KLCI ends lower, but hangs on above 1,590-level

KUALA LUMPUR (April 20): The FBM KLCI extended its losses to close lower on Friday, as external factors weighed on investor sentiment and dragged stocks lower.

The index fell 4.77 points to close at 1,591.85, weighed by losses including at Petronas Chemicals, Genting, RHB Capital and CIMB.

Market breadth was negative with 364 losers, 317 gainers and 361 counters unchanged. Volume was 1.63 billion shares valued at RM1.48 billion.

Meanwhile, Asian shares fell and commodity-linked currencies such as the Australian dollar slipped on Friday after disappointing U.S. economic data stirred doubts about the strength of the recovery, according to Reuters.

Renewed worries on the euro zone debt crisis also kept riskier assets under pressure, as a better-than-feared Spanish bond auction failed to allay concerns that Spain may follow Greece, Ireland and Portugal in needing an international bailout, it said.

A weekend featuring a potentially rocky meeting of the International Monetary Fund, which is seeking to boost its funds to help contain Europe's problems, and the first round of a French presidential election have heightened the nervousness, said Reuters.

At the regional markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.28% to 9,561.23, Taiwan’s taiex lost 1.52% to 7,507.15, South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.26% to 1,974.65 and Singapore’s Straits Times Index xx

Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.19% to 2,406.86 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged up 0.07% to 21,010.64.

On Bursa Malaysia, Aeon fell 19 sen to RM9.41, Manulife and Petronas Chemicals fell 14 sen each to RM3.22 and RM6.56, MISC down 13 sen to RM5.03, Genting and Bursa fell 12 sen each to RM10.80 and RM6.85, while SAM Engineering, Litrak, Lafarge Malayan Cement and Kian Joo fell 10 sen each to RM3.55, RM4, RM7.21 and RM2.04 respectively.

Ariantec was the most actievely traded counter with 436.8 million shares done. The stock rose 4.5 sen to 22 sen.

Other actives included Metronic, Focus, Naim indah Corp, CSL, Astral Supreme, AWC and SuperComNet.

Gainers included BAT, Dutch Lady, Aeon Credit, KLK, Jaya Tiasa, Panasonic, Country View, Carlsberg, CBIP and GAB.



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Bursa down 1%, CIMB cuts TP on flat profit growt

KUALA LUMPUR (April 20) : BURSA MALAYSIA BHD [] shares fell as much as 1% after analysts slashed their target prices for the exchange operator after it reported flat profit growth in the first quarter.

Bursa declined seven sen to RM6.90 before settling higher at RM6.93 at lunch break.

CIMB Investment Bank Bhd analyst Winson Ng wrote in a note that the research firm has slashed its fair value for Bursa by 5% from RM7.65 to RM7.28. “Given our cautious stance on the equity market, we now value Bursa at a 20% discount to its five-year average price-to-earnings ratio (PER) instead of 15%, which reduces our target PER from 25.5 times to 24 times.

“We remain neutral on the stock as it is expected to perform in line with the market,” Ng said.

Bursa said net profit rose 0.7% to RM40.77 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2012 from RM40.49 million a year earlier while revenue fell 4.8% to RM110.52 million from RM116.11 million. Revenue declined due to less trading income from the securities and derivatives market, it said.



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Stocks to Watch Bursa, China Stationery, UMW, CMMT, Naim

KUALA LUMPUR (April 19): Economic and political factors, besides weakening technical indicators, could dictate the direction of Malaysian stocks on Friday, as investors evaluate the impact of global economic data against domestic pre-election sentiment.

Analysts said the on-going European debt crisis and slower growth in China, apart from the anticipation of Malaysia's coming general election, could lead to persistent selling pressure in the FBM KLCI.

The FBM KLCI of 30 stocks erased earlier gains to finish in the red at 1,596.62, down 2.24 points on Thursday.

Stocks to watch on Friday are BURSA MALAYSIA BHD [], China Stationery Ltd, UMW HOLDINGS BHD [], Capitamalls Malaysia Trust (CMMT) and Naim Holdings Bhd.

Bursa posted flat profit growth in the first quarter (1Q), as the stock exchange operator's lower operating expenses mitigated the impact of less revenue during the period. Bursa said its net profit rose 0.7% to RM40.77 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2012 from RM40.49 million a year earlier, while revenue fell 4.8% to RM110.52 million from RM116.11 million.

