Business Times (Malaysia) articles from May 2001

Business Times (Malaysia) archives from May 2001

LRT firms need govt help.
May 31, 2001... KUALA Lumpur's light rail transport (LRT) operators will have difficulty raising money without intervention by the Government to repay loans taken to build their infrastruture, analysts say. They believe that the options are limited for...

Telekom Q1 net profit up 38.2pc to RM278m.
May 31, 2001... TELEKOM Malaysia Bhd's group net profit jumped 38.28 per cent to RM278.06 million for the first quarter ended March 31 2001, with its mobile telephony and multimedia services doing particularly well. For the rest of the year, the company...

MAS will not hive off domestic operations (HL).
May 31, 2001... MALAYSIAN Airline System Bhd (MAS) has ruled out the possibility of hiving off its domestic operations even as it announced a worse than expected set of figures for the financial year ended March 31 2000. Reporting losses for the fifth...

New SC rules hinder listing of shipping firms.
May 31, 2001... THE Securities Commission (SC), through its recently amended guidelines on the public offerings of securities, appear to have made it tougher for shipping companies to seek a listing. Under the new guidelines announced on May 10,...

Dr M: No special treatment for winners in Umno polls.
May 31, 2001... PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Umno members who have been elected in the recent party divisional elections will not be accorded any special treatment, even by the Government. Dr Mahathir, who is also party president,...

Daim again brushes off talk that he is quitting.
May 31, 2001... FINANCE Minister Tun Daim Zainuddin once again brushed off rumours about him leaving the ministry, saying that he never brought up the idea of resigning. "When did I say I want to resign? You all been saying that I want to resign," he...

AE Automation expects to achieve 15-20pc growth this year.
May 31, 2001... AE AUTOMOTION (M) Sdn Bhd, a manufacturer of automated material handling and factory automation systems, expects to register growth of between 15 per cent and 20 per cent this year, on a turnover of RM40 million last year. Chief...

Prudential launches new trust funds in Malaysia.
May 31, 2001... UK FINANCIAL services giant Prudential Plc announced yesterday the launch of new unit trust operations in Malaysia. Prudential Unit Trusts Bhd (PUTB) is the latest addition to Prudential's rapidly growing mutual funds presence in Asia and...

Enormous potential in tilapia farming.
May 31, 2001... TILAPIA is not new to Malaysia. The farming of tilapia was first incepted in Malaysia in the 1950s with the introduction of the "mossambica" species. At that point of time, the species appeared to be a pest due to its prolific nature...

Netvigator adds new business, finance channel.
May 31, 2001... NETVIGATOR.COM.MY has launched its latest business and finance channel called Bizwise to cater for those seeking compehensive, up-to-date and real time financial, business as well as stock market information. With the launch of Bizwise,...

No directive yet on state unit trust funds.
May 31, 2001... STATE unit trust fund managers have yet to receive a clear directive from the Federal Government regarding the consolidation of their unit trusts. The consolidation issue is expected to be raised during a meeting of the State Unit Trust...

eOneNet, NCCIM to launch second e-Business Ownership Campaign.
May 31, 2001... EONENET.COM, the local e-business services provider and Internet marketing consultant, and the National Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (NCCIM) will be presenting the second e-Business Ownership Campaign (eBOC) in Malaysia. ...

IT firm to set up software development centre in MSC.
May 31, 2001... DELIRIUMCYBERTOUCH, the newly merged Hong Kong-Malaysian company specialising in getting traditional brick-and-mortar companies onto the Internet, is planning to set up a software development centre based on new Internet technology in the...

Indonesia woes benefit nobody.
May 31, 2001... TODAY will see a drama unfold yet again in Jakarta as embattled President Abdurrahman Wahid faces his strongest challenge since assuming power 19 months ago - a vote in the lower house of Parliament for an impeachment hearing. The Indonesian...

Index rises marginally.
May 31, 2001... THE MSC IT Index closed at 133.353 points yesterday, increasing by 0.617 point from 132.736 on Monday, reports www.MSCTimes.com. This represents an increase of 0.46 per cent over the previous trading day with the market capitalisation of...

'Listen to Palestine before it's too late'.
May 31, 2001... FOR sending his potent F-16 fighter-bombers to fire indiscriminately at the Palestinians, Ariel Sharon and his Government in Tel Aviv are murderers. He deserves all the criticisms thrown at him. But in a prolonged oppression such as that...

Puncak Alam hands over phase 2 houses.
May 31, 2001... PUNCAK Alam Housing Sdn Bhd, the developer of Bandar Baru Puncak Alam in Selangor, has recently handed over the residential properties of Phase 2 Zone B and E of the township to the purchasers. The handing over was officiated by its...

