https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-31/airasia-plans-vietnam-venture-as-traffic-soars-in-southeast-asia

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2017-03-30/airasia-group-ceo-says-great-to-have-oil-stability-video


LET'S TAKE A LOOK JUST INTERVIEWED AIR ASIA CEO ....

http://www.dealstreetasia.com/stories/my-drb-hicom-doing-a-detailed-evaluation-of-bids-for-foreign-partner-in-proton-68854/


Malaysia’s DRB-Hicom says detailed evaluation of Proton bids underway

THIS MONTH APRIL 2017 , AIR ASIA WILL BE THE MOST HOT STOCK... huat huat ar ! fly high up... TARGET 3.80- 4.00

AffinHwang Capital upgrades AirAsia to a ‘buy’ recommendation based on its prospects, including the upcoming sale of its leasing unit for possibly RM4.4 billion.

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/highlight/2017/03/29/airasia-expected-to-successfully-navigate-challenging-times/

http://business.mb.com.ph/2017/03/28/south-korean-group-in-advanced-talks-to-buy-into-airasia-leasing-unit/

South Korean group in advanced talks to buy into AirAsia leasing unit

By Reuters

Singapore/Seoul – A little-known South Korean group is in advanced talks to acquire a stake in AirAsia Bhd’s aircraft leasing unit, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Two of the people said a deal would value AirAsia’s fully-owned unit, Asia Aviation Capital, at roughly $900 million.

Privately-owned KOTAM, or Korea Transportation Asset Management, has been picked as the preferred bidder, the people said, with one adding that state lender Korea Development Bank (KDB) was tapped to provide funding, though it was not clear whether the bank had agreed to back the deal.

KOTAM is part of Kukje Maritime Investment Corp., known as KMarin, which was founded in 2005 and has a fleet of 46 ships, according to its website.

KOTAM, KDB and AirAsia did not have immediate comment.

A successful deal would mark South Korea’s biggest move into the $256-billion global aircraft leasing sector, which has attracted others in Asia, including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, BOC Aviation, China’s acquisitive HNA Group, and Japanese banks.

KOTAM and AirAsia are negotiating final terms of the purchase of a majority stake in the leasing unit, one of the sources said. Asia’s biggest budget airline has sought buyers for its subsidiary since last year, and has said it aimed to close a sale early this year.

A deal with KOTAM could still fall through, and two sources said that Air -Asia has not closed the door to a deal with a Chinese bidder.

The sources declined to be identified as the negotiations are ongoing and confidential.

South Korean insurers, asset managers and securities firms are attracted to aviation finance as aircraft leases offer fixed returns and are often seen as relatively safe transactions.

Paid for in US dollars, aircraft are comparatively easy to release to various airline operators across the world.

Reuters reported in December that AirAsia had received strong interest from North Asian firms, besides many Chinese companies.

One of the sources said AirAsia was becoming concerned about Chinese buyers’ ability to close a deal due to China’s recent measures to tighten controls on money moving out of the country.

AirAsia still on solid ground

Posted on 29 March 2017 - 05:36am

PETALING JAYA: The year 2017 is shaping up to be a challenging year for aviation due to aggressive expansion by regional players, but both AirAsia Bhd and AirAsia X Bhd look well positioned to weather yield pressure with their cost competitiveness superiority and dominant market share.

AffinHwang Capital said both AirAsia and AirAsia X posted record profitability in 2016, bolstered by declining fuel prices, robust passenger-demand growth and benign industry-capacity additions.

“Heading into 2017, we expect industry headwinds from heightened competition on the re-invigoration of Malaysia Airlines and aggressive expansion by Malindo Air to pressure industry yields, leading to revenue per available seat kilometre (RASK) decline,” it said in a report yesterday.

AffinHwang Capital expects AirAsia to weather the impending yield pressure with its cost competitiveness superiority, underpinned by higher aircraft-utilisation hours and process digitalisation to protect yield spreads. The successful turnaround of the previously loss-making affiliates in Indonesia and the Philippines should stem the decline in Thailand, and provide bottom-line support amidst intensifying competition in Malaysia.

“We also expect the upcoming sale of its leasing arm at US$1 billion (RM4.4 billion) to provide much-needed capital to pare down its borrowings and fund the 21 aircraft additions to its fleet in 2017. The potential listing of its Asean affiliates and Holding Company at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange/New York Stock Exchange could crystallise the embedded value and rerate the share price.”

It is upgrading AirAsia to a “buy” recommendation due to improving affiliate contribution and the imminent sale of its leasing arm, while maintaining its “buy” call on AirAsia X as it remains confident on its earnings turnaround sustainability.

