MAS- AirAsia share swap scrapped

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): The RM1.1 billion share-swap deal involving beleaguered MALAYSIAN AIRLINE SYSTEM BHD [] (MAS) and AIRASIA BHD [] has been called off, according to filings to Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd on Wednesday.

Shares in both MAS and AirAsia were suspended from trading on Wednesday ahead of the announcement.

In separate announcements, the two airlines said they had entered into a Supplemental Agreement to vary the terms and scope of the original collaboration agreement inked last August.

The share-swap last August saw AirAsia’s Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and his partner Datuk Kamarudin Meranun taking up a 20.5% interest in MAS and two board positions, in exchange for Khazanah owning a 10% stake in the regional budget airline.

The airlines said on Wednesday that pursuant to the Supplemental Agreement, they had separately entered into memorandums of understanding (MoU) in respect of firstly, to jointly explore the setting up of the joint-venture company by MAS, AirAsia and AAX to provide aircraft component maintenance support and repair services.

Secondly, the MoU was to establish the broad set of business principles for the establishment of a special purpose vehicle (SPV) by MAS, AirAsia and AAX to improve value for money and increase competitiveness and benefits to customers through procurement synergies by outsourcing to the SPV the procurement processes for identified goods and services in agreed categories.



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Opcom clinches RM82 million variation order from Telekom

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2) : OPCOM HOLDINGS BHD [], a fibre-optic cable manufacturer, has secured an RM82 million variation order to an existing RM359 million contract with TELEKOM MALAYSIA BHD [].

In a statement to the exchange, Opcom said it had secured the RM359 million fiber-to-the-home contract from Telekom in April 2009. Opcom had in May 2011 secured a two-year extension for the project till April 19, 2013.

“The variation order is expected to contribute positively towards Opcom's group earnings and net assets for the remaining period of the contract which is expiring on April 19, 2013.

“The risk factors which may affect the variation order include but not limited to ordinary business risks, competition risks, operation risks, economic risks and regulatory risks,” it said.



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HLS Corp now a PN17 company

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Hock Lok Siew Corporation Bhd said on Wednesday that it has been designated a Practice Note 17 company after triggering the prescribed criterias of the Listing Rules.

The company said that on April 4 this year, Malayan Banking Berhad's (MBB) claim of about RM18million against the company based on the corporate guarantees provided by the company has been allowed and that it had proceeded to file a notice of appeal to the Court of Appeal against that decision and an application for stay of execution of the judgement sum by MBB.

HLS said its external auditors had provided a matter of emphasis on the audited financial statements of the dompany for the year ended Dec 31, 2011 highlighting the negative shareholders' equity position of the Group and of the Company of RM8.12 million and RM14.14 million respectively.

“Consequently, the Company has triggered the Prescribed Criterias 2.1(a) and (e) of PN17 of the Main Market LR,” it said.



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Daya Materials unit gets RM270 million mixed development job in KL

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): DAYA MATERIALS BHD []’s unit Daya CMT Sdn Bhd has secured a CONSTRUCTION [] contract worth RM270 million from Yuk Tung Corporation Sdn Bhd.

Daya said on Wednesday that Daya CMT had been awarded the contract as the principal sub-contractor for the development comprising 3-Blocks of 28-Storey mixed development consisting soho units, office lots, podium car park and basement car park at Jalan Sungai Besi in Kuala Lumpur.



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Heitech secures RM15 million NRD job

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2) : HEITECH PADU BHD [], an information and communication TECHNOLOGY [] specialist, has secured a RM15.2 million job from the national registration department.

Heitech told the exchange that it has accepted the letter of award for the wide area network maintenance services extension which is a one-year job starting from July 1 this year to June 30 next year.

“The letter of award will have a positive effect on the earnings per share. Nevertheless, the contract will have no material effect to the dividend policy, gearing, share capital and the substantial shareholders’ shareholdings of the company for the financial year ending December 31, 2012,” Heitech said.

The firm said any further extension to the duration of the project is at the discretion of the government.