Fluidity a feature in local politics.
May 31, 2001... A CERTAIN "fluidity" besets Malaysian politics, said a suave, fast-talking chap, who appears to be a local, and who apparently makes the big bucks. This was at an enlightening gathering attended by foreigners last Friday, the analysis...

Office-space markets in region slump.
May 31, 2001... AFTER a year of vibrant growth, office property markets in Asia Pacific have softened in the first quarter of this year, with the exception of India, Australia and New Zealand. Reasons include the weakening of the global economy and...

G-15 nations working towards united front ahead of WTO talks.
May 31, 2001... JAKARTA, Tues: The Group of Fifteen (G-15) nations are trying to find a united voice with which to present to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) meeting in Doha later this year. Foreign ministers of the 19 developing economies who are...

Genting posts lower Q1 pre-tax profit.
May 31, 2001... GENTING Bhd has posted a lower group net profit of RM68.94 million for the first quarter ended March 31 2001, compared to RM137.98 million in the same quarter last year. Group pre-tax profit was down to RM160.3 million from RM281.8...

'Negative repercussions on sector if Govt acts on telcos'.
May 31, 2001... THE Government's decision to punish cellular phone companies for failing to improve their services will have severe negative repercussions on the local telecommunications industry, telco executives say. "The move has not been properly...

Klibor futures finish higher.
May 31, 2001... THREE-month Klibor (Kuala Lumpur Interbank Offered Rate) futures on the Commodity and Monetary Exchange of Malaysia closed higher yesterday on some short-covering, a dealer said. "Players were seen taking their positions especially on the...

Ahmad Zaki to undertake construction jobs in India.
May 31, 2001... AHMAD Zaki Resources Bhd has entered into a joint venture to undertake road construction, furnishing and other related businesses in India. Ahmad Zaki, Silvarajoo Thevarajoo and CIDB Holdings Sdn Bhd will form a joint venture company,...

Allianz asks FIC to review MBA takeover's conditions.
May 31, 2001... ALLIANZ Aktiengesellschaft (Allianz) has submitted an appeal to the Foreign Investment Committee (FIC) to review certain conditions regarding the company's proposed takeover of Malaysia British Assurance Bhd (MBA). In an announcement to...

Kloffe futures close lower.
May 31, 2001... THE Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange Composite Index (KLCI) futures on the Kuala Lumpur Options and Financial Futures Exchange (Kloffe) closed lower yesterday. At the close, the May futures shed 2.3 points to 568.2 with 791 lots traded while...

Malaysia, Venezuela pledge palm oil cooperations.
May 31, 2001... Primary Industries Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik said Venezuela is keen to seek potential Malaysian investors and share experience with several plantation companies from the private sector. "Venezuela invites potential Malaysian...

UBS eyes 10pc jump in users from iBroadNet collaboration.
May 31, 2001... UBS Corp Sdn Bhd (UBS), a Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) status company, hopes to secure a 10 per cent jump in the number of new users this year, especially from its collaboration with iBroadNet.Com Sdn Bhd. UBS Corp marketing director...

Primadeli opens second outlet.
May 31, 2001... PRIMADELI Franchise (M) Sdn Bhd has opened its second outlet at Subang Parade in Subang Jaya. The first PrimaDeli outlet was opened at The Summit shopping mall, Subang USJ last December and it is becoming increasingly popular with...

Plan to develop Pulau Jerejak.
May 31, 2001... UDA Holdings Bhd (UDA), the property development and management arm of the Government and Penang State Government, plans to convert Pulau Jerejak, the former prison island, into a tourist resort and recreational centre by year-end. UDA...

BGroup share price eases after revamp announcement.
May 31, 2001... SHARE price of Berjaya Group Bhd (BGroup) has been rapidly falling in the last four trading sessions after the company announced a proposed restructuring exercise. A local dealer said heavy selling of BGroup shares might reflect...

Drop in freight rates linked to US economic slowdown, say officials.
May 31, 2001... FREIGHT rates for containerised cargo have plummeted between 10 and 15 per cent during the second quarter from the first three months this year, as countries in the region are beginning to feel the effect of the slowdown in the US economy....

Sarawak Electricity Supply Corp.
May 31, 2001... SARAWAK Electricity Supply Corp's group pre-tax profit for the three months ended March 31 2001 fell to RM35.3 million from RM46.5 million in the previous corresponding period. The company said the fall was due to higher generation cost...