“We see room in cutting CASK (cost per available seat kilometre) further via higher aircraft-utilisation efficiencies, which should also see a corresponding 25% increase in RASK with incremental flight frequencies and potential new routes. We continue to favour AirAsia X for its turnaround story and continuous drive for cost optimisation,” said AffinHwang.

It however has a sell rating on Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) as it sees downside risks from its Turkey operation due to declining passenger growth and believe operational-cost escalation could hurt earnings.

Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen is not expected to break even at least until 2019, and this should continue to be a key drag on MAHB’s earnings. Despite the recent passenger service charge revision and concession-agreement extension, shareholder-return generation remains unappealing with less than a 5% return on equity and low 1-2% dividend yields.

http://www.thesundaily.my/news/2208954

http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/03/28/intensifying-competition-in-airline-industry/

KUALA LUMPUR: Affin Hwang Capital Research has upgraded AirAsia Bhd due to improving affiliate contribution and the imminent sale of its leasing arm.

The research house has maintained a “buy” call on AirAsia X as it remained confident on its earnings turnaround sustainability.

“We remain contrarian on Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) with a ‘sell’ rating as we see downside risks from its Turkey operation due to declining passenger growth and believe operational-cost escalation could hurt earnings,” Affin said in a report.

The research house said 2017 was shaping up to be a challenging year for aviation due to aggressive expansion by regional players, but both AirAsia and AirAsia X look well positioned to weather yield pressure with their cost-competitiveness superiority and dominant market share.

Last year has been a highly profitable year for aviation industry as a whole, characterised by record-low jet-fuel prices, soaring air travel demand and a benign competitive environment owing to under-expansion in prior years.

Both AirAsia and AirAsia X posted record profitability in 2016, bolstered by declining fuel prices, robust passenger-demand growth and benign industry-capacity additions.

“Heading into 2017, we expect industry headwinds from heightened competition on the reinvigoration of Malaysia Airlines and aggressive expansion by Malindo Air to pressure industry yields, leading to RASK decline,” it said.

Affin expects AirAsia to weather the impending yield pressure with its cost competitiveness superiority, underpinned by higher aircraft-utilisation hours and process digitalisation to protect yield spreads.

It said the successful turnaround of the previously loss-making affiliates in Indonesia and Philippines should stem the decline in Thailand, and provide bottom-line support amidst intensifying competition in Malaysia.

“We also expect the upcoming sale of its leasing arm at US$1bil to provide much-needed capital to pare down its borrowings and fund the 21 aircraft additions to its fleet in 2017,” it said adding that the potential listing of its Asean affiliates and holding company at HKSE/NYSE could crystallise the embedded value and rerate the share price.

Affin has raised its our estimates by 25% for FY17, primarily after lifting its earnings assumption for its associate contribution. Its 12M target price is now lifted to RM3.80, pegged to an unchanged 10x CY17E EPS.

Affin also expected AirAsia X earnings turnaround to be sustainable due to ongoing route optimisation and efficient capacity deployment.

“We see room in cutting CASK further via higher aircraft-utilisation efficiencies, which should also see a corresponding 25% increase in ASK with incremental flight frequencies and potential new routes.

“We continue to favour AirAsia X for its turnaround story and continuous drive for cost optimisation. We maintain our BUY rating with an unchanged 12-month target price of RM0.57, pegged to an unchanged 8x CY17E EPS,” Affin said.

Meanwhile, Affin said the disappointing passenger growth from its Turkey operation on the horizon, ISG is not expected to break even at least until 2019, and this should continue to be a key drag on MAHB’s earnings.

It noted that shareholder-return generation remained unappealing with less than a 5% ROE and low 1-2% dividend yields despite the recent PSC revision and concession-agreement extension.

“With declining unit revenue due to lower pax spend and escalating costs on incremental maintenance expenses at key airports in its stable, we continue to see pressure on Ebitda delivery.

“Our assumptions imply only 2% in Ebitda growth despite a 5% top-line increase.

“We maintain our contrarian ‘sell’ call on MAHB, but we lift our 12M discounted cash flow-derived target price to RM5.80 after lowering our capex assumptions,” Affin said
Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/03/28/intensifying-competition-in-airline-industry/#xpUomKODW0cJKOX8.99

AIR ASIA FLIES HIGH SKY....,,, TARGET RM4.00

http://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/news/54498-koreas-kotam-nears-stake-in-airasia-leasing-unit

Korea's KOTAM nears stake in AirAsia leasing unit !

Korea Transportation Asset Management (KOTAM) has been named as the preferred bidder for a stake in AirAsia Group's leasing unit, Asia Aviation Capital. KOTAM is part of Kukje Maritime Investment Corp. (KMarin), which specializes in shipping and logistics.