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Century Software 1Q net profit up 4.1% to RM2.03 million

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2); Century Software Holdings Bhd net profit forthe first quarter ended March 31, 2012 rose 4.1% to RM2.03 million from RM1.95 million a year earlier due mainly to higher level of maintenance income secured in relation to the financial management solutions (FMS) division.

The company said on Wednesday that revenue for the quarter rose 11.37% to RM8.52 million from RM7.65 million in 2011.

Earnings per share fell to 0.59 sen from 1.13 sen previously, while net assets per share was 16 sen.

On its prospects, Century Software said it was confident of achieving better performance for the financial year ending 31 December 2012 based on the market developments and market trends impacting the Group’s business divisions.

It said the recent award of new contracts by Pertubuhan Keselamatan Sosial (SOCSO) and Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri (LHDN) for a total contract value of RM39. 12 million to FMS would would provide a strong revenue traction for stable growth and sustainable profits.

“Payment Aggregate Solutions division (PAS) – this division has been streamlined to focus on the financial institution’s growing needs for e-transactions going forward.

“Wealth Management Solutions division (WMS) – active tendering of contracts for both Indonesian and Malaysian markets for wealth management solutions and banking services are being initiated, after this division successfully secured its maiden project in Malaysia for RM130,146.30 on Jan 10, 2012,’ it said.



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Unisem posts net loss RM13.52m in 1Q

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2: UNISEM (M) BHD [] posted net loss RM13.52 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012 compared with net profit RM5.09 million a year earlier.

It said on Wednesday that revenue for the quarter fell to RM256.61 million from RM291.97 million in 2011.

Unisem attributed the declines in its revenue and profit to reduced sales volume, a one-time retrenchment costs of RM5.7 million arising from a efficiency/redundancy exercise at PT Unisem and higher depreciation charges.

Loss per share was 2.01 sen compared to earnings per share of 0.75 sen previously.

Net assets per share was RM1.56.

On its outlook, Unisem said it expects its revenue and earnings in the second quarter to improve from that achieved in the first quarter and to continue to improve to the end of the financial year.



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KLCI rises 0.7% on positive external factors

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): The FBM KLCI rose more than 0.7% on Wednesday, advancing in line with the firm gains at key regional markets following positive data coming out from the US.

Asian shares rose and the dollar recovered against the yen on Wednesday after strong U.S. factory activity data raised hopes that the world's biggest economy remained on a recovery track while growth in Asian manufacturing improved broader sentiment, according to Reuters.

European shares were expected to open mixed, with most exchanges reopening after the May Day holiday on Tuesday. Financial spreadbetters predicted that major European markets, it said.

The FBM KLCI rose 0.75% to close 11.78 points higher at 1,582.39 on Wednesday, lifted by gains including at Genting-related counters.

Gainers beat losers by 458 to 281, while 288 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 1.33 billion shares valued at RM1.43 billion.

At the regional markets, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.76% to 2,438.44, Hong Kong’ Hang Seng Index added 1.02% to 21,309.08, Taiwan’s Taiex Jumped 2.33% to 7,676.81, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.86% to 1,999.07, Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.31% to 9,380.25 and Singapore’s Straits Times Index rose

On Bursa Malaysia, Genting was the top gainer and rose 32 sen to RM10.66, Aeon Credit added 30 sen to RM11, Aeon was up 29 sen to RM9.80, Orient 25 sen to RM6.67, Takaful 21 sen to RM4.17, Metrod,Tasek and Genting PLANTATION []s added 20 sen each to RM2, RM8.87 and RM9.60 respectively, Cybertowers 19. 5 sen to RM1.16 while Lafarge Malayan Cement was up 19 sen to RM7.38.

Naim Indah Corp was the most actively traded counter with 84.41 million shares done. The stock was up six sen to 51.5 sen.

Other actives included Utopia, Ariantec, Metronic, Astral Supreme, BIMB, AWC and Hubline.

Decliners included BAT, Shell, BLD Plantations, Y&G, Top Glove, Cepco, Milux MISC and JT International.



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Bursa queries Cybertowers

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd has queried CYBERTOWERS BHD [] over the unusual market activity relating to its securities.