New system causes delays at KLIA.
May 31, 2001... THE new numbering system for Customs clearance which was implemented at the KL International Airport (KLIA) last Wednesday is causing delays at the airport, air freight forwarders claimed. The Air Freight Forwarders of Malaysia (Afam) in...

Afam, MasKargo bury hatchet.
May 31, 2001... THE Airfreight Fowarders Association of Malaysia (Afam) and Malaysia Airlines, which have been at odds with each other for many years, have begun a new chapter in their relationship. The reconciliation efforts began with the appointment...

Three-month Klibor futures finish higher.
May 31, 2001... THREE-month Klibor (Kuala Lumpur Interbank Offered Rate) futures on the Commodity and Monetary Exchange of Malaysia ended higher yesterday. A dealer said the firmer futures market was due to continued short covering activities. June...

TRI's first quarter pre-tax profit falls 72pc to RM2.4m.
May 31, 2001... TECHNOLOGY Resources Industries Bhd (TRI) recorded a 72.1 per cent drop in pre-tax profit for the first quarter ended March 31 2001 to RM2.4 million, due to higher interest expenses and depreciation charges. Loss after tax and...

E-business infrastructure - wash your hands off it.
May 31, 2001... AT A time when companies are talking about the need to centrally manage their e-business infrastructure, here's another way of looking at it - quit worrying about it and pass the worry to someone else. Let's face it, a robust...

Women still earning lower income.
May 31, 2001... DESPITE increasing job opportunities for women through development of information and communication technologies (ICTs), gender inequality will persist if there is no appropriate policies tabled for female workers. According the...

What's new in the new economy?
May 31, 2001... "OLD habits die hard," so they said. Apply this adage to people who say they are practising the new economy and they will tell you there is nothing new. A great many of us are in fact caught in this situation. Many believe what they are...

CyberTouch survives crises.
May 31, 2001... TO HEAR Steve Hsia speak of the near-death experiences CyberTouch Sdn Bhd (now deliriumCyberTouch) has experienced in its five-year history, one cannot help but marvel at the fact that not only is the company still around, it is thriving. ...

Malaysia reiterates fear of losing policy discretion.
May 31, 2001... JAKARTA, Wed: Malaysia today reiterated its fear of the danger that developing countries may lose their policy discretion at the coming World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiations. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad said...

Journalists stage demo against refusal to enter summit hall.
May 31, 2001... JAKARTA, Wed: Indonesians seem to have an ingrained art of demonstrating. While demonstrators were gathering in force at the Indonesian parliament to decide on the fate of its embattled president, Abdurrahman Wahid, media photographers...

Index slips marginally.
May 31, 2001... THE MSC IT Index closed at 133.136 points yesterday, decreasing by 0.217 point from 133.353 on Tuesday, reports www.MSCTimes.com. This represents a fall of 0.162 per cent over the previous trading day with the market capitalisation of the...

Century Square rentals up for review.
May 31, 2001... CYBERJAYA master developer Setia Haruman Sdn Bhd may no longer subsidise rentals for its office development project in Century Square with a rate review scheduled in its board meeting next month. At the same time, the developer is banking...

Bank opens Financial Spa to meet needs of today's customers.
May 31, 2001... STANDARD Chartered Bank Malaysia Bhd yesterday opened its first "Financial Spa" at the Lot 10 shopping mall in Jalan Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur. Chief executive officer Michael Hague said the branch design, which encapsulates...

StanChart to boost market base by relocating branches.
May 31, 2001... STANDARD Chartered Bank Malaysia Bhd (StanChart) plans to strengthen its foothold in the market by relocating branches so as to work around the current regulation that limits the expansion of its network. Chief executive officer Michael...

Call for single supervisory body for Islamic banking.
May 31, 2001... ISLAMIC financial institutions will be better prepared to operate on a global scale if there is a single supervisory body for Islamic banking, Bank Islam managing director Datuk Ahmad Tajudin Abdul Rahman said. "Currently, it is...

Japan still top market for Malaysian timber products.
May 31, 2001... THE short-term outlook for wood and wood-based products this year is not promising and demand is expected to weaken further, due especially to the sluggish Japanese economy and the depreciation of the yen. The Malaysian Timber Industry...

Dancing into the record book.
May 31, 2001... ABOUT 1,750 adults and children danced their way into the Malaysia Book of Records at the Padang Merdeka in Kota Kinabalu last night. The event, dubbed Sazauthon, made it into the record book for having the largest number of people...

Few EPF members opt to maintain 11pc contributions.
May 31, 2001... THE heated debate a month or two ago over the 9 per cent versus 11 per cent Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributions has turned out to be little more than academic, as only 78,656 contributors as of April 30 had opted for the latter rate....