Regulators have queried China Stationery on the unusual trading patterns of the company's shares. The company said it was not aware of any factors contributing to the rise in the price and volume of the stock. China Stationery also said it had no plans to declare an interim dividend nor undertake a dual listing in Hong Kong.

AmResearch Sdn Bhd had raised its earnings forecast for UMW, an automotive and oil and gas support services entity, by up to 25% for financial years ending Dec 31, 2012 to 2014. AmResearch also revised upwards its target price for the stock by 31% to RM8.90 from RM6.80, and upgraded the shares to a "buy" from "hold".

CMMT's 1Q net profit rose 10% from a year earlier, as the retail-based Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) registered higher revenue, following the inclusion of the East Coast Mall in Kuantan to the group's portfolio. CMMT said net profit came to RM34.44 million against RM31.44 million previously, while revenue was up 36% to RM71.4 million from RM52.68 million.

Real estate developer and builder Naim is diversifying into the healthcare business via a collaboration with KPJ HEALTHCARE BHD []. Both Naim and KPJ will set up a joint venture company on 30% and 70% basis respectively to construct and operate a hospital in Miri, Sarawak.



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CIMB Research maintains Neutral on Bursa, cuts target price to RM7.28

KUALA LUMPUR (April 19); CIMB Research has maintained its Neutral recommendation on BURSA MALAYSIA BHD [] at RM7.03 and cut its target price to RM7.28 (from RM7.65) and said trading activity was likely to weaken,

In a note April 19, the research house said it regarded Bursa’s 1Q12 net profit as being in line even though it came in at 27% of CIM Research’s full-year forecast and consensus numbers.

“1Q equity and derivative income was already down year-on-year.

“Given our cautious stance on the equity market, we now value Bursa at a 20% discount to its 5-year average P/E instead of 15%, which reduces our target P/E from 25.5x to 24x. We remain Neutral on the stock as it is expected perform in line with the market,” it said.



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Bursa posts flat 1Q profit , trading income falls

KUALA LUMPUR (April 19) : BURSA MALAYSIA BHD [] posted flat profit growth in the first quarter as the stock exchange operator’s lower operating expenses mitigated the impact of less revenue during the period.

In a statement on Thursday, Bursa Malaysia said its net profit rose 0.7% to RM40.77 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2012 from RM40.49 million a year earlier while revenue fell 4.8% to RM110.52 million from RM116.11 million.

Bursa said revenue declined due to less trading income from the securities and derivatives market. Looking ahead, the group said it foresees global volatility due to the European sovereign debt woes, slowing growth in China, and rising crude oil prices.

The bourse operator, however, said it expects its earnings to be sustained by the implementation of domestic public projects under the Economic Transformation Programme which is seen as a crucial driver of the local economy.



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KLCI ends 1Q on a high

KUALA LUMPUR (March 30): The FBM KLCI ended the first quarter of 2012 on a high note, in line with the global markets that mostly picked up gains at the end of the quarter.

The 30-stock index rose 10.89 points to closet at 1,596.33 on Friday, lifted by blue chips including banking and Petronas-linked stocks.

The closing was just a tad below its all-time high of 1,597.08 that the index rose to on July 11 last year.

Year-to-date, the index racked up 65.6 points from its December 30 close of 1,530.73. Gainers edged losers by 402 to 360, while 334 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 1.25 billion shares valued at RM2.08 billion.

World stocks rose with Europe up more than half a percent on Friday, picking up gains at the end of the quarter and with investors eyeing a boost to the euro zone's bailout resources that ministers are expected to sign off on later in the day, according to Reuters.

Despite the strong quarter, sentiment across asset classes has turned bearish since mid-March due to fears of a slowdown in growth centred on China, and the conviction that a huge injection of central bank money may only be a panacea for Europe's debt troubles, it said.

At the regional markets, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.47% to 2,272.79, Taiwan’s Taiex added 0.77% to 7,933.00 and Singapore’s straits Times Index gained

Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed 0.31% lower at 10,083.56, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.26% to 20,555.58 while South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.02% to 2,014.04.

Affin Investment Bank Bhd vice president and head of retail research Dr Nazri Khan said that despite pockets of weakness from China market (Shanghai Composite at 10-week low) and soft economic data from the US and Europe, he expects the FBM KLCI to continue market uptrend supported by local liquidity and strong first quarter performance.