In a circular issued on Wednesday, it queried the company due to the sharp rise in price and high volume in the company's shares.

Cybertowers closed 19.5 sen higher at RM1.16 on Wednesday with 9.69 million shares done.



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Public Mutual declares distribution for three funds

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Public Bank’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Public Mutual, declared distributions for three funds.

In a statement Wednesday, Public Mutual said the total gross distributions were declared for the financial year ending 30 April 2012.

It declared gross distribution of 1.25 sen per unit for the Public Far-East Telco & Infrastructure Fund, two sen per unit of Public Islamic Dividend Fund and 0.40 sen per unit for Public Islamic Asia Dividend Fund.

The fund manager said Public Far-East Telco & Infrastructure Fund sought to achieve capital growth over the medium-to long-term period by investing in securities, mainly equities, in the telecommunications, infrastructure and utilities sectors in Far-East markets.

Meanwhile, it said Public Islamic Dividend Fund, which was open for EPF Members Investment Scheme sought to provide income by investing in a portfolio of stocks that complies with Shariah requirements and which offer or have the potential to offer attractive dividend yields.

It said the Public Islamic Asia Dividend Fund aims to provide income by investing in a portfolio of stocks in domestic and regional markets that complies with Shariah requirements and which offer or have the potential to offer attractive dividend yields.

“All of the above funds are distributed by Public Mutual unit trust consultants,” it said.

Public Mutual said it was Malaysia’s largest private unit trust company with 93 funds under management.

It has 2.7 million accountholders and as at 30 March 2012, the total net asset value of the funds managed by the Company was RM47.4 billion, said the fund manager.



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Menang Corp edges up after 51%-owned subsidiary gets UiTM concession from MoE

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): MENANG CORPORATION (M) BHD [] shares edged up on Wednesday after its 51%-owned subsidiary, Rumpun Positif Sdn Bhd (RPSB) has secured a 23-year concession from the ministry of education to for the Puncak Alam UiTM campus in Selangor.

At 3pm, Menang was up one sen to 25 sen with 138.300 shares done.

In a filing Wednesday, Menang Corp said the project was a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) basis project under the concept of “Build-Lease-Maintain-Transfer”.

It said RPSB would build the proposed UiTM Campus at Puncak Alam, Selangor over 3 years.

“Upon completion of the building, the Campus will be leased to the Government/UiTM for a period of 20 years.

“During the lease period of 20 years, RPSB will also be maintaining the Facilities and Infrastructure of the Campus. The Concession Period of the Project is therefore 23 years,” it said.

Menang Corp said the total CONSTRUCTION [] cost of the Campus was about RM260 million.

The company said RPSB would receive availability charges of approximately RM3.32 million monthly in arrears for the Project from UiTM over the lease period of 20 years after completion of the construction of the Facilities & Infrastructure.

It would also receive asset management services charges of about RM738,540 monthly in arrears for the provision of the Asset Maintenance Services from UiTM over the lease period of 20 years after completion of the construction of the facilities, it said.



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Ivory warrants up 42-fold, shares deemed undervalued

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2) : Ivory PROPERTIES [] Group Bhd warrants jumped as much as 42-fold on their maiden trading day to be among top gainers across the exchange.

The derivative securities rose 21 sen to 21.5 sen before settling lower at 20 sen at lunch break with some 7.7 million units done. Ivory shares fell one sen to 56 sen.

Ivory had issued 186 million warrants in conjunction with its renounceable rights issue of a similar number of new shares on the basis of one rights unit and warrant for one existing share held in the firm. The five-year warrants which will mature on April 26, 2017, have conversion ratio of 1:1 with a strike price of 75 sen. This means each warrant can be converted into one ordinary share at 75 sen.

Based on the warrants’ price of 20 sen and Ivory share’s price of 56 sen, the warrants command a premium of 70%. The premium indicates the quantum of share price increase needed to equal the combined price of the warrant and its strike price.