According to sources who spoke to Reuters, talks with KOTAM have focussed on the purchase of a majority stake in the lessor. South Korean state lender, the Korea Development Bank (KDB), has been tapped to provide funding, though it was not clear whether the bank had agreed to back the deal.

Earlier this year, AirAsia Group confirmed it had received eight non-binding bids for full ownership of its Asia Aviation Capital leasing unit. In one instance, it said it had received an offer for an 80% stake.

The sale is expected to be concluded in April.

http://www.nst.com.my/news/2017/03/222313/partner-search-why-2-foreign-bidders-regard-proton-valuable

MyEG forms JVC in the Philippines

PETALING JAYA: My E.G. Services Bhd (MyEG) has entered into a joint venture agreement with I-Pay Commerce Ventures, Inc (IPCVI) for the development and implementation of electronic government services projects in the Philippines and the provision of other electronic government related services including electronic payment services in the country.

A joint venture company (JVC) will establish its office in Metro Manila.

IPCVI is a payment processing provider and a direct agent of Western Union in the Philippines. It is backed by renowned investors such as leading technology and retail conglomerate IP Ventures Inc, Kaikaku Fund (Softbank affiliated fund), JJ Atencio and Derrick Chiongbian.

“The JVC will enable MyEG to expand its geographical presence in the Asean region and open new frontier where MyEG will be able to offer its expertise to operate government services and government related services through the internet. Furthermore, MyEG will be able to continue to grow its business organically and continue with its expansion plans to offer its services to new market,” MyEG said.

MYEG will have a 40% share in the initial capitalisation of the JVC and will invest up to US$2 million (RM8.9 million) in three tranches subject to the JVC meeting certain targets.


http://www.thesundaily.my/news/2195490

CIMB Research retains Add for MY EG at RM3.14 on Manila
BUY CALL

KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB Equities Research is retaining its target price of RM3.14 for MY EG Services which is 72.5% above the last traded price of RM1.82.

It said on Thursday that it was maintaining its earnings per share (EPS) forecast and target price, based on an unchanged 25.2 times 2018 price-to-earnings (P/E), a 20% premium over its 21 times P/E target for the technology sector.

“The premium is justified by its 53.6% 3-year EPS CAGR (FY17-19F). A successful launch of the GST monitoring project and this Philippines venture are potential re-rating catalysts.
Risks include weak registration of illegal foreign workers (IFWs),” it said.

On Wednesday, MyEG announced it had signed a JV agreement with I-Pay Commerce Ventures (IPCV) to provide electronic government services in the Philippines and other related services, including electronic payment services.

IPCV is a payment processing services provider and a direct agent of Western Union in the country. MyEG will hold 40% of the new JV while IPCV will hold the rest.

IPCV is backed by renowned investors like IP Ventures (leading technology and retail conglomerate in the Philippines), Kaikaku Fund (Softbank affiliated fund), JJ Atenco (founder of 899 Holdings Inc.) and Derrick Chiongbian.

IPCV owns two concessions, providing services to the National Bureau of Investigation of Philippines (NBI) and Philippines Overseas Employment Agency (POEA).

CIMB Research said the JV comes with ongoing concessions with two agencies: 1) the National Bureau of Investigation of Philippines (NBI) – the service allows users to obtain a police clearance certificate, a requirement when applying for new jobs; and 2) Philippines Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) – the service enables users to obtain certification, allowing them to work overseas.

“This news is a positive surprise to us as it is MyEG‘s first successful overseas venture, an indication of how MYEG is entering other markets via partnerships with local companies.

“We believe MyEG can help the business grow further as it has developed the infrastructure required to set up electronic government services over the past 10 years. Partnering with MyEG will help the companies reduce their start-up costs considerably, in our view.

“While the announcement did not highlight any profit and loss figures from the two concessions, we have assumed the revenues generated are from a low base.

“With MyEG’s infrastructure support, we believe the revenues from these two concessions should pick up rapidly over the next few quarters. MyEG will invest US$2mil for its 40% stake in the new JV,” it said.
Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/03/16/cimb-research-retains-add-for-my-eg-at-rm3pt14-on-manila-jv/#yjW6cihzvvvzhBH8.99

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is not investigating the corruption case involving AirAsia and jet engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce PLC, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Paul Low said.

"As of now, there is no statement that can link any party to any offence under the MACC Act 2009 regarding the case probed by (UK's) Serious Fraud Office (SFO)," Low said in a parliamentary written reply today.

However, he said, the MACC welcomes any information on this case that any individual can furnish.

Low also said the MACC had cooperated with the SFO.

