MarketWrap: Wall Street sold off on Tuesday as investors boosted their bets on the Federal Reserve raising rates later this year, while Home Depot dragged on indexes following its quarterly report. - Reuters
DJIA fell 180.73 points, or 1.02%, to 17,529.98, the S&P 500 lost 19.45 points, or 0.94%, to 2,047.21 and the Nasdaq dropped 59.73 points, or 1.25%, to 4,715.73.
Forex summary
*The ringgit fell 0.15% to 4.0260 per US$
*It was flat at 4.5524 per euro
*Down 0.06% to 5.8196 to the pound sterling
*0.06% higher to 2.9351 per Singapore dollar
*0.11% higher to 2.9411 per Aussie
*Down 0.38% to 3.6972 per 100 yen
Energy
Oil prices rose for a second straight day on Tuesday, with US futures hitting seven-month highs, on expectations of a drawdown in US crude stockpiles and a new wildfire threat on Canadian oil supplies. Brent crude closed up 31 cents at US$49.28, hitting a six-month high of US$49.58. In after-hours trade, it got to US$49.75. - Reuters
Top foreign stories
Novartis splits drugs business into two, pharma chief to leave: Novartis is splitting its pharmaceuticals division into two business units, one focused on cancer and the second on other drugs, while switching out its current pharma head in the second high-profile management reshuffle this year. - Reuters
Apple boss Cook to tap Indian software talent during maiden visit: Apple Inc is set to announce plans to expand its Indian software development centre and build an accelerator programme for local start-ups, two sources aware of the investment said on Tuesday, hours before chief executive Tim Cook's maiden visit. - Reuters
Japan brewer Asahi says it won't bid for SABMiller's East Europe assets: Asahi Group Holdings Ltd will not bid for the Eastern European assets that SABMiller Plc is selling to appease anti-monopoly regulators, the president of Japan's biggest brewer, Akiyoshi Koji, said on Tuesday. Instead, he said Asahi will focus on raising sales of the Peroni, Grolsch and Meantime beer brands that it agreed to buy from SABMiller last month for 2.55 billion euros (US$2.89 billion). - Reuters
Top local stories
Guarded optimism on oil: Government officials and oil and gas industry executives expressed guarded optimism as crude oil inched towards U$50 a barrel, saying it’s still too early to make any revisions to the Budget 2016 projections. A top official in the Finance Ministry said recent improvements in global crude oil prices would not lead to any further budgetary review. - StarBiz
Tax for online businesses on the cards: The Government will be looking at ways to tax individuals engaged in digital or online businesses, such as Uber or GrabCar, to address its lost opportunity for revenue from a fast-growing segment of the economy. The Inland Revenue Board is doing a thorough evaluation and study to go into taxing individuals engaged in digital or online businesses as the income they earn is taxable, said Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah. - StarBiz
UMW-OG cuts 300 jobs: UMW Oil and Gas Corp Bhd (UMW-OG) said it has laid off some 300 contract staff as part of a group-wide cost-cutting exercise due to lack of new jobs. The company currently has 736 employees, about a third of whom are contract staff. - StarBiz
AirAsia, budget carrier set to soar in Asean open skies: Low-cost airline groups, such as AirAsia Bhd, and manufacturers of smaller passenger aircraft will be among the main winners after South-East Asia's open skies agreement finally came into effect last month, although airport capacity constraints could limit the benefits. - Reuters
Amway Q1 profit halves on weaker ringgit: Amway (M) Holdings Bhd’s net profit nearly halved to RM18.05mil in the first quarter due to lower sales and higher import costs primarily from a weaker ringgit and higher transfer price, as well as increased sales incentive provisions and higher operating expenses. Its revenue fell 5% to RM306mil. - StarBiz
Uchi Q1 earnings rise 31%: Uchi Technologies Bhd’s net profit was up 30.8% to RM13.42mil for its first quarter on the back of the strengthening US dollar against the ringgit. Revenue increased 19.4% to RM30.6mil. - StarBiz
IOI steps up efforts to lift RSPO suspension: IOI Corp Bhd is stepping up counter measure efforts to lift the suspension of its Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification. The group is expected to submit by end of this month a quarterly progress report to the RSPO, as requested by the latter. - StarBiz
Employers want HRDF unutilised funds credited back to contributors: The estimated RM45mil under the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) that will be converted into unutilised funds under the 1Malaysia Globally Recognised Industry Professional Certificate Programme should be credited back to the respective contributors rather than putting them in a common pool, says Malaysian Employers Federation president Tan Sri Azman Shah Haron. - StarBiz
Carlsberg mulls price hikes later this year: Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd is considering another round of price hikes later this year. Outgoing managing director Henrik Juel Andersen said this was, however, still under the evaluation as the brewer assessed the impact of the March hike in excise duties on its business. Carlsberg reported a 33% jump in net profit to RM62.9mil in the first quarter on revenue of RM455.72mil, up 6.1%. - StarBiz
Boustead Plantations profit rises six-fold: Boustead Plantations Bhd’s earnings rose nearly six-fold to RM42.6mil in the first quarter largely to the gain on disposal of land. Revenue came in at RM137mil, up 3.8% from RM131.9mil a year earlier. - StarBiz
Icon delays delivery of four new vessels: Icon Offshore Bhd, an operator of offshore support vessels, is delaying the delivery of four new vessels, as the company seeks to conserve cash and weather a glut in the industry. The company was deferring the delivery and payment for the vessels of about RM90mil, which was to be spent this year. - StarBiz
Jimah’s debt charges, depreciation drag Edra to bigger loss: Edra Global Energy Bhd’s purchase of a 75% stake in Jimah Energy Ventures Sdn Bhd iwas the main cause the power producer’s net loss multiplied by 7.88 times to RM475.07 million in the financial year ended March 31, 2015, from the previous year, as its interests paid rose by 37.4% to RM1.07 billion and its plant’s depreciation charge went up by 56.2% to RM460.33 million. Ezra also incurred RM250 million in impairment losses on goodwill, its FY15 financial statement showed. - Edge FD
Daim’s son now Reliance Pacific’s largest shareholder: Datuk Md Wira Dani Abdul Daim, son of former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin, has upped his stake in Reliance Pacific Bhd to 265.8 million shares, or substantial 30.96% stake. Dani acquired a block of 160.3 million Reliance Pacific shares, or 18.7%, last Friday via an off-market transaction, Bursa Malaysia filing shows. - Edge FD
Zelan eyes RM4b local infrastructure contracts: Zelan Bhd is eyeing RM4 billion worth of contracts this year, comprising local infrastructure projects, as it winds down its overseas operations. Its managing director Adnan Mohammad said despite the current challenging economy, Zelan is still putting in tenders for local infrastructure projects. - Edge FD
Top Glove gets SC nod for SGX listing: Top Glove Corp Bhd, the world’s largest rubber glove maker, has received the Securities Commission (SC)’s approval to have a secondary listing on the Mainboard of the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX). - Edge FD
Malaysia Pacific Corp narrows net loss in 3Q: Malaysia Pacific Corp Bhd narrowed its net loss to RM3.02 million for its third quarter from RM5.17 million a year earlier on lower provision of revolving credit interest. Revenue fell 13.7% to RM2.87 million due to lower occupancy rate and further delay in property sales in Iskandar Malaysia, Johor. - Edge FD