EVENING 5: Inflation cools to lowest since April 2021

The Edge TV

In today’s edition of Evening 5 — Malaysia's headline inflation moderates in October to 1.9%, the slowest pace since April 2021. Meanwhile, the SC drops its claim against Apex Equity and Apex Securities over ACE Group’s takeover bid.

Transcript

00:00 [Music]

00:04 Malaysia's headline inflation continued to cool in October,

00:08 mainly due to moderating growth in the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages.

00:13 According to the Department of Statistics,

00:15 the consumer price index rose 1.8% from a year earlier,

00:19 lower than the 1.9% increase recorded in September and the slowest rate since April 2021.

00:26 Prices for food at home rose at 2.1% in October versus 2.5% in September,

00:32 while the food away from home component slowed to a 5.6% increase compared with 5.9% the month prior.

00:40 Chief Statistician Datuk Sri Dr Mohamad Uzir Mahidin said

00:44 most of the states booked increases below the national inflation level of 1.8%,

00:49 save for Putrajaya at 2.7%, Sarawak 2.5%, Perak 2.2% and Selangor 1.9%.

00:56 The lowest were Kedah, Terengganu, Negeri Sembilan and Kelantan at 1.3%.

01:01 Core inflation increased at a slower pace at 2.4%.

01:05 Separately, a Bloomberg report said the majority of 26 economists it surveyed in the past week

01:12 expect Bank Negara to keep borrowing costs steady even up to 2025,

01:18 extending a rate pause that started in July.

01:21 This as price pressures diminish and economic growth stays resilient.

01:25 Siam Darby Plantation booked RM1.21 billion in Q3 FY2023 earnings,

01:37 up threefold from RM396 million in the previous corresponding quarter.

01:42 This as the planter's upstream segment jumped 120%,

01:46 led by the strong recovery of its operations in Malaysia.

01:50 It also recorded a non-recurring profit before interest and taxes of RM876 million,

01:56 mainly from the sale of land in Malaysia and the stake disposal in two of its Indonesian subsidiaries.

02:03 As for its top line, its net revenue fell 11.5% to RM4.77 billion,

02:09 amid lower crude palm oil and palm kernel average realised prices.

02:13 Meanwhile, Siam Darby Property saw Q3 FY2023 net profit jump more than twofold to RM144.91 million,

02:22 from RM56.13 million a year earlier on the back of higher revenue.

02:26 And said it is on track to surpass its FY2023 sales target of RM2.7 billion.

02:33 Revenue grew 52.4% to RM1 billion,

02:36 driven by improvements in the property development segment,

02:40 higher sales from residential and industrial products, and increased on-site progress development.

02:46 Siam Darby Plantation's shares ended the day down 0.5% to RM4.34,

02:51 while Siam Darby Property closed 5.9% higher at 63 cent.

03:02 The Securities Commission is withdrawing its claim against Apex Equity Holdings and its unit

03:08 Apex Securities over a takeover bid by the former's second-largest shareholder, Ace Group.

03:14 Apex Equity said a consent judgment was recorded at the High Court yesterday

03:18 between the group, Apex Securities and the Commission,

03:22 and that this spelt the conclusion of the material litigation.

03:25 Among the salient features of this judgment consent is that Apex Equity shall appoint,

03:31 as a director, a person who has no prior relationship,

03:34 interaction and/or connection with Ace Holdings or any related companies with Ace.

03:40 In its filing with the Boris, it said the next case management is fixed on December 21

03:45 for the SC to update the High Court on the status of the judicial review proceedings.

03:50 At the close, Apex's shares traded 3.5% higher at RM1.17,

03:56 giving it a market capitalization of RM249.9 million.

04:01 Tenaga National saw its third-quarter FY20-23 net profit dip by 3.7% year-on-year,

04:13 despite stronger demand for electricity as earnings were squeezed by negative fuel margin.

04:18 Net profit tumbled to RM856.2 million, although the higher sales of electricity drove revenue up

04:25 by 3.9% to RM13.47 billion. Commenting on its results, the group said it reported a

04:32 fair performance despite the challenging global environment and that its receivables and working

04:38 capital position have improved, backed by a good collection rate and easing pressure on coal prices.

04:44 As the overall economy is projected to grow at 4% for the year,

04:48 the utility giant said it foresees a stable performance

04:52 and will continue to remain cautious on the impact of fuel prices and currency volatility

04:57 on its earnings. It aims to continue to take prudent measures in managing its operational

05:02 and financial requirements to ensure its resilience. Shares of TNB closed 0.2% lower

05:08 at RM10 today, giving it a market capitalization of RM57.87 billion.

05:20 Sunway's real estate arm is teaming up with the master developer of Putrajaya

05:25 to develop commercial land within the administrative capital.

05:29 Sunway Property and Putrajaya Holdings, Inc. and MOU, which lays the foundation for future

05:35 cooperation in sectors including medical, education, property development and hospitality,

05:41 in precincts 7 and 8. The cooperative effort will also explore the development of a medical

05:47 centre in one of the parcels. Sunway Property Managing Director Serena Chia said the MOU

05:52 signifies a major step forward for the company to leverage its Build-Own-Operate business model

05:59 to deliver livability as well as advances in property development and healthcare in Putrajaya.

06:05 It will bring to the table its expertise in developing smart and sustainable integrated

06:10 townships and developments, which will be combined with Putrajaya Holdings' master

06:15 planning experience to create a vibrant and innovative development, utilising key learnings

06:20 from its successful developments. Sunway's shares rose 0.51% to RM1.97, valuing it at RM9.86 billion.

06:30 It is expected to reach a market cap of Rs. 1.6 billion by 2025.

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Transcript

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