On Jan 21, it was reported that the SFO had named AirAsia Group as one of several foreign parties involved in bribery cases with jet engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce PLC.

The bribery in the AirAsia deal was one of 12 charges brought against Rolls-Royce after a four-year investigation into its dealings with clients in Indonesia, Thailand, India, Russia, China and Malaysia.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/375154

karex business should be profitable.. yet another problem to face it .. is this... black market condom

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2566403/Population-boom-More-two-million-boxes-fake-condoms-released-Chinese-market-black-market-racket.html

Bursa Malaysia (2015) stated that Unusual Market Activities (UMA) refers to any abnormal trading activities which involve substantial price change, and/or volume movement, arising from the trading of an individual stock or its derivatives during any market session.

Unusual Market Activity [UMA] query by BURSA SEC

http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/03/02/airasia-to-focus-on-growth-push-down-cost/

KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia Bhd will continue focusing on growth, while bringing down cost, Group Chief Executive Officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said today.

He said the low cost carrier would also emphasise higher utilisation of its fleet.

“Growth, growth, growth. That’s what we are focusing on in the Airasia group, and it will be profitable growth, as investment done.

“On top of growth we are pushing down costs, especially with our peers.

Higher utilisation. New aircraft. More seats. Data and technology,” added Fernandes, via his official twitter handle today.

Airasia Bhd reported a higher pre-tax profit of RM2.16bil for its financial year ended Dec 31, 2016 from RM215.15mil in 2015.

Revenue rose to RM6.92bil from RM6.29bil.

The airline attributed the better revenue performance to passenger growth, higher ancillary income per passenger year-on-year and an increase in average fares, which rose 6% to RM167.

Meanwhile, the Centre for Aviation (CAPA) quoted AirAsia’s Group Head of Strategy, Subashini Silvadas as saying that Malaysia AirAsia could end up growing fleet more than the eight A320s currently planned.

“The group now plans to reach 300 A320s by 2021 and 333 aircraft by 2022 compared with 176 at end-2016,” it said, in quoting Subashini from the ongoing CAPA Airline Fleet and Finance Summit 2017 in Singapore.

She had also said that the group had secured 10 A320ceo leases of the now 13 planned for 2017.

She was also quoted as saying that AirAsia Japan would launch services “soon” and end 2017 with five A320s.

According to Subashini, AirAsia Japan can’t take the Airbus Neo due to Japanese regulations. - Bernama


Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/03/02/airasia-to-focus-on-growth-push-down-cost/#Otm71vvQBbvxEufK.99

This story appears in the March 2017 issue of Forbes Asia.


Fortunes Of AirAsia's Bosses Soar On New Share Issue

The two men behind AirAsia--No. 37 on the Malaysian Rich List, Tony Fernandes, group chief executive, and his business partner, No. 38 Kamarudin Meranun, the airline's executive chairman--saw their fortunes soar by 50% or more over the past year.

In January they purchased the entire issuance of 559 million new shares in their flagship--spending $228 million. The duo now own nearly a third of AirAsia, which is Asia's largest low-cost airline in terms of passengers carried. The stock has risen 95% in the past year.

The rebound didn't come easy. The long-awaited share issue, which was announced last April, was extended four times pending approval for offshore funding from Malaysia's central bank. The cash will be used for everything from working capital and debt repayment to financing aircraft, engines and parts.

malaysias-richest-2017

In July AirAsia placed orders for 100 aircraft from Airbus and 200 engines from CFM International in the U.S.; the list price for the purchases was $15.2 billion.

Meanwhile, there's more action expected from the group as AirAsia is getting bids to sell its leasing arm, Asia Aviation Capital. And it's looking to build low-cost airports across the region.



https://www.forbes.com/sites/anuraghunathan/2017/03/01/fortunes-of-airasias-bosses-soar-on-new-share-issue/#b5bc96336f66
















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http://www.theedgemarkets.com/my/article/shell-malaysias-4q-net-profit-swells-115

Shell Malaysia's 4Q net profit swells 115%

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 28): Shell Refining Company (Federation of Malaya) Bhd posted a 115% rise in net profit to RM207.8 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2016 (4QFY16), from RM96.5 million a year earlier, due mainly to the gradual recovery of the prices of crude oil and other products.

Revenue grew 7.4% to RM2.53 billion from RM2.36 billion in 4QFY15, the group said in a filing to Bursa Malaysia.

Shell said its full year net profit dipped 4.7% to RM335.3 million from RM351.8 million in FY15 as the gross profit margins were offset by a higher depreciation cost.

Revenue for FY16 dropped 7.9% to RM8.37 billion from RM9.08 billion in FY15 due mainly to lower product prices, which are driven by market forces.