The company’s warrants are out of the money as the strike and warrant price combined at 95 sen is higher than the underlying share price of 56 sen,

Analysts said Ivory shares are undervalued. In a note, TA Securities Holdings Bhd said it believes investors have discounted the value of the stock as they failed to recognise the earnings potential from Ivory’s proposed Penang World City mixed development within 102.56 acres at Penang’s Bayan Mutiara enclave.

Ivory is undertaking the project with a potential value of RM10 billion, in collaboration with Dijaya Corp Bhd.

According to TA, Ivory shares are trading at a price-to-earnings ratio (PER) of five times 2012 earnings which is a discount to the research firms’s targeted PER of seven times for small-cap stocks under its coverage.



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Rajang Port Authority eyeing opportunities at Score

SIBU (May 2): The Rajang Port Authority (RPA) is keen to exploit the many opportunities expected to be generated from developments at the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (Score).

General manager Helen Lim Hui Shyan said Score would fuel economic spinoffs in Sarawak's central region areas.

"Business will grow, markets will expand. There will be more activities and hence, more cargo. RPA is blessed to be positioned in a strategic advantage," she said at the port's annual Quality Day dinner here on Tuesday night.

On its own, Lim said, the port's core activity of handling containers had registered very encouraging growth.

"For the past five years, our average increase is six to seven per cent a year. As a riverine port in this region, achieving a total throughput of 88,700 TEUs (20ft equivalanet units) of containers last year in port terms was a "handsome achievement", she said.

Port chairman Vincent Goh Chung Siong said RPA has been been registering favourable and increasing surplus since 2007 despite facing many challenges over the years.

"In 2007, we registered a RM4 million surplus after tax. In the following year, the surplus grew to RM5 million and RM7.3 million in 2009, Ihe surplus swelled to RM8 million in 2010," he said.

Last year, the profit rose to over RM10 million, he said.

Goh said RPA had over the years invested in developing and upgrading facilities at the port and enhancing its position as an efficient and reliable port in Sarawak. "We've now four units of new Straddle Carriers, two units of empty container handlers (to stack up empty containers to five high to maximise space usage) and two additional units of mobile harbour cranes," he said.

In view of the fine financial performance, Goh had the port employees cheering when he announced a one- to two-month bonus for the year 2011. — Bernama



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Menang Corp’s 51%-owned subsidiary gets 23-year UiTM concession from MoE

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): MENANG CORPORATION (M) BHD []’s 51%-owned subsidiary, Rumpun Positif Sdn Bhd (RPSB) has secured a 23-year concession from the ministry of education to for the Puncak Alam UiTM campus in Selangor.

In a filing Wednesday, Menang Corp said the project was a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) basis project under the concept of “Build-Lease-Maintain-Transfer”.

It said RPSB would build the proposed UiTM Campus at Puncak Alam, Selangor over 3 years.

“Upon completion of the building, the Campus will be leased to the Government/UiTM for a period of 20 years.

“During the lease period of 20 years, RPSB will also be maintaining the Facilities and Infrastructure of the Campus. The Concession Period of the Project is therefore 23 years,” it said.

Menang Corp said the total CONSTRUCTION [] cost of the Campus was about RM260 million.

The company said RPSB would receive availability charges of approximately RM3.32 million monthly in arrears for the Project from UiTM over the lease period of 20 years after completion of the construction of the Facilities & Infrastructure.

It would also receive asset management services charges of about RM738,540 monthly in arrears for the provision of the Asset Maintenance Services from UiTM over the lease period of 20 years after completion of the construction of the facilities, it said.



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Syarikat Takaful trades at highest since 1996 IPO

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2) : SYARIKAT TAKAFUL MALAYSIA BHD [] rose as much as 7% to its highest since the Islamic insurer’s initial public offering (IPO) in July 1996 as investors bought the stock before it trades ex-dividend next Monday.

The stock, among top gainers on Wednesday, climbed 29 sen to settle at RM4.25 at lunch break with some 513,000 shares traded. Syarikat Takaful’s IPO about 16 years ago had involved eight million shares at RM2.30 each.