Hume out to complete Nanyang sale today.
May 31, 2001... HUME Industries (Malaysia) Bhd may be trying to complete the sale of its Chinese newspaper group Nanyang Press Holdings Bhd by today because of new regulations coming into effect tomorrow. And a speedy approval of the deal may have helped...

Sime may look Down Under to raise stake in power sector (HL).
May 31, 2001... MALAYSIA'S oldest conglomerate Sime Darby Bhd may look to Australia to expand its investment in the power sector following prolonged uncertainties over its bid for a stake in Tenaga Nasional Bhd's power plant in Pasir Gudang. Its group...

Indonesian army on high alert.
May 31, 2001... JAKARTA, Wed: Indonesia has again found itself in the grip of heightened tensions, this time over debates in Parliament to impeach the President. The security forces have been put on the high alert with a "shoot to kill" order against...

Malaysians still 'preferred bidder' for Indon road deal.
May 31, 2001... THE Indonesian authorities will invite bids in July from companies to resume work on the stalled Jakarta Outer Ring Road project, with a Malaysian consortium led by DRB-HICOM Bhd retaining its "preferred bidder" status. The tender for...

MAS' healing process begins.
May 31, 2001... IT'S been said that admitting one's weaknesses or faults is the first step in any healing process, which is good because national airline company Malaysian Airline Systems Bhd does require a lot of healing. On Tuesday when announcing the...

Sime records RM470.5m net profit for 9 months period.
May 31, 2001... SIME Darby Group, one of Malaysia's biggest and oldest conglomerates with interests ranging from rubber to properties, recorded a 13 per cent drop in net profit to RM470.5 million for the three quarters ended March 31 2001. Earnings per...

MAS to brief foreign analysts on turnaround programme.
May 31, 2001... AVIATION analysts, some from as far as Hong Kong, are expected to fly in to Kuala Lumpur to be briefed this Friday about Malaysian Airline Systems Bhd's (MAS) programme to turnaround the company. Local analysts said despite reporting...

Tech stocks making a comeback?
May 31, 2001... FORGET penny stocks, chip stocks are back. And if their performance in May is anything to go by, the sector is likely to once again defy analysts' recommendations and lead the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE). From April 30 to...

K. Guthrie posts RM995,000 net loss in Q1.
May 31, 2001... KUMPULAN Guthrie Bhd has reported a net loss of RM995,000 for the first quarter ended March 31 2001 against net profit of RM12.39 million in the previous first quarter. The company said the loss was due to lower contribution from its...

DRB-HICOM returns to the black with RM156m net profit.
May 31, 2001... DRB-HICOM Bhd has swung into the black with group net profit of RM156.18 million for the financial year ended March 31 2001, versus a loss of RM413.05 million previously. According to the company, the substantial increase in profits...

Petronas buys 91m Bintulu Port shares, ups stake to 22.8pc.
May 31, 2001... PETROLIAM Nasional Bhd (Petronas) has increased its stake in Bintulu Port Holdings Bhd with the purchase of over 91 million shares in April. According to Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) filings, Petronas and its nominee firms acquired...

Litrak share performance resembles high-growth stocks.
May 31, 2001... LINGKARAN Trans Kota Holdings (Litrak) may have gone unnoticed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) compared to high-beta stocks, but its share price's performance is fast resembling that of high-growth stocks. With a raw beta of...

Danaharta expects to make gains from sale of NPLs.
May 31, 2001... NATIONAL asset management company Pengurusan Danaharta Nasional Bhd is expected to make gains from the sale of non-performing loans (NPLs) worth RM5.45 billion back to the financial sector as part of its securitisation exercise. But...

Bourse close mixed in thin trading.
May 31, 2001... SHARE prices on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) closed mixed yesterday amid continuing thin interest shown by investors. At the close, the KLSE Composite Index gained 3.06 points to 570.68, the Emas Index added 0.49 point to 138.93...

MAS 2001 results.
May 31, 2001... IN THE Business Times report on Malaysian Airline Systems Bhd's 2001 results yesterday, the 12th paragraph should have read as follows: "Multex Global Estimates' consensus of 19 research houses had expected the national carrier to post a...

Petronas Gas turnover dips 4.4pc to RM1.8b.
May 29, 2001... PETRONAS Gas Bhd's group turnover for the year ended March 31 2001 fell 4.4 per cent to RM1.77 billion due to the revision of its Gas Processing and Transmissiom Agreement with Petronas. Profit after tax fell 41.9 per cent to RM474.4...