On prospects, the group said refinery margins are expected to remain uncertain.

"Operational efficiency, product quality and financial risk management will continue to remain the company's key focus in maximising margin opportunities for FY17," it said.

At 3.50pm, Shell rose 60 sen or 18.58% to RM3.83, for a market capitalisation of RM1.13 billion.

TOMOROW TARGET PRICE RM4.20 TO RM 4.50

AIR ASIA BY MARCH 30, TARGET PRICE RM2.80 TO RM3.50

Shell Malaysia's 4Q net profit swells 115%

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 28): Shell Refining Company (Federation of Malaya) Bhd posted a 115% rise in net profit to RM207.8 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2016 (4QFY16), from RM96.5 million a year earlier, due mainly to the gradual recovery of the prices of crude oil and other products.

Revenue grew 7.4% to RM2.53 billion from RM2.36 billion in 4QFY15, the group said in a filing to Bursa Malaysia.

Shell said its full year net profit dipped 4.7% to RM335.3 million from RM351.8 million in FY15 as the gross profit margins were offset by a higher depreciation cost.

Revenue for FY16 dropped 7.9% to RM8.37 billion from RM9.08 billion in FY15 due mainly to lower product prices, which are driven by market forces.

On prospects, the group said refinery margins are expected to remain uncertain.

"Operational efficiency, product quality and financial risk management will continue to remain the company's key focus in maximising margin opportunities for FY17," it said.

At 3.50pm, Shell rose 60 sen or 18.58% to RM3.83, for a market capitalisation of RM1.13 billion.

http://www.nst.com.my/news/2017/02/215775/flying-asean-dream-airasia-start-ball-rolling-dual-listing


Flying the Asean dream: AirAsia to start ball rolling with dual listing
KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia Group, the world’s top low-cost airline, is planning a series of initial public offerings (IPOs) for its affiliates, starting with the dual listing of AirAsia Bhd in either Hong Kong or New York.

AirAsia Group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes told NST Business there was no definite period for the IPO yet as the plan
was being reviewed by the airline’s board members.

“The board has been presented with both options (in regard to AirAsia Bhd’s dual listing),” he said on Friday, adding that there were still work to be done on the dual listing.

Fernandes said the move would allow AirAsia Bhd to reach a broader base of investors.

AirAsia Bhd has been listed on Bursa Malaysia’s Main Market since November 2004.

The airline was founded by DRB-HICOM Bhd in 1993 before the then-heavily indebted carrier was sold to Fernandes and his business partner, Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, in December 2001 for a symbolic RM1.

AirAsia Group has affiliates in Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and India. Indonesia AirAsia and Philippines AirAsia are slated to be listed by the third quarter of the year.

The two airlines have appointed bankers in Indonesia and the Philippines to work on the IPOs.

Fernandes said the plan was to have its affiliates in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines listed on the countries’ local bourses first, and then to combine these affiliates into a single, listed Asean holding company.

“We now have four airlines making money. Basically, the Asean engine is working. The Asean holding company is beginning to take shape.”

The holding company would be similar to European group airlines such as the International Consolidated Airlines Group SA and Air France-KLM.

AirAsia Group recorded a profit of RM2.15 billion in the 2016 financial year, up 24 per cent from the 2015 financial year. Its revenue climbed to RM12.02 billion last year from RM10.79 billion in 2015.

Fernandes said AirAsia Bhd, Thai AirAsia and Indonesia AirAsia made a positive contribution to the group operating profit.

AirAsia Bhd’s net profit increased to RM2 billion in the 2016 financial year from RM541.2 million previously. Its revenue rose to RM6.92 billion from RM6.30billion.

“We are thrilled that our dream of being an Asean airline is coming to fruition with all four companies generating profits. It’s a landmark point for AirAsia Bhd to deliver RM2 billion profit,” said Fernandes.

AirAsia plans to monetise its non-core assets, which include Asia Aviation Capital worth some US$1 billion (RM4.4 billion) and training centre AirAsia Aviation Centre of Excellence. The group will also re-launch AirAsia Japan by June.

Tomypak may climb higher, says RHB Retail Research

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 28): RHB Retail Research said Tomypak Holdings Bhd may climb higher after posting a long white candle and hitting its highest close in more than seven months.

In a trading stocks note today, the research house said that the positive slope of the 21-day SMA line suggests the likelihood of increasing demand in the coming sessions.

“A bullish bias may emerge at above the RM1.78 level, with an exit set below the RM1.64 threshold.

“Towards the upside, the immediate resistance level is seen at RM1.99. This is followed by the RM2.09 level,” it said.

http://www.theedgemarkets.com/my/article/tomypak-may-climb-higher-says-rhb-retail-research

westport.. falling falling falling... further..... dun be sad ya..

