been loss-making for three consecutive quarters, will undertake the construction of the hospital as part of its efforts to improve its financial performance.
$EUPE (6815.MY)$: Property developer Eupe Corp Bhd (KL:EUPE) is set to acquire a 2.46-acre (one-hectare) freehold land in Malaysia for RM69.18 million, on which it plans to develop a high-rise residential project. The group's indirect wholly owned subsidiary, Eupe Bangsar Sdn Bhd, has signed a sale and purchase agreement with MCL Land (Pantai View) Sdn Bhd for the proposed acquisition. Eupe Corp expects the development of the high-rise residential project on the land to positively contribute to its future revenue stream and profitability.
$HUMEIND (5000.MY)$: Hume Cement Industries Bhd (KL:HUMEIND) has reported another record net profit for its third quarter ended March 31, 2024 (3QFY2024) due to lower manufacturing costs, and higher cement price and sales volume. The company's net profit for the quarter more than doubled to RM61.07 million from RM27.01 million in the same period a year earlier, while revenue increased by 7.4% to RM310.4 million from RM289 million, according to a filing with the local bourse. Hume Cement declared a second interim dividend of six sen per share, bringing the total dividend year to date to eight sen per share. The group did not declare any dividend for FY2023.
$AHEALTH (7090.MY)$: Pharmaceutical company Apex Healthcare Bhd (KL:AHEALTH) has reported a 12.7% decline in net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, primarily due to the absence of profit contribution from its associate Straits Apex Group Sdn Bhd (SAG). This resulted from SAG's divestment of its interest in Straits Apex Sdn Bhd, which lowered Apex Healthcare's effective equity in Straits Apex to 16%. The company's net profit for the quarter fell to RM21.2 million or 2.97 sen per share, down from RM24.3 million or 3.41 sen per share in the same period a year earlier. Although quarterly revenue rose marginally by 1% to RM248.2 million from RM245.8 million, market demand for pharmaceuticals, consumer healthcare products, and medical devices showed signs of slowing in key markets of the group.
$AEON (6599.MY)$: Department store and mall operator AEON Co (M) Bhd (KL:AEON) has reported a 50.3% jump in net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, compared to the same period a year earlier, due to higher revenue and effective cost management. The company's net profit for the quarter climbed to RM57.39 million or 4.1 sen per share from RM38.18 million or 2.72 sen per share in the same period last year. Its revenue also rose by 5.47% to RM1.17 billion from RM1.11 billion.
$VSTECS (5162.MY)$: Vstecs Bhd (KL:VSTECS), an information and communications technology (ICT) products distributor, has reported a 3.54% decline in net profit for the first quarter, dropping to RM14.32 million from RM14.85 million in the same period a year earlier. The decline was attributed to higher operating expenses. The company's revenue for the quarter also dropped by 7.28% to RM616.36 million from RM664.74 million in 1QFY2023, which was attributed to a lack of project deals from its enterprise systems segment amid the festive seasons.
$KOBAY (6971.MY)$: Kobay Technology Bhd (KL: KOBAY) has reported a 30.77% decline in net profit for the third quarter ended March 31, 2024, to RM5.48 million, down from RM7.92 million in the same period a year earlier, due to lower contributions from property development after completing a project in Langkawi. The precision parts manufacturer also posted a 19.23% decline in revenue to RM87.79 million from RM73.63 million previously, according to a filing with the local bourse. No dividends were declared for the quarter under review.
$SSTEEL (5665.MY)$: Southern Steel Bhd (KL:SSTEEL), controlled by tycoon Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan, has reported a net loss of RM6.43 million in the third quarter ended March 31, 2024 (3QFY2024), its fourth consecutive quarter net loss, due to lower average selling prices (ASP) and sales volume. This marks a contrast to its net profit of RM1.66 million or 0.28 sen per share in the same period last year. The company's revenue for the quarter also declined by 15.4% to RM551.66 million from RM652.06 million previously.
Source: Dow Jones Newswires, Bursa Malaysia, The Malaysian Reserve, The Star, The EDGE
Disclaimer: Moomoo Technologies Inc. is providing this content for information and educational use only.
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