“The local market has ample liquidity at the sidelines, accommodative Bank Negara, low interest rates and government commitment for economic project. Plain and simple.

“We also believe the local market will take further cues from a strong USA market,” he said.

He added that there was a fairly reasonable speculative element in the small cap stocks to create some excitement near term (Carotec, Mtronics, Keywest, Focus, Tiger to name a few).

“Though we agree that the local market is overbought and investors may pause after recent sharp gains, we are yet to see any evidence of distribution to suggest serious market wind down in the near term,” he said.

On Bursa Malaysia, KLK was the top gainer and added 46 sen to RM24.60, F&N up 28 sen to RM18.88, Takaful 27 sen to RM3.39, United PLANTATION []s 18 sen to RM24.98, Kossan, Bursa and DiGi added 12 sen each to RM3.35, RM7.38 and RM4.06 respectively.

Among banking stocks, Hong Leong bank gained 24 sen to RM12.62, AMMB 10 sen to RM6.31, CIMB nine sen to RM7.69 and Maybank seven sen to RM8.87.

Among Pertronas-linked stocks, Petronas Dagangan rose 26 sen to RM18.94, Petronas Gas 10 sen to RM16.84 and Petronas Chemicals six sen to RM6.74.

Carotech was the most actively traded counter with 99.63 million shares done.

Other actives included CIMB, Focus, Ariantec, Metronic, YTL, Naim Indah Corp and Key West.

Decliners included Genting, Dutch Lady, sunchirin, Multico, Kulang, Shangri-La, Kulim, Fiamma, Advanced Packaging and TDM.



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Bursa plans trading platform for retail bonds

KUALA LUMPUR (March 29): BURSA MALAYSIA BHD [] plans to introduce a trading platform for retail bonds in the second half of 2012.

CEO Datuk Tajuddin Atan said with that, exchange-traded bonds could be bought through brokers just like equities.

It would offer stability to retail investors and enable them to have exposure to interest rates, he said.

"Bonds are always traded on the over the counter (OTC) market and the participants have always been institutional.

"My thinking is that, why not offer to retail investors that have more transparency and that can create liquidity and can give stability," he said after Bursa Malaysia's 35th annual general meeting here on Thursday.

He said the exchange was going through several issues and was looking at introducing it in the second half of this year after putting a few things in place.

Tajuddin said the retail bonds would see Bursa Malaysia offering another asset class that would allow investors to switch from equities to debt instruments.

"I think one of the key issues that Bursa wants to do is to enhance investors' capability and knowledge as their portfolio would cover not only equities but debt instruments that have exposure to interest rates," he said.

He said Bursa Malaysia was also looking at introducing futures and option products. - Bernama



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KLCI edges higher, lifted by bank stocks

KUALA LUMPUR (March 22): The FBM KLCI closed marginally higher on Wednesday, lifted by gains at select blue chips including Maybank, Public Bank, KLK, and BAT while trading volume surged to nearly 3.6 billion shares.

The 30-stock index rose 4.91 points to close at 1,582.53. Gainers beat losers by 384 to 339, while 270 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 3.59 billion shares valued RM1.79 billion following heavy transactions in penny stocks.

However, Asian shares eased on March, as concerns about China's slowing economy dampened the optimism generated by a brightening outlook for the U.S. economy that has been pushing equity markets higher since late last year, according to Reuters.

But financial spreadbetters predicted major European markets, it said.

At the regional markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.55% to 10.086.49, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index shed 0.15% to 20,856.63, South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.73% to 2,027.23, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.06% to 2,378.20 and Taiwan’s Taiex rose 0.12% to 7,981.94.

Meanwhile, European stock index futures signalled gains on Wednesday, with stocks set to bounce back from the previous session's pull-back as investors bet U.S. housing data will give further evidence of economic recovery, eclipsing recent worries over Chinese growth, it said.

Among the gainers on Bursa Malaysia, BAT added 78 sen to RM53.20, PPB up 22 sen to RM16.78, Lafarge Malayan Cement, Sarawak Oil Palms and JTI up 17 sen each to RM7.25, RM6.70 and RM6.86 respectively.

