The Russell 1000 value index is down around 13% year-to-date, while the Russell 1000 growth index has fallen about 26%. This month, however, fears that the Fed's monetary policy tightening could bring on a US recession have shifted the momentum away from value stocks, which tend to be more sensitive to the economy. The Russell value index is up 0.7% in July, compared with a 3.4% gain for its growth-stock counterpart. "People pay a premium for growth stocks when growth is scarce," said Burns McKinney, portfolio manager at NFJ Investment Group. Data from UBS Global Wealth Management on Thursday showed value stocks tend to outperform growth stocks when inflation is running above 3% — around a third of the 9.1% annual growth US consumer prices registered in June.

THERE is clearly a major disconnect between the technology sector’s earnings and the share prices. Despite the ever-growing demand for electronics and the robust earnings outlook, technology stocks have been on a free-fall this year.

KUALA LUMPUR: First-time homebuyers will get a stamp duty exemption on the instrument of transfer and loan agreement under the Keluarga Malaysia Home Ownership Initiative (i-MILIKI), says Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob. ALSO READ: Affordable housing a priority on nation’s agenda"Although this stamp duty exemption will reduce revenue collection for the country, I would like to stress that this is the government's commitment towards all Malaysian families. "According to the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN), the stamp duty exemption claim under the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) is RM957.8mil. "In fact, the highest stamp duty exemption claim is for house prices of RM500,000 and below. This, he said, is part of the government's target to build 500,000 affordable homes throughout the 12th Malaysia Plan.

Zooming in further into the inner workings of the modern-day corporation, the rise of digitalisation has inevitably proliferated its way into the way corporations conduct general meetings, of which annual general meetings (AGMs) feature most conspicuously. However, as with any human-designed conception, virtual/hybrid AGMs are prone to faults that debilitate transparency, reliability and shareholder democratisation. Further accelerating the push for virtual/hybrid AGMs, the SC also issued a rallying call for listed issuers to continue leveraging technology to conduct general meetings beyond pandemic-related restrictions. By combining KPMG’s board advisory services with ConveneAGM’s established technology platform, we aim to revolutionise the future of general meetings in Malaysia. For listed issuers, technology will continue to play a crucial role in enabling opportunities.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Indonesian foreign labour standoff needs to be resolved as soon as possible to avoid further dispute, says Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob. The Prime Minister said he had instructed the Human Resources Ministry and the Home Ministry to settle the matter with Indonesia before it escalates further. "I do not want this matter to be prolonged, as I am worried it could affect our relationship with Indonesia," said Ismail Sabri to reporters after launching the Home Ownership Programme (Hope) and Karnival Jom Beli Rumah here on Friday (July 15). Earlier this week, Indonesia said it had temporarily stopped sending its citizens to work in Malaysia, citing a breach in a worker recruitment deal signed between the two countries. Indonesian Ambassador to Malaysia Hermono reportedly said the freeze was made after Malaysia's Immigration authorities continued using an online recruitment system for domestic workers that had been linked to allegations of trafficking and forced labour.

KUALA LUMPUR (July 16): Bursa Malaysia is likely to see muted trading with an upside bias next week following the recent heavy sell-off amid increasing market risks and volatility in global equity markets, said an analyst. Weekly turnover dropped to 5.81 billion units worth RM4.81 billion from 9.45 billion units worth RM6.49 billion last week. The Main Market volume eased to 5.49 billion shares valued at RM4.2 billion against 5.74 billion shares valued at RM5.61 billion in the previous week. Warrants volume shrank to 1.39 billion units worth RM256.9 million versus 2.11 billion units worth RM412.91 million last week. The ACE Market volume fell to 1.29 billion shares valued at RM346.46 million from 1.59 billion shares valued at RM460.36 million the week before.

Total turnover improved to 2.05 billion units valued at RM1.06 billion, against 2.01 billion units valued at RM1.20 billion on Thursday. Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index declined 52.51 points to 16,007.69, the Industrial Products and Services Index was 1.30 points lower at 166.73, and the Plantation Index shed 13.48 points to 6,655.73. The Main Market volume narrowed to 1.29 billion shares worth RM916.47 million, against 1.45 billion shares worth RM1.07 billion on Thursday. Warrants turnover widened to 398.90 million units valued at RM75.88 million, versus 275.17 million units valued at RM49.74 million yesterday. The ACE Market volume improved to 351.41 million shares worth RM66.41 million, from 273.22 million shares worth RM80.63 million previously.

KUALA LUMPUR (July 14): Two more of debt-ridden Sapura Energy Bhd’s units, Sapura Pinewell Sdn Bhd (SPSB) and Sapura Fabrication Sdn Bhd (SFSB), have been served with winding-up petitions for failing to settle RM906,194 in outstanding amounts. SPSB and SFSB were served the petitions last Friday (July 8), due to the non-payment of invoices from Plomo Group Sdn Bhd and Marine Creation Sdn Bhd respectively, according to a bourse filing on Thursday (July 14). In the event Petitioner-2 fails and/or refuses to do so, the company may be forced to take further legal action against Petitioner-2,” said Sapura Energy. Based on the audited financial statements for the financial year ended Jan 31, 2022, Sapura Energy has invested a total RM427.95 million in SPSB, and RM4.296 billion in SFSB. Sapura Energy shares were unchanged at four sen on Thursday, giving it a market capitalisation of RM639.16 million.

