Energy
Brent Crude was up 0.82% to US$44.50 per barrel at 1.50pm.
Forex
Ringgit up 1.2% to 4.3365 versus the US dollar at 2.18pm.
Top foreign stories
BoJ keeps policy steady even as Japan slips into recession: The Bank of Japan (BoJ) maintained its current pace of monetary stimulus on Thursday, clinging to hopes that an economic recovery is in sight despite soft domestic capital expenditure and challenging global business conditions. — Reuters
Indonesia to require pension funds hold minimum percentage of govt bonds: Indonesia plans to require domestic pension funds and insurers to keep a minimum percentage of government bonds in their portfolios to help provide stability to the debt market, the country’s financial services authority said on Thursday. — Reuters
Australia watchdog clears Shell’s US$70b bid for BG Group: Royal Dutch Shell cleared a major hurdle to its US$70 billion takeover of BG Group on Thursday, winning a green light from Australia’s competition watchdog, which said the deal would not change the dynamics of the domestic market. — Reuters
Merkel: From austerity priestess to‘Mother Angela’: A Protestant pastor’s daughter who grew up behind the Iron Curtain, Angela Merkel has made an unprecedented journey to become chancellor of Germany and the world’s most powerful woman. — AFP
China stock pipeline dries up as foreign funds stay away for now: Fund flows into China via a stock connect scheme have dried up and may not revive until next year as investors digest higher US interest rates and the effects of market intervention. — Reuters
Match Group to go public at low end of price range: The company behind online dating services Tinder, Match and OkCupid will go public at US$12 per share, opting for the low end of its projected price range. — AFP
Square aims IPO price below target range: Mobile payments startup Square will make its stock market debut on Thursday priced lower than expected in a sign that soaring values of tech startups may be coming back down. — AFP
Top local stories
Ni Hsin
turns around in third quarter: Ni Hsin Resources Bhd returned to the black in the third quarter, posting a net profit of RM1.54 million compared with a net loss of RM159,000 a year earlier. The company attributed the better performance to higher overseas sales, aided by the weak ringgit. Its revenue rose 17.3% to RM12.02mil owing to an increase in sales of cookware and clad metal. — StarBiz
Lower Q2 earnings for AMMB: AMMB Holdings Bhd posted lower earnings of RM382.52mil in the second quarter compared with RM445.82mil a year earlier. Its revenue was also lower at RM2.088bil compared with RM2.21bil before. It declared an interim dividend of five sen a share. — StarBiz
Halex to supply rice to Govt Food Bank Project: Halex Holdings Bhd has been awarded a contract of up to RM184mil to supply and package white rice under the Food Bank Project launched by the Malaysian Government. The company said in its filing with Bursa Malaysia on Thursday that its trading subsidiary Halex (M) Sdn Bhd accepted the offer from Koperasi Majlis Belia Felda Malaysia Bhd to procure and package rice for the project, known as Project Gedung Makanan Negara. — StarBiz
Boustead, Transport Ministry yet to decide on AES: Boustead Holdings Bhd and the Transport Ministry have yet to decide on the implementation of the Automated Enforcement System (AES) as both parties are still in discussions, said Boustead deputy chairman/group managing director Tan Sri Lodin Wok Kamaruddin. — Bernama
Borneo Aqua Harvest hits April 2014 high: Borneo Aqua Harvest’s share price surged to RM1.19 – the highest since April 2015 - at midday on Thursday and the company announced it was seeking a trading suspension ahead of an announcement. At midday, it was up 25 sen to RM1.19. There were 5.48 million shares done. — StarBiz
Domestic investors’ confidence still holding up, says RHB: Confidence among domestic investors is still holding up despite uncertainty caused by the goods and service tax and the challenging global economic environment, says RHB Research Institute. — Bernama
Don: Asean single market will take time to fully evolve: The move to set up the ASEAN Economic Community and a common production base has already begun but it will be a long journey ahead for the single market to evolve fully, taking into account the different levels of economic development among member states. “Things are moving slowly but surely, that is important,” said Prof Dr Jorn Dosch, chair of international politics and development cooperation at the Institute of Politics and Administrative Sciences, University of Rostock, Germany. — Bernama
AirAsia launches all-new mobile app: AirAsia has launched its all-new mobile application offering innovative new features, smoother functionality and an improved interface to provide guests with an enhanced and seamless flying experience. — Bernama
4FINGERS to open outlet in KL next month: 4FINGERS Crispy Chicken is expected to open its first store in Kuala Lumpur next month. In a statement on Thursday, 4FINGERS said it has gained a stronger foothold in Singapore and the region, particularly in Malaysia. — Bernama
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