The firm plans to pay a final single-tier dividend of 10% which translates into 10 sen a share for financial year ended December 31, 2011. This brings total gross dividends for the year to 17 sen a share which translates into a 4% yield based on the stock’s latest price.

The final lodgement date for the 10% final single-tier dividend falls on May 9.



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KLCI rises at mid-day break, but struggles to breach 1,580-level

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): the FBM KLCI rose at the mid-day break on Wednesday in line with the gains at its regional peers, but struggled to cross the crucial 1,580-point mark.

The 30-stock index rose 7.79 points to 1,578.40 at the mid-day break.

Gainers led losers by 315 to 243, while 290 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 680.87 million shares valued at RM542.98 million.

The ringgit strengthened 0.23% to 3.0219 versus the US dollar; crude palm oil futures for the third month delivery rose RM1 per tonne to RM3,445, crude oil fell 22 cents per barrel to US$105.94 and gold lost US$3.25 an ounce to US$1,659.18.

Asian shares edged higher and the dollar recovered against the yen on Wednesday after strong U.S. factory activity data raised hopes that the world's biggest economy remained on a recovery track, according to Reuters.

Factory order data released on Wednesday by Asia's key exporters Taiwan and South Korea showed manufacturing activity grew but at a slower pace, while China's HSBC final PMI reading for April came in slightly above last week's flash PMI, it said.

At the regional markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.38% to 9,386.28, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was gained 1.14% 21,335.60, the Shanghai Composite Index was up 1.58% to 2,434.09, Taiwan’s Taiex jumped 2.11% to 7,660.13, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.77% to 1,997.32 and Singapore’s Straits Times Index edged up 0.50% to 2,993.60.

On Bursa Malaysia, Aeon Credit was the top gainer at the mid-dat break and rose 32 sen to RM11.02, Takaful up 29 sen to RM4.25, Orient 25 sen to RM6.67, Aeon 19 sen to RM9.70, Genting 18 sen to RM10.52, Tasek 16 sen to RM8.83, Harrisons 15 sen to RM3.23, Cyber Towers 13.5 sen to RM1.10 and BIMB 12 sen to RM2.66.

Utopia was the most actively traded counter with 59.62 million shares done. The stock was unchanged at 8.5 sen.

Other actives included Hubline, BIMB, Naim Indah Corp, Astral Supreme, AWC, Focus and Ariantec.

Decliners included BAT, Dutch Lady, Y&G, Country View, Cepco, PPB, Top Glove, Milux, Shell and UMS.



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TH Plantations up 1%, trades ex-dividend

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2) : TH PLANTATION []s Bhd rose as much as 1.2% as investors chased the stock which trades ex-dividend on Wednesday. The final lodgement date falls on Friday.

Shares of TH Plantations gained three sen to RM2.62 before trading lower at RM2.61 at 10.24am with some 230,000 shares done.

The firm plans to reward shareholders with a first and final single-tier dividend of 12.5 sen a share for financial year ended December 31, 2011. The dividend translates into a 4.8% yield based on the stock’s latest closing price.

The company said last month net profit fell 40% to RM13.07 million in the first quarter to March 31, 2012 from RM 21.83 million a year earlier due to higher cost of sales and tax expense. Revenue, however, grew 27% to RM95.05 million from RM75.06 million.



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Malaysian stocks gain on US economic data

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2) : Malaysian shares gained on Wednesday morning in tandem with Asian peers following a stronger close across US stock markets in overnight trade.

World markets have reacted positively to better US manufacturing data in April, during which, the growth rate was the strongest in 10 months , according to the Institute for Supply Management.

In technical terms, analysts, however, foresee downside possibilities for Malaysia’s stock benchmark FBM KLCI as the index had failed to close above the 50-day moving average of 1,584 points as of last Monday. As such, it will be interesting to see if the 30-stock FBM KLCI will be able to sustain its gains on Wednesday.

At 9.59am, the gauge added 6.07 points to 1,576.88. Across the exchange, some 269 million shares worth RM161 million were traded, leading to 222 gainers versus 126 decliners.

