Report: Ericsson displaces Huawei to become top RAN vendor in 2021
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 30): Ericsson (pictured) has beaten Huawei in 2021 as the radio access network (RAN) market leader, displacing the latter from its long-running lead in the industry, according to a report by analyst firm Mobile Experts. Mobile Experts stated that Nokia’s share of the global RAN market also surpassed Huawei last year, putting Huawei in the No 3 spot. The report also stated that while its rankings “differed significantly” from “widely cited Dell’Oro Group figures”, chief analyst at Mobile Experts Joe Madden, said the firm obtained its data from "more than 100 sources”. Mobile Experts stated that its data showed that “Ericsson closed 2021 with a 26.9% share of the RAN market, followed by Nokia at 21.9%, Huawei at 20.4%, ZTE at 14.5%, and Samsung at 8%”. According to a report by Reuters on Jan 25, Ericsson beat quarterly core earnings forecasts, “sending its shares up 8% as global demand for telecoms equipment for 5G networks offset more market share losses in mainland China”.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 30, 2022 12:47 UTC
China to curb banks' use of overseas loans
BEIJING (Jan 29): China's central bank and foreign exchange regulator issued new rules on Saturday that bar domestic banks from using overseas loans to invest in securities or "speculative deals", a notice on the bank's website showed on Saturday (Jan 29). The rules will take effect from March 1.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 30, 2022 09:42 UTC
The roaring silence
Emblazoned on our nation’s coat of arms and Filem Negara’s emblem, yet our tigers face a dire prospect in Kelantan. The area will see the presence of animals such as mouse deer, which are food for tigers. The NGO said it was important to note that the study refers to selective logging, not indiscriminate logging. Is it big enough for them to run away from logging areas when logging activities are carried out? If the Orang Asli and even the general population don’t stand a chance in Kelantan, what more the tigers in the state?
Source:The Star
January 29, 2022 23:37 UTC
PPV ready for more walk-ins
PETALING JAYA: Dedicated lanes and numbering systems will be implemented at vaccination centres (PPV) offering booster shots to ensure smooth operations, says ProtectHealth chief executive officer Datuk Dr Anas Alam Faizli. Dr Anas also said that eligible individuals who cancelled their prior booster appointments were allowed to walk in to PPV. “Some off-site PPV and general practitioner PPV would remain open while most of the private hospitals would be closed,” he said. Individuals who intend to receive their booster shots at general practitioner clinics were advised to contact the PPV first. To view the list of vaccination centres, visit the ProtectHealth website at http://www.protecthealth.com.my and select Find Vaccination Centre (PPV).
Source:The Star
January 29, 2022 23:15 UTC
Six South Korean women nabbed in karaoke centre raid
KUALA LUMPUR: Six women, believed to be guest relations officers (GROs) from South Korea, were arrested in a raid by the Immigration Department at a karaoke centre in Solaris Mont Kiara on Friday (Jan 28). Two South Korean men and a Pakistani man who were suspected workers at the premises were also detained, Kuala Lumpur Immigration director Syamsul Badrin Mohshin said in a statement on Saturday (Jan 29). He added that no one escaped during the raid because the premises was completely surrounded. In the same operation, the department detained six Thai women and one from Vietnam in a raid involving three massage and reflexology centres around Pandan Indah. "To get the services offered, customers have to pay RM200 for a period of one hour," he said.