Far East and Cepco added 15 sen each to RM7.40 and RM1.80, Metronic 14.5 sen to 25.5 sen, Tasco 12 sen to RM2.14 while Public Bank and KLK up two sen each to RM13.64 and RM23.43, while Maybank added one sento RM8.74.

Metronic was the most actively traded counter with 845.6 million shares done.

Other actives included Ariantec, Ingenuity Solutions, Focus, Tiger Synergy, Hubline, Asia-Bio, and Naim Indah Corp.

Decliners included Hartalega, Aeon Credit, Litrak, GAB, Gamuda, Kluang, United Malacca, SPMC, Allianz and MSM.



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Blue chips cautious in early trade, eyes on Greece again

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 21): Blue chips on Bursa Malaysia slipped in early trade on Tuesday as investors awaited the outcome of a 130 billion ero rescue for Greece.

Reuters reported that Euro zone finance ministers were expected to approve the rescue plan with strict conditions after months of uncertainty that has shaken the currency bloc, although work remained to be done to make the numbers add up.

At 9.30am, the FBM KLCI was down 1.16 points to 1,559.41. Turnover was 282.20 million shares valued at RM133.63 million. However, gainers led losers 174 to 161 while 238 stocks were unchanged.

Among the decliners were Esso, down 12 sen to RM3.64 after its earnings fell. CI Holdings lost seven sen to Rm1.26, Top Glove six sen to RM4.86, KLK also six sen to RM24.08 and Bursa Malaysia five sen to RM7.35.

Among the lower liners SPB lost 10 sen to RM3.61, Jobstreet five sen to RM2.16 and KKB four sen to RM1.71.



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FBM KLCI falls below 1,560-level at mid-morning

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 15): The FBM KLCI fell below the 1,560-level at mid-morning on Wednesday, weighed by select blue chips in cautious trade ahead of domestic economic growth data scheduled for release later in the day.

The FBM KLCI fell 7.06 points to 1,558.99 at 10am, weighed by select blue chips including BAT, PPB and Petronas Gas.

Gainers trailed losers by 162 to 300, while 271 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 419.75 million shares valued at RM223.51 million.

At the regional markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.02% to 9,144.15, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.43% to RM21,008.50, Taiwan’s Taiex was up 0.54% to 7,926.44, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.55% to 2,013.69, Singapore’s Straits Times Index edged up 0.08% to 2,989.81 while the Shanghai Composite Index was flat at 2,344.86.

BIMB Securities Research in a note Wednesday said European shares closed lower yesterday after lower than expected US retail sales.

European officials jacked up the pressure on the Greek government to deliver budget cuts in exchange for a second bailout as they insisted that default is not an option, it said.

“Meanwhile in the US, stocks were near lows on earlier trading worries that euro zone finance ministers appeared unlikely to release the Greek bailout funds as hoped, however they retreated in the final half hour spurred by optimism that Greece will commit to budget cuts stopped short of erasing a huge decline in the S&P 500 while the DJI added 0.03%.

“Back home, the FBMKLCI remains positive, adding another 3.23 points to 1,566 and we expect it to test its immediate resistance of 1,570, followed by 1,580 today while support remains at 1,560,” it said.

On Bursa Malaysia, BAT fell 46 sen to RM51.32, United PLANTATION []s down 14 sen to RM22.24, GAB, PPB, Petronas Gas, Hartalega and F&N fell 10 sen each to RM12.50, RM17.60, RM16.64, RM8.16 and RM17.590 respectively, Carlsberg was down eight sen to RM9.48, Bursa seven sen to RM7.40 and Multico shed six sen to RM1.20.

Naim Indah Corp was the most actively traded counter with 49.14 million shares done. The stock fell 1.5 sen to 46.5 sen.

Other actives included TMS, MBF Holdings warrants, Scanwolf, RCE Capital, Envair, TMC Life and Green Packet.

The advancing stocks included Dialog, Petronas Dagangan, TMS, Jaya Tiasa, Boxpak, Apollo, Brahims, Kulim and Jetson.



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Three ex-Transmile directors fail in bid for judicial review

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 14): The High Court has ruled in favour of the enforcement actions taken by Bursa Malaysia Securities against three former directors of TRANSMILE GROUP BHD [].

Bursa Malaysia said on Tuesday the court had Feb 9 dismissed the application for a judicial review of the enforcement actions taken against Gan Boon Aun, Khiudin Mohd @ Bidin and Shukri Sheikh Abdul Tawab.