Klibor untraded.
May 29, 2001... THREE-month Klibor futures contracts on the Commodity and Monetary Exchange of Malaysia were untraded yesterday. June 2001, July 2001, August 2001, September 2001 and December 2001 were last pegged at 96.65, 96.62, 96.58, 96.53 and 96.34...

Futures close higher.
May 29, 2001... THE Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange Composite Index futures on the Kuala Lumpur Options and Financial Futures Exchange (Kloffe) closed higher yesterday, wiping out losses accumulated in the morning. At 5:15pm, the May futures rose 6.1 points...

Latitude Tree to proceed with 3-for-4 bonus issue.
May 29, 2001... FURNITURE manufacturer Latitude Tree Holdings Bhd (LTree) will proceed with its proposed three-for-four bonus issue of 27 million new shares to facilitate its transfer to the main board of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE). The new...

Jaya Tiasa buys back shares on downward trend.
May 29, 2001... JAYA Tiasa Holdings Bhd has been buying back its shares on a downward trend over a two-year period. The counter has lost 56.32 per cent in value since the company executed the buyback on May 2 2000. As at May 2, the stock had a open...

Hume Ind accepts offer to sell 72.4pc stake in Nanyang for RM230.12m.
May 29, 2001... HUME Industries (Malaysia) Bhd has accepted an offer from Huaren Management Sdn Bhd to buy the company's 72.35 per cent stake in Nanyang Press Holding Bhd for RM230.12 million cash. According to Hume Industries, the company and its...

Index slips 1.45 points.
May 29, 2001... THE MSC IT Index closed at 132.736 points yesterday, decreasing by 1.448 points from 134.184 last Friday, reports www.MSCTimes.com. This represents a fall of 1.08 per cent over the previous trading day with the market capitalisation of...

Private mail, public service.
May 29, 2001... MANY Malaysians would still remember, not without a tinge of nostalgia, the red iron pillar post boxes that stood sentinel-like at street corners nationwide, which magically transported their letters to wherever they wanted within the country...

A lifelong dream come true.
May 29, 2001... HARRY Stonecipher, the president and chief executive officer of the Boeing Company, is retiring next year. Stonecipher, who turns 65 years old this month, will leave the company a contented man. He has somewhat achieved his lifelong dream...

Indonesian stability vital for growth in Asean.
May 29, 2001... JAKARTA, Mon: Stability and peace in Indonesia would be vital to encourage continued economic growth in Malaysia and in the South-East Asian region as well. Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said Malaysia was monitoring...

Govt reviewing plan to acquire LRT operations (HL).
May 29, 2001... A RETHINK by the Government of plans to acquire the assets of Kuala Lumpur's two light rail transit (LRT) operators for RM5.5 billion may have to take into account the interests of the projects' lenders. It was the Government's backing...

MAS ad places question mark over Trifiniti's role.
May 29, 2001... MALAYSIA Airlines' open invitation to vendors to upgrade its global systems network infrastructure has placed a big question mark over the role and status of its Internet venture, Trifiniti Networks Sdn Bhd. The national carrier placed...

NV Multi eyes 5pc of funeral services market.
May 29, 2001... WITHIN the next five years, NV Multi Corp Bhd expects to capture 5 per cent or RM750 million of the funeral services package market in Malaysia, which is estimated to be worth RM15 billion. Group managing director Datuk Dr Kong Hon Kong...

Affin Bank expands stockbanking service to Ipoh.
May 29, 2001... AFFIN Bank Bhd has further expanded its Affin Stockbanking services to Ipoh, Perak. Offered jointly with associate Affin-UOB Securities Sdn Bhd, customers can trade up to four times the cash/credit value deposited into their special...

Need to be more business savvy to survive k-economy.
May 29, 2001... LOCAL Netpreneurs are expected to be more business savvy by focusing on high-quality customers such as big traditional brick-and-mortar businesses in order to survive the new economy dubbed as the knowledge-based economy (k-economy). ...

More surprise may be in the offing for Phileo.
May 29, 2001... MARKET observers are reserving judgement on Phileo Allied Bhd's unexpected purchase of Pos Malaysia Bhd, reacting to speculation that more surprises may be in the offing for the high-profile company. The abrupt shift in the company's...

Proposal for regional team to study global financial architecture.
May 29, 2001... JAKARTA, Mon: With the South-East Asian nations still carrying scars from the financial and currency crises that hit the region in 1997, Malaysia is proposing for the formation of a regional expert team to study the international financial...

UMG clarifies special payout proposal.
May 29, 2001... WHETHER it was a simple oversight, a miscalculation or a change of heart, United Merchant Group (UMG) Bhd's clarification yesterday of an earlier statement must have tempered its good intentions in the eyes of many investors. UMG had...