MyEG Q2 net profit jumps 57%

PETALING JAYA: My E.G. Services Bhd's net profit for the second quarter ended Dec 31, 2016 rose 57% to RM47.6 million from RM30.3 million a year ago attributable to higher transaction volumes from the online renewal of foreign workers' permits and insurance (FWP) and foreign worker rehiring programme services; as well as increase in revenue contribution from our motor vehicle trading related services.

Its revenue increased 39.6% to RM88.7 million compared with RM63.5 million in the previous year's corresponding quarter.

For the six months period net profit jumped 50% to RM88.1 million from RM58.8 million last year primarily attributable to higher transaction volumes from the online renewal of FWP and foreign worker rehiring programme services; increase in revenue contribution from our JPJ related services; and increase in revenue contribution from our motor vehicle trading related services.

Its revenue increased 34.6% to RM167.3 million against RM124.2 million a year ago.

The directors have declared a first interim single tier dividend of 0.5 sen per ordinary share amounting to RM18.03 million for the current financial year ending June 30, 2017, payable on May 24, 2017 to shareholders registered at the close of business on April 26, 2017.

For the financial year ending June 30, 2017 (FY2017), the continued growth in volume of our existing services, especially the online renewal of foreign workers' insurance and foreign worker services, are expected to contribute to its group revenue and profit after tax.

"While concession services continue to be our core business, non-concession related services, such as the road safety diagnostic services, sale of prepaid top ups for Celcom mobile lines and provision of hostel accommodation to foreign workers, are expected to contribute to our growth for FY2017," it said.

http://www.thesundaily.my/news/2177373

KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB Equities Research is maintaining its Add call on DRB-Hicom, with an unchanged sum-of-parts based target price of RM1.69, which is 10% below its realised net asset value (RNAV).

It said on Monday its Add call was supported by the imminent foreign strategic partner (FSP) for Proton Holdings Bhd (Proton) and better performance by DRB-Hicom’s services division.

StarBizWeek reported that French PSA Group (PSA) is likely to be chosen as the FSP for Proton as it presented the best proposal to rescue and expand Proton’s operations in Asean. PSA plans to raise Proton’s capacity from 150,000 units a year to between one million and two million units a year.

The report also said PSA proposed to consolidate Proton’s production by transferring the production lines in the Shah Alam plant to the underutilised Proton City plant in Tanjung Malim in order to gain better economies of scale and become more competitive.

PSA is said to be ready to finance the construction of the new plant in Tanjung Malim. According to the latest filling, PSA Group had net cash of €4.5bil as at December 2015.

StarBizWeek also reported that another contender for controlling stake in Proton, Geely
Automobile Holdings (Geely), was more interested in acquiring Lotus (British sports car manufacturer) than taking a stake in Proton.

CIMB Research also said it was not surprised that Geely is seeking to tap into Lotus’s engineering technology and experience in consulting and development for other global automakers.

“We think PSA would be a good fit for Proton given its strength in the sports utility vehicle (SUV) segment. The article mentioned that PSA intends to produce SUVs for the Asean market and Proton currently does not have exposure to SUV segment.

“We note that demand for SUVs in Malaysia is strong, given the popularity of SUV models such as Honda HR-V, CR-V and Mazda CX-5. PSA’s entry is likely to make its’ products more attractive due to competitive pricing, as there will not be any import duties on cars originating from Asean

“The article reported that PSA appears more interested in acquiring a controlling stake in Proton, while Geely prefers to acquire Lotus (instead of DRB’s entire stake in Proton).

“DRB stands to benefit from the proposed disposal or reduction in Proton stake, as it would no longer be required to consolidate Proton’s and Lotus’s losses in its group financial statements. Excluding Proton, we estimate that DRB would have reported RM467mil net profit in FY16, instead of RM992mil net loss,” said CIMB Research.


Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/02/20/cimb-research-retains-add-for-drb-hicom/#ZR4P8rdJmMcBFSOf.99

AirAsia eyes sharp growth

AIRASIA GROUP says it will push for higher passenger loads while keeping a tight lid on costs to sustain earnings this year and mitigate the effects from rising oil prices and volatility in currencies.


Chief executive officer Tony Fernandes said he was forecasting 10-per-cent revenue growth this year after a similar jump to 6.9 billion ringgit (Bt54 billion) last year.

“Our strategy of investing in technology three years ago will give us a huge advantage in the next five years, and it will be a big help in reducing costs and growing revenue.

“We think we are finally moving towards our ancillary income target of 60 ringgit per person this year.

“Ancillary continues to be an engine of growth and revenue will grow this year,’’ he said.