To recap, on Sept 6, 2010, Bursa Malaysia publicly reprimanded and imposed a total fine of RM781,500 each on Gan and Khiudin and RM162,600 on Shukri for breaching paragraph 16.11(b) of Bursa Malaysia’s Listing Requirements.

The former directors were found to have permitted, knowingly or where they had reasonable means of obtaining such knowledge, Transmile to breach:-

* paragraphs 9.22(1) and 9.23 of the LR pertaining to the delay in the submission of Transmile’s annual audited accounts and annual report for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2006, and quarterly report for the financial period ended March 31, 2007; and

* paragraph 9.16(1)(a) of the LR pertaining to the restatement of Transmile’s audited results for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2005, and the deviation in Transmile’s unaudited and audited results for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2006.



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Court in favour of Bursa's action on Transmile

Bursa Malaysia Bhd, the country’s stock exchange operator, said the High Court of Kuala Lumpur ruled in favor of its enforcement actions against three former directors of Transmile Group Bhd.

The court dismissed the applications for a judicial review of the incident, Bursa said in an e-mailed statement in Kuala Lumpur today. - Bloomberg



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Bursa Malaysia website target of distributed denial of service attack

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 14): BURSA MALAYSIA BHD []’s website was the target of a distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack.

It said in a statement early Tuesday that this resulted in users experiencing intermittent access to its website on Monday evening.

"Contingency measures were activated to provide continued access to the website. As a result of the contingency measures, access by international users may still be temporarily affected. Users in Malaysia are not expected to experience any disruption,” it said.

However, Bursa Malaysia’s other systems were not affected during the incident and trading in its securities, derivatives and Islamic markets continue to operate normally.



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Sustainable momentum is key for Bursa Malaysia

Bursa Malaysia Bhd (Feb 10, RM7.60)
Revise target price to RM6 from RM5.20: Net profit for 4QFY11 of RM31 million took FY11 earnings to RM146 million, within our and consensus expectations.

Net profit grew 29% year-on-year (y-o-y) led by higher revenues from securities (15%), derivatives (36%) and “stable revenue” (9%). Average daily turnover volume and value rose to 1.3 billion (35%) and RM1.7 billion (23%), but velocity was flat at 33%.

Average daily contracts for derivatives grew 39% on stronger foreign and domestic participation. Stable revenue was lifted by higher listing fees (larger listing market cap and structured warrants) although the number of initial public offerings was similar (28 against 29 in FY10).

Operating expenses rose 9%, but excluding Globex fees, expenses only rose 4%. Bursa declared a final 13 sen dividend per share in 4QFY11, taking FY11 DPS to 26 sen, equivalent to 95% payout (we assumed 90%).

The stronger than expected trading momentum in January and February this year (up to Feb 8, average daily turnover volume and value reached highs of 1.9 billion and RM1.8 billion) prompted us to tweak our FY12/FY13F average daily turnover volume and value assumptions to 1.1 billion to 1.2 billion (from one billion to 1.1billion) and RM1.5 billion to RM1.6 billion (from RM1.3 billion to RM1.5 billion), respectively.



Consequently, we raise our FY12/FY13F earnings per share by 8%. However, the sustainability of trading momentum remains the key.

Our RM6 target price is based on the dividend discount model and assumes 92% dividend payout (from 90% previously), 7% long-term growth (from 6% previously) and 11% cost of equity. Our target price implies 22 times FY12 earnings per share. — HwangDBS Vickers Research, Feb 10


This article appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, February 13, 2012.



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Bursa’s FY11 net profit up 29%

KUALA LUMPUR: Despite last year’s market uncertainties Bursa Malaysia Bhd’s FY11 ended Dec 31 profit rose 29% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM146.2 million. Revenue was up 16% to RM420.1 million.

“Our securities and derivatives markets recorded improvements in trading volume as a result of increased participation by both foreign and local investors,” CEO Datuk Tajuddin Atan told a media briefing yesterday.

For its 4QFY11 Bursa’s net profit was up 5% to RM31.3 million while revenue dropped 6% to RM95.7 million.

Foreign participation in the market for FY11 rose 57% y-o-y while domestic participation grew by 30% y-o-y, leading to higher trading volume.

