Energy
Brent crude was 0.84% lower to US$51.92 per barrel at 3.47pm.
Forex
The ringgit was up 0.04% to 4.2838 versus the US dollar at 3.57pm.
Top foreign stories
Adidas powers ahead in North America and China: German sportswear firm Adidas AG reported another quarter of bumper sales growth in North America and China on Thursday as it took market share from rivals Nike and Under Armour. Adidas said sales grew 28% in China and 26% in North America, although they fell 11% in the tough Russian market. — Reuters
Insurer AXA’s H1 net income edges up and beats forecasts: AXA reported a stronger than expected rise in net profit for the first half of the year, helped by higher asset management and property and casualty earnings, and by lower restructuring costs. Its first-half net income rose 2% to 3.27 billion euros (US$3.9 billion), beating the average of four analyst estimates of 3.14 billion euros in a Reuters poll. — Reuters
Australia’s Commonwealth Bank accused of massive money-laundering breaches: The Australian government on Thursday accused the country’s biggest mortgage lender, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, of widespread breaches of money-laundering and counter-terrorism financing rules. — Reuters
Toshiba to invest in chip line without JV partner Western Digital: Toshiba Corp said on Thursday it would go ahead with the capital investment to build a new memory chip production line without joint-venture partner Western Digital Corp as the two failed to reach an agreement about the investment. The Japanese company said it has increased the amount of capital investment in the Fab 6 production line to 195 billion yen (US$1.76 billion), up by 15 billion yen from its original estimate, because it is now going it alone. — Reuters
Global demand for gold drops 14% in first half of 2017: Global demand for gold fell 14% in the first half of this year mainly due to a sharp decline in purchases by exchange traded funds, the World Gold Council said in a report on Thursday. Central bank buying also fell slightly in the first half but purchases of bars, coins and jewellery grew thanks to strong demand in India and Turkey, it said. — Reuters
China issues rules to curb state firms’ overseas investment risks: China’s finance ministry has issued guidelines on overseas investment of state-owned enterprises, amid a campaign to tighten controls on outbound investment and financial risks. The guidelines will help ”strengthen financial management of overseas investment of state-owned enterprises, prevent financial risks and improve investment efficiency,” the ministry said. — Reuters
Japan’s start-up stock market plunge could pressure small-caps: Japan’s stock market for start-up firms plunged to two-month lows this week as investors pulled money out of the risky and inflated market, raising concerns the broader stock market could also see some spillover. The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Mothers start-up market saw its main index plummet this week, marking a loss of almost 10% from a one-year peak hit in June. — Reuters
Top local stories
KWAP mulls investing in foreign-owned insurers: Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan), Malaysia’s second-biggest pension fund, is considering investing in foreign-owned insurers based in Malaysia, CEO Wan Kamaruzaman Wan Ahmad said. KWAP is asking for pitches after receiving inquiries from banks about possibly buying stakes in overseas insurers’ Malaysian units, he said, adding there’s no deadline for the proposals. — Bloomberg
MMHE second-quarter net loss widens, sees challenging outlook: Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings Bhd’s net loss for the second quarter widened to RM13.7mil due to a decline in heavy engineering revenue. Its revenue fell 13.5% to RM257.26mil. The company expects the outook to remain challenging due to the volatile crude oil price. — StarBiz
TSH Resources sees palm oil yield extending rebound: TSH Resources Bhd, the Malaysian plantation company that also has operations in Indonesia, says palm oil yields will extend their rebound as the impact of El Nino continue to wane. Fresh fruit bunch production jumped more than 20% in the first half from a year earlier to about 600,000 tonness, while output in the second half is expected to accelerate as the yield-sapping effects of El Nino fade. — Bloomberg
Handal Resources clinches ExxonMobil contract: Handal Resources Bhd has secured a contract to provide onshore overhaul, major repair and refurbishment services for offshore cranes from ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Malaysia Inc. — StarBiz
AirAsia Group Q2 load factor rises to 88%: Low-cost carrier AirAsia Group saw its load factor climb three percentage points to 88% in the second quarter, boosted by strong demand for air travel as it expanded its routes and frequencies. It said the total number of passengers carried increased 14% year-on-year to 15.81 million. — StarBiz
CCM expects substantial savings from corporate exercise: Chemical Company of Malaysia Bhd’s (CCM) is expected to see substantial savings from a de-gearing exercise announced on Wednesday. Group MD Leonard Ariff Abdul Shatar said the group would likely see its interest costs to loans reduced by three quarter from the annual RM21mil payment currently post its proposed private placement and land sale exercise. It also expects its total loan level to fall from RM400mil to RM100mil. — StarBiz
Good response to Fajarbaru's maiden Malaysia project: Fajarbaru Builder Group Bhd has garnered a 70% take-up rate for its RM280mil gross development value Rica Residence @ Sentul in Kuala Lumpur, its maiden Malaysian project launched on Thursday. — StarBiz
CGC confident of hitting guarantee target: Credit Guarantee Corporation Malaysia Bhd (CGC) is confident of achieving its target of providing 9,500 guarantees valued at RM4.7 billion this year despite missing its first-half goal by slightly over 40%. As of June 30 this year, CGC had guaranteed about 3,100 companies for a sum valued at RM1.5 billion. — Bernama
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