Source:The Star
January 29, 2022 23:11 UTC
Ringgit expected to trade in tight range with downside bias against greenback next week
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 29): The ringgit is expected to trade in a tight range with downside bias between 4.19 and 4.20 against the US dollar next week. “As such the ringgit is expected to move in a tight range next week. However the upside bias for ringgit could come from crude oil prices which strengthened further following geopolitical risks,” he continued. For the week just ended, the ringgit ended slightly lower against the US dollar at 4.1880/1915 compared with last Friday's 4.1840/1870. The ringgit gained versus the euro to 4.6621/6660 from 4.7434/7468 a week earlier and rose against the British pound to 5.6031/6078 from 5.6764/6805 previously.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 29, 2022 22:25 UTC
MOTAC: New umrah travel SOP for quartet's approval
PUTRAJAYA (Jan 29): The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) said the new standard operating procedure (SOP) for umrah travel has been refined with the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) and will be brought to a quartet meeting for approval. It said Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri hoped the decision would be welcomed by companies handling the umrah pilgrimage and Malaysian families and reminded all parties to abide by the new SOP. MOTAC said the Cabinet, at its meeting on Jan 26, agreed to allow Muslims in the country to resume the umrah pilgrimage starting Feb 8 after temporarily suspending it following the transmission of the Omicron Covid-19 variant among returning pilgrims. It was also suspended was to provide space for government agencies and all parties involved to evaluate and improve the SOP for umrah. MOTAC said a total of eight engagement sessions was held since December last year between its minister and umrah companies such as the Malaysian Association of Bumiputera Tourism Operating Companies Malaysia (BUMITRA), Association of Umrah and Haj Travel Agencies (PAPUH) and the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA).
Source:The Edge Markets
January 29, 2022 22:00 UTC
CPO futures likely to see profit-taking next week
KUALA LUMPUR: The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives is expected to trade lower next week on profit-taking after prices rallied to above RM5,600 a tonne, Interband Group of Companies senior palm oil trader Jim Teh said. "The market is forecast to trade between RM5,000 and RM5,100 per tonne next week,” he told Bernama. Meanwhile, palm oil trader David Ng said CPO is expected to trade on a downward bias as profit-taking is expected to emerge due to the recent rally in prices. For the week just-ended, the CPO futures finished higher tracking gains in the crude oil market, stronger soybean oil performance on the US Chicago Board of Trade, and Indonesia’s restriction on CPO exports. The physical CPO price for February South rose RM300 to RM5,800 a tonne.
Source:The Star
January 29, 2022 07:42 UTC
Top Builders, formerly known as Ikhmas Jaya, now under PN17
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 28): Top Builders Capital Bhd — formerly known as Ikhmas Jaya Group Bhd — has been classified as a Practice Note 17 (PN17) company after Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd rejected the company's application for a six-month extension of the relief period. As such, it continues to trigger the PN17 criteria of the Main Market Listing Requirements (MMLR). "[The company] is now classified as a PN17 listed issuer of which the requirements under PN17 of the MMLR shall apply to Top Builders with effect from Dec 30, 2021," it added. An announcement on Top Builder triggering the PN17 criteria was also made by Bursa Securities. Top Builder first triggered the PN17 criteria in 2020.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 29, 2022 03:08 UTC
CPO futures hit fresh all-time high on expectation of weaker output
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 28): The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives hit a fresh all-time high on Friday on prospects of weaker output as well as stronger soybean oil performance on the US Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), palm oil trader David Ng said. The benchmark palm oil contract for April 2022 jumped RM184 to RM5,628 a tonne. Meanwhile, Singapore-based Palm Oil Analytics owner and co-founder Dr Sathia Varqa said CPO traded on further record high prices driven by Indonesia’s export policy. “Prices hit record high today (Jan 28). I do not think there are any new fundamentals to support the rise to a new record high except for speculation.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 29, 2022 03:08 UTC
Sustainable recovery down south
THE Johor residential property market witnessed plenty of uncertainty over the past couple of years as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. However, amid brighter economic prospects and better control over the Covid-19 crisis in the country, the market is expected to stage a sustainable recovery in 2022. However, Samuel says the Johor residential market is only expected to see a marginal improvement rather than a V-shaped recovery. “Landed residential units priced below RM700,000 in good locations are still in demand. In the first nine month of 2021, Lo says the Johor property market suffered due to lengthened lockdown periods that were implemented by the government.