Top gainers NESTLE (M) BHD [] rose 62 sen to RM55.92 while AEON CREDIT SERVICE (M) BHD [] added 30 sen to RM11.

Among decliners, BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO (M) [] Bhd fell 44 sen to RM55.10, while DUTCH LADY MILK INDUSTRIES BHD [] was down 30 sen to RM33.10.

Among actively-traded stocks, ASTRAL SUPREME BHD [] added one sen to 34 sen with some 14 million shares done.



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Maybank IB Research maintains Hold on BIMB, raises target price to RM2.95

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Maybank Investment Bank Bhd has maintained its Buy rating on BIMB HOLDINGS BHD [] and raised its target price to RM2.95 (from RM2.55) and said higher valuations were warranted for both Bank Islam and Syarikat Takaful (STMB), given their strong underlying fundamentals.

“Pegging on higher P/BV valuations for both companies, our SOP valuation for BIMB Holdings is raised to MYR2.95 from MYR2.55, which implies 16% upside to the current share price.

“Our revised target P/BV multiple for STMB (Not Rated) values the takaful operator at MYR4.75, or 20% upside to its current share price,” it said in a note Wednesday.



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KLCI edges up in early trade in line with regional gains

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): The FBM KLCI edged up in early trade on Wednesday in line with the gains at most key regional markets and the firmer overnight close at Wall Street.

At 9.06am, the FBM KLCI was up 6.14 points to 1,576.75.

Gainer s led losers by 103 to 35, while 75 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 38.81 million shares valued at RM19.39 million.

Asian shares edged higher and the dollar recovered against the yen on Wednesday after strong U.S. factory activity data eased concerns about a loss of momentum in the world's biggest economy, according to Reuters.

Most markets in Asia and Europe were closed on Tuesday to mark the May Day holiday. Japanese financial markets will be closed for public holidays on Thursday and Friday, it said.

U.S. factory activity grew in April at the strongest rate in 10 months, with the Institute for Supply Management's index rising to 54.8 from 53.4 in March, beating forecasts and easing worries the economy had lost momentum at the start of the second quarter, said Reuters.

On Bursa Malaysia, the early gainers included Harissons, BHIC, Tasek, Petronas Gas, MPI, KLK, UMW, Kim Loong and Sarawak PLANTATION []s.

Meanwhile, trading in the securities of Malaysian Arline System Bhd and AIRASIA BHD [] was halted from 9am on Wednesday at the request of the two airlines pending a material announcement.



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MAS, AirAsia share trading to be halted from 9am today

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Trading in the securities of Malaysian Arline System Bhd and AIRASIA BHD [] will be halted from 9am on Wednesday at the request of the two airlines pending a material announcement.

Malaysia Airlines was expected to announce the cancellation of plans for a share swap with budget carrier AirAsia.

For more on this, read today’s edition of the Edge Financial Daily’s report on Boards of Khazanah and Tune Air today will make official their decision to abandon the RM1.1 billion share-swap deal involving MAS and AirAsia.



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Alliance Research downgrades CIMB To Hold, cuts target price to RM7.92

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Alliance Research has downgraded CIMB Group Holdings Bhd to a Hold from Buy and cut it target price for the stock to RM7.92 from RM8.80 previously following a report that that Bank of Indonesia (BOI) was planning to impose new caps on single shareholder stakes in the country's commercial banks as early as next month.

The research house it viewed this development to be potentially negative for CIMB and Maybank, given their majority stakes in the respective Indonesia banks.

At present, CIMB owns 96.9% of CIMB Niaga while Maybank owns 97.5% of Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII).

Therefore, the implementation of this regulation could force these banks to pare down their stakes in respective Indonesian subsidiaries and dampen their earnings prospects, it said in note April 30.

“Among the two domestic banking giants, we expect CIMB to be more severely impacted, given that CIMB Niaga’s significant contribution to the group’s bottomline and to remain its key earnings driver going forward.

“For FY11, CIMB Niaga contributed about 30% of CIMB’s PBT while BII contributed 5% of Maybank’s PBT, respectively,” it said.



