MarketWrap: Wall Street tumbled again on Monday after Britain's shock vote to leave the European Union, sending major US stock indexes to their worst two-day swoon in about 10 months. All three main indexes fell at least 1.5 % in the wake of Thursday's referendum that has roiled global markets and led investors to seek safe-haven assets. - Reuters
The DJIA fell 260.51 points, or 1.5%, to 17,140.24, the S&P 500 lost 36.87 points, or 1.81%, to 2,000.54 and the Nasdaq dropped 113.54 points, or 2.41%, to 4,594.44.
Forex summary
*The ringgit lost 0.39% to 4.1155 per US$
*It was 0.12% lower at 4.5345 per euro
*Up 0.39% to 5.4428 to the pound sterling
*0.05% lower to 3.0243 per Singapore dollar
*0.57% up to 3.0293 per Aussie
*Down 0.67% to 4.0461 per 100 yen
Energy
Crude prices tumbled nearly 3% on Monday, with Brent hitting seven-week lows, as a rallying dollar and market uncertainty over Britain's shocking vote to exit the European Union threatened to sap more strength from oil's rebound this year. Brent settled down US$1.25, or 2.6%, at US$47.16 a barrel. It fell to a seven-week low of US$46.69 during the session.
Top foreign stories
Ratings agencies rip into UK's credit score after Brexit vote: Standard & Poor's stripped Britain of its last remaining top-notch credit rating, dropping it by two grades from "AAA" to "AA" and warning more downgrades could follow. Fitch Ratings also downgraded its ranking for Britain's creditworthiness by one notch, and similarly said more cuts could follow. - Reuters
Volkswagen's US diesel emissions settlement may cost US$15b: Volkswagen AG's settlement with nearly 500,000 US diesel owners and government regulators over polluting vehicles is valued at more than US$15 billion cash, two sources briefed on the matter said on Monday. - Reuters
Texas ex-tycoon Wyly ordered to pay US$1.1b for tax fraud: A federal bankruptcy judge in Texas on Monday ordered former billionaire Sam Wyly to pay US$1.11 billion in back taxes, interest and penalties after finding he committed tax fraud by shielding much of his family's wealth in offshore trusts. - Reuters
Top local stories
Pound sterling continues to fall: Stock markets generally stabilised but the pound sterling continues to come under pressure, following the referendum in the United Kingdom which saw British citizens voting to leave the European Union (EU). The FBM KLCI, in its usual defensive mode, showed resilience amid the current market turmoil as buying support in blue-chip counters saw it perform relatively better than most other markets in the region. The benchmark index closed down 4.53 points to 1,629.52 points on Monday. - StarBiz
Genting Plantations buys rights to palm plantations: Genting Plantations Bhd
’s 73.68%-owned indirect subsidiary Palmindo Holdings Pte Ltd is acquiring the rights to develop 21,995ha of oil palm plantations in West Kalimantan from the Sepanjang group, the former’s equity partner in Palmindo, for US$42.15mil (RM172.9mil) in cash. - StarBiz
RHB Cap unveils board member lineup: RHB Capital Bhd (RHB Cap), which will be transferring its listing to subsidiary RHB Bank Bhd on Tuesday, has released the list of the bank’s board of directors as well as the board audit committee and board nominating and remuneration committee.
RM303mil suit against MMC, MRT partners: MMC Corp Bhd and other parties involved in the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit project are being sued for more than RM300mil for an alleged breach of contract relating to a land acquisition for the project. MMC Corp said the suit against its jointly controlled entity, MMC Gamuda KVMRT (PDP) Sdn Bhd, was filed by Accolade Land Sdn Bhd at the Kuala Lumpur High Court. - StarBiz
SapKen signs gas sales agreement with Petronas: SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd (SapKen) has signed the SK310 upstream gas sales agreement in relation to the production of gas from the B15 gas field. - StarBiz
StanChart to invest RM100mil in tech hub: Standard Chartered Bank (StanChart) will invest some US$30mil (RM123.3mil) over the next three years to support its global technology and operation hub under wholly owned subsidiary Scope International (M) Sdn Bhd. - StarBiz
Sarawak Hidro plans RM5.5bil sukuk sale in July: Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, the state-owned developer of Malaysia’s biggest hydropower project, plans to offer RM5.5bil of sukuk without a government guarantee, sources said. Sarawak Hidro, owned by the Finance Ministry, aims to sell the Islamic bonds in July and will use the proceeds to refinance exist- ing debt, according to the people. - Bloomberg
Sunway wins RM66mil contract from Zecon: Sunway Construction Group Bhd has bagged a RM66.3mil electrical services-related contract from Zecon Medicare Sdn Bhd. - StarBiz
YTL hunts for UK assets amid Brexit shock: YTL Corp Bhd, which snapped up a British utility from the now defunct Enron Corp more than a decade ago, is looking for bargains again after the UK vote to leave the European Union sent assets plummeting, reports Bloomberg. - StarBiz
Maybank appointed joint lead arranger for New York project loan: Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) has been appointed the joint lead arranger, together with Kuwait’s Warba Bank, for the construction of a luxury residential tower in Manhattan, New York worth US$219mil. The financing comprises a US$174mil senior construction loan and a US$45mil mezzanine loan. - StarBiz
AirAsia buys 80% of T&Co Coffee: AirAsia Bhd is acquiring an 80% stake in T&Co Coffee Sdn Bhd for RM914,000 from Datin Charlene Yeo Ming Ling. - StarBiz
Bread maker High-5 shuts operations: High-5 Consolidated Bhd has confirmed it has closed down its operations, saying it is abid-ng by a court order requiring all occupiers to vacate the premises, from which the bread maker operates. - Edge FD
Foreign selling narrows to RM134.3m: Foreign selling on Bursa Malaysia was marginal last week ahead of the UK vote to leave the European Union (Brexit) last Friday, according to MIDF Research. The net amount offoaded by foreign investors declined substantially to only RM134.3 million last week, from RM1.01 billion the week prior. - Edge FD
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