Previous Day Highlights

FBM KLCI closed higher lifted by plantation stock. The benchmark index was up 0.13% or 2.10 pts to close at 1,603.98. Majority of sectors were positive with plantation (+2.8%), utilities (+0.6%), and health care (+0.5%), leading the gainers; while losers were seen in construction (-1.3%), and technology (-0.5%). Market breadth was negative with 543 losers against 430 gainers. Total volume stood at 2.18bn shares valued at RM2.45bn.

Major regional indices trended lower. HSI gained 0.93%, to end at 20,506.43. SHCOMP dropped 0.24%, to close at 3,272.01. Nikkei 225 eased 2.63%, to finish at 38,053.67. STI slid 0.10%, to close at 3,555.43.

Wall Street closed higher aided in part by a post-earnings rally in Amazon shares. The DJIA added 0.69%, to end at 42,052.19. Nasdaq rose 0.80%, to close at 18,239.92. S&P500 rose 0.41%, to finish at 5,728.80.

News For The Day

Gamuda wins RM451.4m job to build data centre in Cyberjaya

Gamuda has secured a RM451.4m contract to build a data centre in Cyberjaya. The contract will cover the data centre’s foundational, civil, structural and architectural works. Works are expected to begin by December and be completed in the first quarter of 2026. The contract will begin to contribute in the current financial year ending July 31, 2025- The Edge Market

Pintaras Jaya secures RM175m piling contracts in Singapore

Pintaras Jaya has secured two piling contracts in Singapore worth about RM175m. The contracts, which are set to commence this month, were secured through Pintary Foundations Pte Ltd, a wholly owned unit based in Singapore. The projects are to commence in November 2024 with construction periods of four and 30 months. The projects will contribute positively to the group’s earnings for FY2025. - The Edge Market

Kimlun wins RM128.5m Senai-Desaru Expressway contract

Kimlun Corp has announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Kimlun has been successful in its bid for the upgrading works of that stretch of Senai-Desaru Expressway from Jambatan Sg Johor to Sg Semenchu. The construction work is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2027, and is expected to contribute positively to the earnings and net assets of the group for the financial years during the contract period. - The Star

RGT buys two properties for RM16.8m

RGT is buying two leasehold industrial plots for RM16.8m, located in Simpang Ampat, Penang, to set up dedicated assembly and production lines for new customers and to enhance its production efficiency. These new properties are also expected to result in cost savings in logistics and management. The company plans to part-finance the purchase via bank borrowings and internal funds. It expects its gearing to increase from 0.39x to 0.50x following the purchase. - The Edge Market

Rexit appoints LGMS unit as cybersecurity auditor

Rexit has appointed a unit of LGMS as an independent cybersecurity audit firm to reaffirm the company’s data security against breaches. This comes after two of the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider’s major shareholders were sentenced to jail in a Singaporean court for participating in a conspiracy to illegally obtain data of over 9,000 people. - The Star

Our Thoughts

Wall Street closed firmer as traders ignored October’s weak job data citing possible impacts from the recent hurricanes and strikes. Meanwhile, Nvidia has replaced Intel as the DJIA constituent commencing next week and the US 10-year yield flew past 4.3% to end at 4.386% illustrating the uneasiness over the Federal Reserve forthcoming rate adjustment. In Hong Kong, the HSI rebounded spurred by growth in China’s property market for the first time this year after recent easing measures. Back home, the FBM KLCI managed to stay above the 1,600 threshold after a brief fling below the psychological support level as bargain hunters emerged. Nonetheless, overall sentiment remains cautious. As we enter into a highly volatile week, we expect the index to trend within the 1,595-1,605 range today. Finally, the CPO price managed to churn out its highest monthly average price at RM4,380/tonne for 2024.

Source: Rakuten Research - 4 Nov 2024

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