Sime to expand oil, fats biz in S. Africa

JOHANNESBURG (Dec 9): Sime Darby Group plans to further expand its oil and fats business in South Africa with the setting up of a packaging facility and another refinery in the future.

Its South Africa unit, Sime Darby Hudson & Knight (Pty) Ltd, was expected to set up the packaging facility, a company official said.

The official said this at a briefing for Minister of PLANTATION [] Industries and Commodities, Tan Sri Bernard Dompok, and his delegation during a visit to the refinery in Boksburg on Thursday.

The official said the expansion, which started with the packaging facility, was in the final preparation stage as the group found new marketing opportunities for its products in neighbouring territories and countries.

"The new refinery will come in later when demand has increased sufficiently," he said.

The Sime Darby Hudson & Knight refinery has a capacity for 160,000 tonnes with about 80 per cent utilisation. About half of the refinery output is for Unilever.

Sime Darby group is a major investor in the oil and fats business in Africa.

Apart from the refinery, it is also currently involved in setting up plantations in Liberia. - Bernama



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Gamuda dips on being removed from KLCI

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 9): GAMUDA BHD [], which would be leaving the FBM KLCI index following the semi-annual review of the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Index Series on Thursday, declined in late morning trade on Friday.

The decline in Gamuda’s shares was also in line with the weaker broader market.

At 11.56am, Gamuda fell 17 sen to RM3.11 with 915,500 shares traded.

OSK Research in a note Dec 9 said the removal of Gamuda from the FBM KLCI removed the CONSTRUCTION [] sector representation.

FTSE Group (FTSE) and BURSA MALAYSIA BHD [] yesterday said the constituent changes take effect at the start of business on Dec 19, 2011 and the next review will take place on June 7, 2012.

The FBM KLCI lost 1.02% or 15.08 points to 1,457.84.



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KLCI in red on profit taking, weaker regional sentiment

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 9): The FBM KLCI looked poised to extend its losses on Friday on profit taking ahead of the weekend as Wall Street and European markets fell overnight on heightened worries over the Eurozone debt crisis.

The FBM KLCI fell 11.34 points to 1,461.58 at 10am, weighed by losses at blue chips.

Losers outnumbered gainers by 306 to 97, while 185 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 331.08 million shares valued at RM196.19 million.

Asian shares and commodities fell on Friday, while the euro remained under pressure, on growing doubts that European leaders could forge a credible plan to solve the euro zone's debt crisis at a summit later in the day, according to Reuters.

European Union leaders looked set to adopt a new system of fiscal discipline, but sentiment worsened after the European Central Bank dashed hopes that it would serve as lender of last resort and as Germany rejected a long-term goal of issuing common euro zone bonds, it said.

At the regional markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index lost 1.85% to 18,753.93, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.65% to 8,521.73, South Korea’s Kospi was down 1.55% to 1,882.72, Taiwan’s Taiex lost 1.32% to 6,891.04, Singapore’s Straits Times Index fell 0.91% to 2,703.39 and the Shanghai Composite Index shed 0.38% to 2,320.96.

Maybank Investment Bank Bhd head of retail research and chief chartist Lee Cheng Hooi in a note to clients Dec 9 said the FBM KLCI fell by 10.07-points to close at 1,472.92 on Thursday on profit taking.

“Its resistance areas of 1,472 and 1,500 will cap market gains, whilst the weaker support areas may be located at 1,450 and 1,469.

“Due to the US markets’ poorer tone last night, we will have a volatile day for the local index today with broad pre-weekend profit taking and liquidation,” he said.

On Bursa Malaysia, KLK was the top loser at mid-morning and fell 70 sen to RM22.30; Petronas Dagangan lost 36 sen to RM16.82, HLFG 24 sen to RM11.26, PPB 22 sen to RM16.28, BAT 20 sen to RM47.20, Genting 18 sen to RM10.70, MISC 16 sen to RM5.79, AMMB 15 sen to RM5.75, Petronas Gas 14 sen to RM13.70 and Gamuda 13 sen to RM3.15.

Compugates was the most actively traded counter with 35.6 million shares done. The stock fell half a sen to 6.5 sen.

Other actives included Versatile, Pavilion REIT, LFE Corp, SYF Resources, DPS Resources and Takaso.

The gainers included Dutch Lady, JT International, Cycle & Carriage, Harvest Court, Quill Capita and LFE Corp.