Average daily contracts traded for derivatives alone were up 39% to 34,474 and Bursa’s average daily trading value improved by 14.01% y-o-y to RM1.79 billion from RM1.57 billion. This resulted in trading revenue from derivatives increasing by 36% y-o-y to RM51.25 million from RM37.64 million in FY11.

Contracts traded for the FBM KLCI Futures increased by 24% to 2.48 million from 1.99 million in 2010; crude palm oil contracts jumped 45% to 5.87 million in FY11.

Tajuddin expects Bursa's FY12 results to at least mirror its FY11 results.

The total derivatives contracts traded grew 37% y-o-y to 8.45 million in FY11, compared with 6.15 million the previous year.

Tajuddin said Bursa believes in the potential of the derivatives market which currently contributes 12% to the group’s net profit. “Our derivatives business is poised to benefit from increased risk management brought about by the global economic uncertainty,” he said.

The derivatives market is one of the three key areas Bursa will focus on as a part of its strategic direction for 2012.

Last September marked the first anniversary of Bursa’s migration onto the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Globex trading platform, which helped contribute to the increase in derivatives contracts traded.

Tajuddin said Bursa will introduce various products and systems to facilitate the growth of the stock exchange in a competitive regional scene.

“The exchange landscape grows more competitive and presents more challenges, innovation, clearing [systems]...The current system is sufficient to cater for our current business needs and we will introduce new features to introduce greater flexibility and increase additional efficiency when placing orders, ”he noted, adding that the participation structure will be revamped to bring in new market entrants.

It will introduce a new derivative clearing system by the end of 1QFY12, which will have multi-asset class, time zone and currency capabilities. Bursa will also launch a high frequency trading system, which will allow for more liquidity in the markets.

Looking ahead, Tajuddin said the group expects its FY12 results to at least mirror its FY11 results.

He added that the divestment of assets by some government-linked companies will further contribute to the liquidity and vibrancy of the market. He cited the listing of Felda as among the companies that will positively contribute to the market.

The anticipated Asean exchange initiative, which includes Bursa, will also be launched by mid-year. The collaboration will see the exchanges of Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam joining forces to promote the growth of the Asean capital markets.

Bursa proposed a final dividend of 13 sen per share for FY11, subject to shareholders’ approval next month.

Its stock closed at a six-month high yesterday, up two sen to RM7.52 on a total trading volume of 1.29 million shares.


This article appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, February 10, 2012.



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Bursa shares rise on bullish ratings

Bursa Malaysia Bhd, the nation’s stock and derivatives exchange operator, rose to a six-month high after brokerages including Credit Suisse Group AG raised their share-price estimates to reflect better growth prospects.

The stock gained as much as 2.7 per cent to RM7.72 in Kuala Lumpur trading, the highest intraday level since July 29.

It traded at RM7.60 at 11.51 am local time. Fourth- quarter net income rose 5.2 per cent to RM31.3 million (US$10.3 million), bolstered by higher trading revenue on the derivatives market, it said in a statement yesterday.

“Bursa’s earnings are highly leveraged to improving market activity, with January 2012 volumes boding well,” Arjan van Veen, an analyst at Credit Suisse, wrote in a report today.

“Bursa has capacity to lift pricing as well as utilize the current excess capital on its balance sheet.”

He raised his price estimate to RM7.50 from RM6.94 and kept his “neutral” rating.

The average daily trading volume on the Southeast Asian nation’s stock exchange jumped 20 per cent to 1.8 billion shares in the past three months compared with the same period a year earlier, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Trading volume surged to 4.4 billion shares at the close on Feb 8, the highest since February 2007. Derivatives trading also surged, led by palm oil futures.

CIMB Group Holdings Bhd increased its price estimate for Bursa to RM7.65 from RM7.18, while Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd raised its target price to RM8 from RM7.40, they said in separate reports today.

Chan Ken Yew, an analyst at Kenanga, increased his 2012 earnings estimates by 5.3 per cent and 13 per cent for 2013.

The stock exchange operator’s 2012 profit may be similar to last year’s “if not better,” Bursa Chief Executive Officer Tajuddin Atan told reporters in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

The bourse is open to strategic alliances to boost market access and improve efficiency, he said, without giving details.

