The Star Online: Business
The Star Online: Business |
- RHB Research: Hong Leong Bank's H1 net profit above consensus
- Market mixed in early trade, HLFG, Maybank up
- Asian shares edge higher, yen falls on BOJ report
| RHB Research: Hong Leong Bank's H1 net profit above consensus Posted: 24 Feb 2013 05:50 PM PST KUALA LUMPUR: RHB Research Institute said Hong Leong Bank's net profit for the first half ended Dec 31, 2012 of RM986mil (up 32% on-year) was 4% to 4.5% above consensus and its original estimates for the current financial year ending June 30, 2013, when annualised. It said on Monday the pre-impairment operating profit, when annualised, was 4% below its estimates but this was more than offset by a net writeback in loan impairment allowance and stronger than expected associate contribution. "Annualised loan growth was just 5.3% as growth was adversely impacted by the drop in trade financing and paydown in project loans. Customer deposits rose 1.2% (annualised) while the loan-deposit and current and savings accounts ratios were 73.5% and 24.7% respectively," it said. RHB Research said the gross impaired loan ratio improved by 12 basis points on-quarter to 1.49%. An interim gross dividend per share of 15 sen was declared. "Given the softer loan growth thus far, management thinks FY13 loan growth would likely be around high single digit, as compared to the earlier loan growth guidance of 10%-12%. HL Bank targets to keep net interest margins above 2% and guided for normalised credit cost of 20 to 25 basis points," it said. RHB Research said the FY13-FY15 net profit projections were raised by 2.5%-3.6% while fair value was raised to RM14.30 from RM13.90. It kept its Neutral call unchanged. |
| Market mixed in early trade, HLFG, Maybank up Posted: 24 Feb 2013 05:46 PM PST KUALA LUMPUR: The broader market was mixed in early trade on Monday as investors sought for directions following the recent corporate results while HLFG and Maybank were among the major gainers. At 9.28am, the FBM KLCI was up 0.03 point to 1,622.11. Turnover was 88.31 million shares valued at RM48.10mil. There were 90 gainers and 90 losers while 139 counters were unchanged. Asian stocks rose, with the regional benchmark index extending last week's advance, as Japanese shares gained on speculation the next Bank of Japan governor will deploy aggressive monetary easing, according to Bloomberg. MIDF Equities Research said despite a general weakness in the prices of shares listed on Bursa, foreign investors continued to be net buyers of Malaysia equity, for 11 weeks in a row until last week. "On a net basis, foreign investors bought +RM283mil in the open market last week, compared with +RM437.2mil the week before," it said. Finance and bank stocks were mixed. HLFG was the top gainer, rising 18 sen to RM13.88 while Maybank added six sen to RM1.44. HL Cap fell 12 sen to RM1.86 while HLBank and Public Bank shed six sen each to RM14.44 and RM15.68. UMW added 12 sen to RM12.22. Small cap stocks were also on the move, with Ingress rising 13 sen to RM1.55, TN Logistics and NCN, up 11 sen each to RM1.99 and RM4.78. SP Setia fell 12 sen to RM3.20. Among the plantations, KLK fell the most, down 18 sen to RM20.42, Batu Kawan 10 sen to RM18 while IOI Corp shed six sen to RM4.97. |
| Asian shares edge higher, yen falls on BOJ report Posted: 24 Feb 2013 05:23 PM PST TOKYO: Asian shares edged higher on Monday, with investors still picking up shares battered by last week's steep plunge, while the yen fell to fresh lows on news a reflationary advocate could head the Bank of Japan next month. The news Japan's government is likely to nominate Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda, an advocate of aggressive monetary easing, as its next central bank governor, is set to be a major factor in financial markets this week. Markets are pondering whether Italy's weekend elections will produce a stable government, and the implications of that for euro zone cohesion, while Moody's credit downgrade on Britain will play on confidence in the pound and government bonds. Investors also await testimony on Tuesday from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke for further clues of when the Fed may slow or stop buying bonds. Financial markets were rattled last week after minutes of the Fed's January meeting suggested some Fed officials were mulling scaling back its strong monetary stimulus earlier than expected. The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS was up 0.1 percent, pulled higher by Australian shares .AXJO which gained 0.6 percent on reassuring comments from U.S. Federal Reserve officials on the bank's current stimulus program, which has helped underpin risk sentiment globally. South Korean shares .KS11 opened up 0.2 percent, with the nation's new leader, who has shown willingness to talk down the won, being sworn in on Monday. Tokyo's Nikkei stock average .N225 opened 1.6 percent higher. .T Early on Monday, the yen touched its lowest since May 2010 of 94.61 yen against the dollar, while the euro rose to a high of 124.83 yen, still off its 34-month peak of 127.71 set early this month. The Nikkei newspaper reported the Japanese government is likely to nominate Haruhiko Kuroda and Kikuo Iwata, both vocal advocates of aggressive monetary expansion, as BOJ governor and deputy governor. The dollar fell sharply to below 93 yen last week on media reports that Toshiro Muto, a former financial bureaucrat perceived as less willing to take unconventional steps, was the frontrunner candidate for the top BOJ job. "The dollar's move this morning is merely a rebound from disappointment on Muto last week. I don't think this topic will be enough to hoist the dollar above 95 yen," said Hiroshi Maeba, head of FX trading Japan at UBS in Tokyo. "No matter who is elected at the BOJ, it will not affect the longer-term trend of a weak yen," he said. Speculation over the BOJ has been a key factor driving the yen lower recently due to anticipation for strong reflationary measures, but other fundamental factors such as Japan's deteriorating trade balances and signs of firmer U.S. growth also supported a weakening yen trend. Abe told Americans on Friday "I am back and so is Japan" and vowed to get the world's third biggest economy growing again. Investors remained cautious before the full official results of Italy's elections come out on Tuesday, worried a potential political stalemate could impede Rome's progress on fiscal reforms. The euro was up 0.1 percent to $1.3192, off Friday's six-week low of $1.31445. Sterling fell to a 31-month low of $1.5073 early on Monday and a record low against the New Zealand dollar at NZ$1.8025 following Friday's one-notch downgrade of Britain's prized triple-A sovereign rating by Moody's. Investors will also seek signs of recovery from the flash estimate of China's manufacturing PMI from HSBC/Markit due later in the session. Wall Street ended higher on Friday, boosted strong earnings from Dow component Hewlett-Packard (HPQ.N), but the benchmark Standard & Poor's Index .SPX posted its first weekly decline of the year. European shares rose on Friday after data showed German business morale surged at its fastest pace in over two years in February. Hedge funds and other big speculators cut their bullish bets on U.S. commodities by nearly $13 billion, the most in about 10 months, in the week to February 19 to $69 billion, just before oil and metals prices tumbled last week on rumors a commodities fund was dumping positions, trade data showed on Friday. U.S. crude was up 0.1 percent to $93.26 a barrel. - Reuters |
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