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KL shares start on bearish note

KUALA LUMPUR: Amid the sluggish market condition, share prices on Bursa Malaysia started trading Friday on a bearish note, with heavy selling seen in selected bluechips and low-liners, dealers said.

The global markets were on a downtrend further as the European Central Bank squelched hopes for increased bond purchases ahead of the European Union Leaders' Summit which is expected to come out with an aggressive plan to contain the region's debt crisis.

Thirty mminutes after the opening, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia (FBM KLCI) lost 10.42 points to 1,462.5, with losses mostly seen in Petronas Dagangan and Kuala Lumpur Kepong.

Earlier, the benchmark index opened 8.22 points lower at 1,464.7.

China's key inflation data to be out this week also contributed to the local bourse's sentiments today, dealers said.

The Finance Index plunged 100.141 points to 12,962.02, the Plantation Index dipped 56.64 points to 7,872.47 and the Industrial Index slipped 20.95 points to 2,650.42.

The FBM Emas Index dwindled 62.25 points to 10,020.26, the FBM Mid 70 Index was 54.71 points lower at 10,936.91 and the FBM ACE Index fell 34.18 points to 4,198.25.

Decliners led advancers 220 to 65 while 160 counters were unchanged, 1,033 untraded and 19 others were suspended.

Turnover stood at 201.474 million shares worth RM125.931 million.

Actives, Compugates inched down half-a-sen to 6.5 sen, Versatile Creative was flat at 44 sen, SYF Res-WA gained 2.5 sen to 53 sen and Wijaya Bari-WA added half-a-sen to 37.5 sen.

For heavyweights, Maybank lost five sen to RM8.16, Sime Darby and CIMB shed four sen each to RM8.90 and RM6.95, respectively, while Petronas Chemicals slipped three sen to RM6.06. - Bernama



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Kurnia Asia stock set to rally: Analyst

Kurnia Asia Bhd, a Malaysian insurer, rose to a one-month high in Kuala Lumpur trading as Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd said its stock price is poised to rally.

Prices should test between 59 sen and 67 sen due to speculation that it has found a buyer for its Kurnia Insurans (M) Bhd. unit, Hong Leong analyst Low Yee Huap wrote in a report today.

The stock climbed 1 percent to 50 sen at 9:25 a.m., set for its highest close since Nov. 4. -- Bloomberg



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MISC, Gamuda fall on FBMKLCI exit

MISC Bhd and Gamuda Bhd fell in Kuala Lumpur trading after being dropped from the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index.

MISC, the world’s largest owner-operator of liquefied natural gas vessels, fell 1.7 percent to RM5.85 at 9:04 a.m. local time, set of its lowest close since Nov. 25.

Gamuda, a builder, lost 1.2 percent to RM3.24, set for its lowest close since Dec. 1. -- Bloomberg



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LFE Corp continues to be traded actively

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 9): LFE CORPORATION BHD [] shares continued to be traded actively on Friday, a day after the company had replied to a Bursa Malaysia Securities query that there was no material corporate development relating to its business that may have accounted for the unusual market activity (UMA) involving its shares on Dec 7.

At 9.30am, LFE Corp was up 3.5 sen with 6.99 million shares done.

The company had on Thursday said the UMA on Dec 7 could have been caused by its announcement on Dec 6 of the acquisitions of 5.7 million and 6.1 million shares respectively by Liew Teow Woon and Liew Chee Woon respectively on Dec 1, 2011.

The company said Lew Mew Choi had informed it that he disposed the said shares to Teow Woon and Chee Woon.

“Lew Mew Choi has further informed that he will provide the Company with a duly executed Form 29C (Notice of Person Ceasing to be a Substantial Shareholder) soonest possible and thereafter, the company will make the relevant announcement accordingly.

“Save for the above, the board of LFE Corp is unaware of any rumour or report concerning the business and affairs of the group that may account for the unusual market activity,” it said.



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KLCI extends losses as global markets fall on European debt woes

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 9): The FBM KLCI extended its losses in early trade on Friday, in line with the overnight slump at Wall Street and European markets on growing doubts that European leaders could forge a credible plan to solve the euro zone's debt crisis.

At 9.05am, the FBM KLCI lost 14.50 points to 1,458.42, weighed by losses at blue chip stocks.

Losers led gainers by 141 to 35, while 102 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 64.19 million shares valued at RM37.51 million.

Among the early decliners were BAT, Petronas Dagangan, KLK, HLFG, PPB, Genting, Petronas Gas, Hong Leong Bank, AirAsia and UMW.



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