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Stocks to watch Kencana, Pantech, Spritzer, KNM, Silver Bird

KUALA LUMPUR (May 1): The FBM KLCI could be range bound when trading resumes on Wednesday after May Day holiday on May 1, given the absence of fresh catalysts.

The FBM KLCI fell some 25.72 points in April, as investor sentiment took a beating given rising external and domestic uncertainties.

Affin Investment Bank Bhd vice president and head of retail research Dr Nazri Khan said he expects the FBM KLCI to trend lower in response to rising solvency risk and borrowing cost in Europe (Spain & Italy) and rising local political uncertainties.

“Despite positive comments from the USA Fed on possible monetary stimulus, a weaker than expected read on April Euro zone sentiment and rising European bond yield seemed to bring struggling European growth and debt concerns back into focus.

Most markets in Asia and Europe were closed on Tuesday to mark the May Day holidays and the Monday close at Wall Street was less then encouraging as The S&P 500 posted its first monthly decline since November on Monday, as stocks slipped in one of the lightest trading days of the year on signs the U.S. economy may be slowing and as a recession in Spain highlighted risks in the euro zone.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 14.68 points, or 0.11 percent, to 13,213.63. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 5.45 points, or 0.39 percent, to 1,397.91. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 22.84 points, or 0.74 percent, to 3,046.36.

Among the stocks that could be in focus on Bursa Malaysia are KENCANA PETROLEUM BHD [], PANTECH GROUP HOLDINGS BHD [], SPRITZER BHD [], KNM GROUP BHD [] and SILVER BIRD GROUP BHD [].

Kencana Petroleum Bhd’s wholly owned subsidiary, Kencana HL Sdn. Bhd. ("Kencana HL") in consortium with Shinryo (M) Sdn Bhd has secured an engineering, procurement, CONSTRUCTION [] and commissioning (“EPCC”) from PETRONAS GAS BHD [].

Kencana said on Monday that the contract was for the EPCC of two cogeneration plants, having combined capacity of 50MW of electrical power and steam capacity of 120 ton per hour.

The company said the portion of the contract value for Kencana HL was estimated at RM35 million.

Pantech Group Holdings Bhd Net profit for the fourth quarter ended Feb 29, 2012 surged 90% to RM10.68 million from RM5.11 million a year earlier, due mainly to an increase in revenue.

The company said on Monday that its revenue for the quarter jumped 76.2% to RM128.45 million from RM72.9 million in 2011 due to improved sales demand from oil and gas sector with the on-going new projects.

Earnings per share rose to 2.37 sen from 1.14 sen, whiel net assets per share was 75 sen.

Pantech proposed a final single tier dividend of 1.3 sen per share 20 sen each amounting to RM5.84 million for the financial year ended Feb 29, 2012, subject to shareholders' approval.

Spritzer Bhd net profit for the third quarter ended Feb 29, 2012 jumped 69.4% to RM3.66 million from RM2.16 million a year earlier, due mainly to higher sales of more profitable carbonated and flavoured drinks and natural mineral water products.

The company said on Monday that its revenue for the quarter rose 33% to RM45.22 million from RM34.09 million in 2011 on higher sales volume.

KNM Group Bhd (KNM) has proposed to undertake a fund raising exercise involving a Rights Issuance of RM200 million.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd on Monday, KNM said the definitive terms for the Rights Issue would be determined by the Board of the Company subject to the advice of the Company’s Corporate Advisors to be appointed in due course.

Silver Bird Group Bhd’s proposed group restructuring scheme is expected to be finalised by the middle of May 2012 said Silver Bird Group’s chairman of audit committee, Richard Azlan Abas after the company’s AGM on Monday.

“The group restructuring plan will include, but not limited to, capital reduction, share consolidation, rights issue and debt restructuring. However, it is still in its preliminary stage and very fluid. We hope to finalise the proposed plan once we get an agreement from the major stakeholders by the middle of May.” he added.

When asked about the amount of rights issue which the company intends to raise for its restructuring plan, Richard said it would amount to RM60 million.



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