Shares of Bursa have gained 13 per cent this year, outpacing a 2.1 per cent increase in the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index. - Bloomberg



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Stocks to watch: MMC Corp, Gamuda, Bursa Malaysia and HL Industries

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 10): Stocks on Bursa Malaysia could extend their gains for the third day on Friday as investors could be emboldened after Greek leaders clinched a long-stalled deal on reforms and austerity measures needed to secure a bailout and avoid a messy default.

Reuters reported the deal was struck hours before the country's financial backers were to meet in Brussels on Thursday.

Athens' partners in the European Union and the International Monetary Fund have been exasperated by a lack of agreement on the sacrifices they demanded in return for a 130 billion euro ($172 billion) bailout, with time running out for Greece before a major March 20 bond redemption, said Reuters.

At Bursa Malaysia, MMC CORPORATION BHD [] and GAMUDA BHD [] would be among the stocks to watch as the joint venture will be appointed project delivery partner for the KL MRT project. MRT Corporation will be signing the agreement with MMC-Gamuda Joint Venture Sdn Bhd for the project on Friday afternoon.

Also in focus would be Bursa Malaysia and Hong Leong Industries following the release of their results.

Other counters which could see trading interest again are Selangor-related companies -- KUMPULAN PERANGSANG SELANGOR [], KUMPULAN HARTANAH SELANGOR BHD [], PUNCAK NIAGA HOLDINGS BHD [] and water pipe manufacturer JAKS Resources Bhd.

Bursa Malaysia’ earnings rose 29% to RM146.16 million for FY ended Dec 31, 2011 from RM113.04 million in 2010 and expects market volatility is expected to persist in 2012 unless there is more clarity on how the global economy will pan out. Its revenue increased 16.3% to RM420.14 million from RM361.05 million. It proposed a final dividend of 13 sen per share for the year under review, which was a distribution of 95% of its net profit.

For the fourth quarter, its earnings rose 5.2% to RM31.33 million from RM29.78 million. Revenue slipped 6.1% to RM95.67 million from RM101.91 million. Earnings per share were 5.90 sen compared with 5.60 sen.

Hong Leong Industries reported net profit of RM35.47 million for the second quarter ended Dec 31, 2011, down 39.6% from RM58.81 million a year ago.

Its revenue increased 14.5% to RM488.63 million from RM426.49 million a year ago. Its earnings per share were 11.51 sen compared with 22.48 sen.

HL Industries said that MALAYSIAN PACIFIC INDUSTRIES [] Bhd ceased to be a subsidiary of the group at the end of the previous financial year ended June 30, 2011.

BERJAYA LAND BHD [] (B-Land) recorded a net loss of about RM8.05 million at group level after it disposed of 18.301 million BERJAYA SPORTS TOTO BHD [] shares for RM79.61 million.

B-Land said the shares were disposed of on Thursday at an average selling price of RM4.35 and the shares represented about 1.37% of BToto.

“The disposed shares which were purchased since 1992, have a total carrying value of about RM87.66 million in the books of B-Land group. The net proceeds from the disposals will be utilised as working capital and repayment of bank borrowings of the B-Land group,” it said.

Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd has advised investors to be cautious following the recent sharp rise in the price and volume of Naim Indah Corporation shares.

Naim Indah shares closed 18 sen higher at 67 sen with 342.12 million shares done, off the day’s high of 75 sen. It fell to an intra-day low of 59.5 sen.



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Bursa Q4 income rises to RM31m

Bursa Malaysia Bhd, the country’s stock exchange operator, said fourth-quarter net income rose to RM31.3 million from RM29.8 million a year earlier, according to a company statement in Kuala Lumpur today.

According to Chief Executive Officer Tajuddin Atan, Bursa is open to strategic alliances. He declined to give more details.

He also said that Bursa has targeted average trading value of at least RM1.6 billion this year for the nation’s stock market.

Last year’s target was the same and average trading value reached RM1.8 billion, he told reporters in Kuala Lumpur today. -- Bloomberg



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Bursa Malaysia FY11 net profit RM146m, up 29% from 2010

KUALA LUMPUR: BURSA MALAYSIA BHD [] earnings rose 29% to RM146.16 million for FY ended Dec 31, 2011 from RM113.04 million in 2010 and expects market volatility is expected to persist in 2012 unless there is more clarity on how the global economy will pan out.