Source:The Star
January 29, 2022 00:16 UTC
Affin Hwang Asset Management deal bumps up CVC Capital’s Malaysian investment to above US$1 billion
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 28): CVC Capital Partners' purchase of a 68.35% stake in Affin Hwang Asset Management Bhd (Affin Hwang AM) for RM1.54 billion is the private equity fund’s sixth investment in Malaysia since 2007, bringing its total capital invested to over US$1 billion. “We are particularly excited to partner with Affin Hwang AM’s talented management team, who has shown a track record of outperformance, and Nikko Asset Management (Nikko AM), who will remain as a strategic shareholder. CVC’s unit Starlight Asset Sdn Bhd has signed a conditional share purchase agreement with Affin Bank Bhd to take over the controlling stake of Affin Hwang AM. The sale values Affin Hwang AM, whose assets under management amount to RM81 billion, at RM2.25 billion. "We are delighted to continue our long-term partnership with the [Affin Hwang AM] management team and welcome CVC.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 28, 2022 21:20 UTC
January's treasury losses were brutal, but it may be just the start
(Jan 28): To many on Wall Street, the painful selloff that’s been racing through the Treasury market this month is only the opening act. On Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s hawkish tone added fuel to the rout after he said the bank is poised to start raising interest rates in March, sending two-year Treasury yields surging the most since March 2020. Despite the sharp rise in Treasury yields this month, those rates -- which serve as a benchmark for the financial system -- remain historically low, with yields still below the expected rate of inflation. The inflation adjusted, or real, 10-year Treasury yield is at minus 0.55%, a sign of ultra loose financial conditions. “The Fed is going to ultimately have to do something about it and I don’t think 7 hikes are going to do it.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 28, 2022 16:51 UTC
Axiata's proposed Link Net acquisition to create new synergies
KUALA LUMPUR: Axiata Group Bhd 's proposal to acquire a 66.03% stake in one of Indonesia's leading providers of high-speed broadband and cable TV could unlock synergies for the telco group.The group announced in a bourse filing yesterday that it has proposed to acquire PT LInk Net Rbk for IDR8.7 trillion (RM2.5bil) or IDR4,800/share via indirect wholly owned subsidiary Axiata Investments (Indonesia) Sdn Bhd and 61.48%-owned PT XL Axiata Tbk.TA Securities in a report said it expects Link Net to be a positive addition for XL due to the synergies that will be created. "According to the announcement, the complement of XL’s mobile business and Link Net’s fixed broadband business is expected to allow delivery of enhanced fixed-mobile converged proposition to both the retail and enterprise markets. "Significant synergies are also expected through the sharing of backbone and transmission networks, and the cross-selling of various services, it said.It added that the acquisition is deemed strategic as it will enable XL to strengthen its presence and fast-track expansion in Indonesia's underpenetrated and fast-growing fixed broadband market.Furthermore, the acquisition is expected to lead to a strong fixed-mobile proposition to help XL defend and grow its market share in Indonesia's highly competitive mobile market while also offering upside to average revenue per user, it said.TA Securities estimates Axiata's effective stake of 58.33% in Link Net to lift its 2023 forecast earnings per share for the group by about 5.9%.The assumptions are based on Link Net's 2020 net profit of RP900bil net estimated finance cost on 100% borrowings to fund the acquisition.The brokerage also expects the potential impact from the total purchase consideration of IDR8.7 trillion on Axiata and XL's balance sheet to increase gross debt to Ebitda from 1.6 times to 1.8x and 0.8 time to one time, which it considers manageable.TA Securities maintained its "buy" recommendation on Axiata with a target price of RM4.55.
Source:The Star
January 28, 2022 15:38 UTC
CapitaLand to reduce reliance on retail, ventures into industrial real estate, logistics, data centres
KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 27): CapitaLand Malaysia REIT Management Sdn Bhd intends to lessen its reliance on the retail segment by diversifying into industrial real estate, logistics and data centres over the next year. Tan revealed that CapitaLand would then continue to focus on the Klang Valley in order to solidify its position before moving on to secondary cities such as Penang and Johor Bahru. “Once we have more concrete information, we definitely can be a bit more concrete and we will share it,” he added. Meanwhile, CapitaLand Malaysia Trust’s net loss narrowed to RM30.93 million in the financial year ended Dec 31, 2021 from RM84.50 million a year ago. Revenue fell 14.3% to RM224.11 million from RM261.34 million previously, mainly due to lower gross rental income, lower car park income, lower recovery of utilities and lower marketing communications income.
Source:The Edge Markets
January 28, 2022 08:04 UTC