MarketWatch: Anxiety about Greece may keep Wall Street on edge early this week, as the country moves toward what was once thought unthinkable: a default and a full exit from the eurozone. While European markets are braced for a wave of contagion from Greece today, as a result of a possible "Grexit" that most had still assumed was unlikely as late as Friday afternoon, the effect on US markets is expected to be bumpy, but not as dramatic as in Europe. - Reuters
Top foreign news
New aid for Greece: Greece may seek 24 billion euros in a first tranche of bailout aid from international lenders in August to prop up its banks and repay debts falling due at the ECB, a pro-government Greek newspaper said in its early Sunday editions. Athens is in talks with the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund to secure up to 86 billion euros (US$94.48bil) in bailout aid, the report said. It will be its third bailout since 2010. - Reuters
Pacific Rim free trade talks fall short of deal: Pacific Rim trade ministers failed to clinch a deal to free up trade between a dozen nations after a dispute flared up over auto trade between Japan and North America, New Zealand dug in over dairy trade and no agreement was reached on monopoly periods for next-generation drugs. Trade ministers from the 12 nations negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which would stretch from Japan to Chile and cover 40% of the world economy, fell just short of a deal at talks on the Hawaiian island of Maui but were confident an agreement was within reach. - Reuters
US wage growth brakes in second quarter: US labour costs in the second quarter recorded their smallest increase in 33 years as workers earned less in commissions and bonuses, in what appeared to be a temporary wage growth setback against the backdrop of diminishing labour market slack. The Employment Cost Index, the broadest measure of labor costs, edged up 0.2% in the second quarter, the Labour Department said. That was the smallest gain since the series started in the second quarter of 1982 and followed a 0.7% rise in the first quarter. - Reuters
E&Y Japan arm launches internal probe of Toshiba audit: The Japanese affiliate of Ernst & Young LLC has launched an in-house investigation into its audit of Toshiba Corp in the wake of the electronics maker's US$1.2bil accounting scandal, a source said. Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC has established a team of about 20 executives to investigate whether there were any problems with how it conducted its audits of Toshiba, the person said. - Reuters
Top local stories
Logistics tie-up?: Century Logistics Holdings Bhd is in talks with parties from South Korea and Japan looking for a strategic tie-up for access into the Malaysian market, sources say. The deal, sources said, may include equity participation by one of these foreign parties into the Malaysian integrated logistics services provider, although it is unclear how big a stake could be involved. - StarBiz
One million vehicle sales within sight: Annual vehicle sales can hit a million by 2020, given the right economic fundamentals and proper incentives in place. But as it stands now, it may be a tall order if annual sales growth continues to taper, says Malaysian Automotive Association president Datuk Aishah Ahmad. - StarBiz
Top Glove eyes RM2.5bil revenue this year: Top Glove Corp Bhd
, the world’s biggest rubber glove maker, is eyeing RM2.5bil revenue this year. Chairman Tan Sri Lim Wee Chai said the group’s annual growth rate was about 27% and he is optimistic the target would be achieved. - StarBiz
Northern Corridor on track for RM10bil investments: The Northern Corridor Implementation Authority is on track to achieve its RM10bil investment target by year-end, which is also part of its key performance index. Chief executive Datuk Redza Rafiq said that for the first half of this year, the Northern Corridor Economic Region had raked in private investments of RM7.8bil. - StarBiz
Fewer contruction jobs in Q1: The value of construction jobs in the country in the first quarter of this year fell to RM11.6bil from RM12.5bil in the corresponding period a year ago. The number of jobs given out also declined to 614 from 671, according to the latest Construction Industry Development Board report. - StarBiz
NTPM wants to make mark in Vietnam: NTPM Holdings Bhd, the producer Premier tissue, is negotiating for a couple of orders worth about RM20mil per year for its new operations in Ho Chih Minh City, Vietnam. Group managing director Lee See Jin said the orders were among the several business deals that the group were trying to seal for the new manufacturing entity in Vietnam. - StarBiz
Intra-Asean trade to grow at 30% rate by 2020: Intra-Asean trade is expected to grow to 30% of total trade by 2020, driven by the Asean Economic Community initiatives, says Malaysia External Trade Development Corp chief executive officer Datuk Dzulkifli Mahmud. - Bernama
SEB ready to fullfil power demand: Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB) may build the proposed Baleh and Baram hydroelectric dams simultaneously to meet the “exceptionally” strong demand for power from industries in Bintulu’s Samalaju Industrial Park within the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy. Group chief executive officer Datuk Torstein Dale Sjotveit said SEB was ready should the Sarawak government require it to implement the two projects simultaneously. - StarBiz
Lotus picks Fujian to build first China plant by 2019: Proton Holdings Bhd’s sports car subsidiary, Lotus Group International Ltd, plans to build a plant to manufacture Lotus-brand sport utility vehicles (SUVs) in Fujian province, China, by 2019. The proposed plant will have an initial capacity to produce 100,000 SUVs per year. Proton chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Harith Abdullah said the move is in line with Lotus Group’s plan to manufacture its first SUV in China. - Edge FD
Exports sputtering to continue: The slower pace of export growth looks set to per- sist even as a weaker ringgit makes Malaysian-made goods more com- petitive, no thanks to commodity price weakness and falling export demand, said economists. They predict Malaysia’s exports in the second half of this year to grow at 1% to 3%. - Edge FD
Lee Swee Kiat cuts growth forecast: Natural latex foam mattress manufacturer Lee Swee Kiat Group Bhd — whose share price hit a 10-year high last week — is cutting its double-digit revenue and profit growth forecast for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2015 to single-digit, after its domestic sales were tripped up by the goods and services tax that came in on April 1, and have fallen some 40% to 50% since then. - Edge FD
Local semiconductor firms expected to see lower growth: Malaysian semiconductor companies are expected to see lower year-on-year growth this year due to the economic slowdown in China. “Growth in earnings for Malaysian companies will not be so bullish this year. Earnings could be flat,” an analyst said, adding that the slowdown in China’s economy is expected to place pressure on sales of smartphones in China. - Edge FD
July sees four share splits to entice investors to trade: A common cor-porate exercise among Bursa Malaysia companies of late is to undertake a share split. Last month alone, the market saw no less than four share split proposals — Taliworks Corp Bhd, Lii Hen Industries Bhd, Tasco Bhd and VS Industry Bhd — all for the conventional reason of enhancing the marketability and liquidity of their shares. Corporate finance advisory firm Astramina Advisory Sdn Bhd managing director Wong Muh Rong, however, reckoned that the prevailing weak market sentiment, which resulted in low trading activity, could also be one of the motivating factors for these companies to consider splitting their shares. - Edge FD
Cash-rich China Automobile Parts looking at acquisitions: China Automobile Parts Holdings Bhd is on the lookout for acquisition targets to strengthen its core business in Chi- na’s automotive parts manufacturing industry, said its managing director Li Guo Qing. The China-based auto chassis components manufacturer for now is holding on to its cash amid the lukewarm economic activity in China. - Edge FD
Events calendar
Release of Nomura/JMMA Manufacturing PMI for July (0135 GMT).
Vehicle sales released by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association ()500 GMT).
Federal Open Market Committee member Jerome H. Powell delivers speech. His comments may affect dollar, an therefore trigger a short-term movement positive or negative trend (1300 GMT).
Markit Economics issues the July Manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index (PMI) for the United States (1345 GMT).
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