The stock exchange operator said on Thursday its revenue increased 16.3% to RM420.14 million from RM361.05 million.

It proposed a final dividend of 13 sen per share for the year under review, which was a distribution of 95% of its net profit.

For the fourth quarter, its earnings rose 5.2% to RM31.33 million from RM29.78 million. Revenue slipped 6.1% to RM95.67 million from RM101.91 million. Earnings per share were 5.90 sen compared with 5.60 sen.

Commenting on the FY2011 financial performance, its chief executive officer Datuk Tajuddin Atan said Bursa Malaysia delivered a good set of results despite the difficult conditions in 2011, which was a challenging year for markets around the globe.

“But we delivered a good set of results despite the difficult conditions and this demonstrates the tenacity and resilience of our market in times of uncertainty.

“Our securities and derivatives markets recorded improvements in trading volume as a result of increased participation by both foreign and local investors. This helped us achieve a 15% growth in operating revenue to RM381.3 million from RM331.3 million in 2010,” he said.

On the outlook, Tajuddin said for 2012 the Malaysian economy was expected to remain resilient due to its strong fundamentals, robust domestic demand as well as the government’s ongoing economic reform initiatives.

He added the divestment of assets by some government-linked companies would further contribute to the liquidity and vibrancy of the market.

He expected Bursa Malaysia’s derivatives business to benefit from increased risk management activities brought about by the global economic uncertainty.

“On our part, we aim to further liberalise access to the market, while launching new products to give investors greater options for trading. Overall, we expect our 2012 financial performance to at least mirror that of, if not better than, 2011,” Tajuddin said.



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Malaysian market sees record volume, KLCI at 6-month high

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 8): Trading volume on Bursa Malaysia surged to a record 4.39 billion units on Wednesday, driven by strong speculative trading in penny stocks while the FBM KLCI hit a six-month high of 1,553 as it played catch-up with regional peers.

At the close, the KLCI was up 14.41 points or 0.94%, aided by late buying of Tenaga, to 1,553.18 – the highest since Aug 2, 2011. Turnover was 4.39 billion shares valued at RM3.29 billion units. There were 593 gainers, 322 losers and 293 stocks unchanged.

Regional markets also put up a strong performance, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 up 1.10% to 9,015.59, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1.54% to 21,018.40, Shanghai’s Composite Index added 2.43% to 2,347.53.

Taiwan’s Taiex added 2.11% to 7,869.91, South Korea’s Kospi 1.12% to 2,003.73 and Singapore’s Straits Times Index 0.83% to 2,982.20.

In Europe, Britain's top share index rose in early deals with miners led up by metal prices and UK banks rallying as Citigroup kept its bullish stance on the sector, while the expectations of a Greek debt deal lingered in the background.

London's blue chip index rose 12.37 points, or 0.2% to 5,902.36 by 0932 GMT, pushing ahead after consolidating recent gains over the previous two trading days.

At Bursa Malaysia, the market got off to a staring start after an extended weekend, as speculators and investors were also quick to rush in to pick up riskier assets.

Among the index-linked stocks, Tenaga was the top mover performer, pushing the KLCI up by 4.99 points when it climbed 39 sen to RM6.38 while Sime Darby added 22 sen to RM9.68, pushing the index up by 3.12 points.

Among the banks, Public Bank rose 20 sen to RM13.96, CIMB 11 sen to RM7.11 and Maybank eight sen to RM8.41, pushing the KLCI up by a cumulative 5.59 points.

PPB was the top performer, rising 52 sen to RM17.72, Petronas Dagangan and Batu Kawan 50 sen each to RM18.86 and RM19.90. Hartalega added 33 sen to RM7.98.

Naim Indah jumped 31 sen to 49 sen with 267.36 million units done on expectations of a new major shareholder. Bursa Malaysia, which will announce its results on Thursday, added 30 sen to RM7.50.

Compugates was the most active with 451.47 million units done, prompting a query from the Bursa Malaysia Securities. It rose 3.5 sen to 12.5 sen.

GENTING BHD [] fell the most, down 50 sen to RM10.50 and Genting Malaysia 20 sen to RM3.81. RHB Research Institute said it was maintaining its Outperform recommendation on Genting Malaysia and its sum-of-parts fair value of RM4.20.

F&N was down 30 sen to RM17.30 after announcing lower first quarter earnings.



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