PETALING JAYA: The Finance Ministry has refuted recent allegations that Malaysia is on the verge of bankruptcy and highlighted that the government has always been “highly disciplined” in managing its debt levels. He added that the federal government’s debt remained at a manageable level. Tengku Zafrul said the federal government practiced prudent debt management through existing laws. In this regard, the federal government’s debt is “clearly still under control”, according to him. Tengku Zafrul said the false social media reports on the country’s debt position are seen as intending to mislead the public and could potentially affect investor confidence in Malaysia.

BERA (July 14): Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob on Thursday (July 14) announced an allocation of almost RM65 million for the implementation of five initiatives to help Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) settlers and their new generation in various aspects, including housing. The initiatives include a fund of RM20 million under the Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme as collateral for housing loans to be made by the new generation of Felda settlers, so that they need not have to offer other collateral for a loan, thus facilitating the financing process for house construction in Felda generation lots. Ismail Sabri said Felda had also allocated a revolving fund of RM10 million to provide more opportunities to start a business or increase the capacity of the business to entrepreneurs among the younger generation of Felda settlers, involving interest-free loans of RM5,000 to RM20,000, with applications to open in August. “In a bid to provide necessary facilities for the new generation of Felda settlers to reside in its areas, Felda has previously implemented the Felda New Generation Project (PGBF). “This means, if the total rent paid for 36 months is RM10,800, then the price they have to pay for a middle unit worth RM90,000 will be reduced to only RM79,200,” he said when officiating at the Felda Settlers' Day 2022 celebration at Felda Rentam here on Thursday.

KUALA LUMPUR: An application for injunction by Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to prevent Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin from issuing any statement on the allegation the latter had sought help to resolve or postpone his criminal trials will be heard on Aug 8. He said the court had ordered Ahmad Zahid to file his affidavit in reply before or by July 22. “The hearing of the application has been set on Aug 8 before High Court Judge Rozana Ali Yusoff through online proceedings,” he said, Bernama reported. On the same day, he said, the video footage of the defamatory statement was published on Astro Awani’s YouTube channel, which is managed by Astro Awani. Ahmad Zahid claimed the allegations were false and aimed at tarnishing his good name and reputation.

IPOH: A relative of a family of four who perished in a seven-vehicle pile-up on the North-South Expressway had an uneasy feeling when her calls to them went unanswered. The victims were identified as retired police corporal Rahim Ramli, 60, his wife Siti Petimah Omar, 59, and their two daughters Nor Nadirah, 28, and Nor Hamizah, 27. The trailer is believed to have crashed into the car the family was in on KM277.1 of the expressway, near here. The relative, who wished to be known only as Atie, said she had last spoken to Siti Petimah at noon when they were somewhere near Alor Pongsu, Perak. It is learnt that the family was travelling from Sungai Petani, Kedah, to Kuala Lumpur.

Indonesia's Ambassador to Malaysia Hermono told Reuters the freeze was imposed after Malaysia's immigration authorities continued using an online recruitment system for domestic workers that had been linked to allegations of trafficking and forced labour. The system's continued operation violated the terms of an agreement signed between Malaysia and Indonesia in April, aimed at improving the protection of domestic workers employed in Malaysian households, said Hermono, who goes by one name. Malaysia's Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M Saravanan confirmed receiving a letter from Indonesian authorities informing him of the freeze. Malaysia relies on millions of foreign workers, who mainly come from Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Nepal, to fill factory and plantation jobs shunned by locals. Read also:MoHR, Home Affairs Ministry to discuss Indonesia’s domestic worker ban

Monkeypox adds to the stakes for University of Minnesota special pathogen training Common medical and surgical procedures take on complications when patients are infected with highly-transmissible pathogens. Minneapolis police in standoff at apartment after shots fired inside Police responded after report of gunshots in apartment building near Franklin and Cedar avenues. Local Anoka County tobacco wholesaler charged with skirting $1.3 million in taxes Fady Bshara Daw of North Oaks faces up to three years for the crimes,Local Dial 988: New mental health crisis hotline launches Saturday The new hotline is expected to send crisis call volumes soaring, prompting some to ask if Minnesota is ready. Local 4-year-old boy operating full-size ATV crashes and dies in central Minnesota His 6-year-old cousin riding along jumped from the ATV just before it rolled over, the Sheriff's Office said. Unlicensed driver jailed after head-on crash near Little Falls kills other motorist Authorities suspect that the surviving motorist, whose license was revoked at the time of the crash, was driving while impaired by drugs or alcohol.

Total turnover fell to 1.76 billion units valued at RM1.28 billion, from 2.36 billion units valued at RM1.27 billion on Tuesday. Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index gave up 68.02 points to 16,020.20, the Industrial Products and Services Index shed 3.50 points to 166.71, and the Plantation Index trimmed 33.23 points to 6,686.70. The Main Market volume narrowed to 1.09 billion shares worth RM1.12 billion, against 1.64 billion shares worth RM1.10 billion on Tuesday. Warrants turnover decreased to 263.33 million units valued at RM45.05 million, versus 452.94 million units valued at RM86.22 million on Tuesday. The ACE Market volume expanded to 396.49 million shares worth RM112.67 million, from 267.91 million shares worth RM86.74 million previously.