AirAsia, which recorded 2.03 billion ringgit in net profit last year, is seeing forward loads this quarter at 89 per cent.

Last year, passenger loads rose 10 percentage points to 86 per cent and the group flew 56.5 million passengers.

In its presentation to analysts last week, AirAsia said it was targeting ancillary income of 60 ringgit next year after reporting 50 ringgit last year, but Fernandes wants to achieve 60 ringgit this year.

“We see big areas of growth, led by the boom in data. We will be able to offer more personalised and more conversion on our websites, leading to more sales.

“Our mobile strategy is for AirAsia to be the first choice of travel to buy products led by ease and lowest fares, more so with our express pay, which is equivalent to amazon one click,” he said.

AirAsia said at least 70 per cent of its sales came directly via airasia.com.

There was more room for growth in the conversion rate, which is now at 5 per cent. A single percentage-point increase translates to additional sales of 1 billion ringgit.

“Indonesia and the Philippines are new engines of growth. Asean inter-travel is booming as long as costs are low,” he said.

With the rising demand for air travel, “I had to use other airlines in the last few weeks, as I could not get into our own flights. That has happened the first time to me since the past 16 years.”

For the past two years, AirAsia reported 2 billion ringgit in net profit, largely from higher sales, lower fuel cost and with its rivals, mainly Malaysia Airlines, still in recovery mode.

But analysts have said the playing field will get tougher this year, something that Fernandes is not overly concerned about.

CIMB Research, in a note, said Malindo Air’s remarkable capacity expansion last year and planned growth this year meant AirAsia would face more competition this year.

AirAsia is also planning to expand capacity by eight aircraft this year, after shrinking the fleet last year.

It added that with the weaker ringgit and higher oil price, it expected AirAsia’s core earnings per share for financial 2017 to fall by 52 per cent.

“The group plans to increase available seat kilometres by 10 per cent. It is willing to sacrifice yields to maintain loads, which suggests a potential decline in revenue available seat kilometre,” Morgan Stanley Research said in a report.

“Fuel costs should remain stable, with 75 per cent of fuel requirements hedged at US$60 per jet barrel. We expect 2017 operating margins to remain healthy at 23 per cent.”

To Fernandes, his biggest challenge is to get regulators to understand the difficulties that airlines face in growing markets.

“What we have been doing for 16 years shows us that we are competitive, in fact we are durable to competition.

“There has been competition for 16 years but we have continually grown margins and profits and our main secret is low cost, great people and huge networks. We made money when oil was at $140 a barrel.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/business/aec/30307427

buy call now immediately

KUALA LUMPUR: My EG Services Bhd’s (MyEG) earnings for its second quarter (Q2) ended Dec 31, 2016, grew a strong 57% to RM47.6mil from a year earlier.

The electronic government services provider told Bursa Malaysia that the improved profit achieved on 40% higher revenue of RM88.7mil were due mainly to two factors.

These are higher transaction volumes from the online renewal of foreign workers’ permits and insurance (FWP) and foreign worker rehiring programme services, and an increase in revenue contribution from its motor vehicle trading-related services.

The company posted a 49.9% boost in earnings in the first six months of the financial year to RM88.1mil. Revenue advanced to RM167.3mil from RM124.2mil in the same period of 2015.

On its prospects for the full financial year ended June 30 (FY17), MyEG said while concession services continued to be its core business, non-concession-related services, such as the road safety diagnostic services, sale of prepaid top ups for Celcom mobile lines and provision of hostel accommodation to foreign workers, were expected to contribute to its growth for FY17.

“Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the directors of MyEG are cautiously optimistic that the results for FY17 will continue to be satisfactory as more Malaysians adopt online government services as a convenient and cheaper alternative to transact with the Government,” the company said.

Over the last five financial years, MyEG had seen double-digit earnings growth and profit margins annually, with the figures increasing each year. Its income climbed 91% in FY16, while net profit margin hit 50.6%.

The board declared a first interim dividend of 0.5 sen per share (2016: 0.5 sen) amounting to RM18.03mil (2016: RM12.02mil) for the current financial year ending June 30, 2017, payable on May 24.


Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/02/28/myeg-posts-another-solid-set-of-results/#RWrIXFXmjQMkPoT3.99

CIMB Research estimated AirAsia’s special dividend to be RM1.12 per share after the sale of its leasing arm, Asia Aviation Capital.

According to Bloomberg consensus, of the 24 research houses tracking the airline, 18 have a “buy” call on the stock with a 12-month consensus target price of RM3.29.

On Friday, the stock shed 6 sen to close at RM2.70 a share. The consensus estimates for revenue for 2017 is RM6.9bil and for operating profit, RM1.5bil

Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/02/27/again-airasia-eyes-doubledigit-growth/#ky83bcXi5BXOykzI.99

PETALING JAYA: AirAsia Group will push for higher passenger loads while keeping a tight lid on costs to sustain earnings this year to mitigate the effects from rising oil prices and volatility in currency.

AirAsia group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said he is forecasting a 10% revenue growth this year after a similar jump to RM6.9bil last year.

“Our strategy of investing in technology three years ago will give us a huge advantage in the next five years, and it will be a big help in reducing costs and growing revenue.

“We think we are finally moving towards our ancillary income target of RM60 per person this year. Ancillary continues to be an engine of growth and revenue will grow this year,’’ Fernandes said in a reply to questions from StarBiz.

AirAsia, which recorded a RM2.03bil in net profit last year, is seeing forward loads in the first quarter of 2017 at 89%. Last year, passenger loads rose 10% to 86% and the group flew 56.5 million passengers.

In its presentation to analysts last week, AirAsia said it was targeting ancillary income of RM60 in 2018 after reporting RM50 in 2016, but Fernandes wants to achieve RM60 this year.

“We see big areas of growth, led by the boom in data. We will be able to offer more personalised and more conversion on our websites, leading to more sales.

“Our mobile strategy is for AirAsia to be the first choice of travel to buy products led by ease and lowest fares, more so with our express pay which is equivalent to amazon one click,’’ he said.

In its presentation slides, AirAsia said at least 70% of its sales came directly via airasia.com, adding that there was more room for growth in conversation rate, which is now at 5%. A single percentage point increase translates to additional sales of RM1bil.

“Other revenue of growth is our associations. Indonesia and the Philippines are new engines of growth. Asean inter-travel is booming as long as costs are low,’’ Fernandes said, adding that with the rising demand for air travel, “I had to use other airlines in the last few weeks, as I could not get into our own flights. That has happened the first time to me since the past 16 years.’’

For the past two consecutive years, AirAsia reported RM2bil in net profit, largely from higher sales, lower fuel cost and with its rivals, mainly Malaysia Airlines Bhd, still in recovery mode. But analyst have said that the playing field would get tougher this year, something that Fernandes is not too overly concerned about.

CIMB Research, in a note, said Malindo Air’s remarkable capacity expansion in 2016 and planned growth in 2017 meant that AirAsia would face more competition this year. AirAsia is also planning to expand its capacity by eight aircraft this year, after shrinking the fleet last year.

It added that with the weaker ringgit and higher oil price, it expected AirAsia’s core earnings per share for financial year 2017 to fall 52%.

“The group plans to increase available seat kilometre by 10%. It is willing to sacrifice yields to maintain loads, which suggests a potential decline in revenue available seat kilometre.

“Fuel costs should remain stable, with 75% of fuel requirements hedged at US$60 per jet barrel. We expect 2017 operating margins to remain healthy at 23%,’’ Morgan Stanley Research said in a report.

To Fernandes, his biggest challenge is to get regulators understand the difficulties that airlines face in growing markets.

“What we have been doing for 16 years shows us that we are competitive, in fact we are durable to competition. There has been competition for 16 years but we have continually grown margins and profits and our main secret is low cost, great people and huge networks. We made money when oil was at US$140 a barrel.

“To compete, you have to be better than us. To have lower fares than us, you have to have lower costs.

“You must remember that we are competing in markets where we are a significantly smaller player such as in Indonesia, India and the Philippines. Yet, we have and are heading towards the AirAsia Malaysia-style of profitability. The key to sustainable profits is low costs. The right strategy is continued innovations,’’ Fernandes said.

AirAsia Malaysia is the biggest contributor towards group revenue. Its cost per available seat kilometer in the last quarter of 2016 was 11.70 sen, said to be the lowest for an airline globally.

On the 2016 financial results, Macquarie Research said, stripping out exceptional gains of RM403mil, AirAsia’s net profit would be at RM1.634bil. The research house said this was up 141% year-on-year, beating its own estimates and consensus estimates by 6% and 8%, respectively.

“We were positively surprised to see that AirAsia’s fuel consumption increased only 4% despite carrying 16% more traffic in the year,’’ it added.

Though Fernandes is talking about sustaining the growth momentum in 2017, AirAsia’s primary attraction for this year is the speculated special dividend from the low-cost carrier.

http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/02/27/psa-to-make-msia-rd-centre-if-its-partners-proton/


KUALA LUMPUR: Renowned car maker, Frances PSA Group, has ambitious plans to transform Malaysia into a strategic base to develop and manufacture a new range of cars destined for the global market if its proposed partnership with Proton comes to fruition, an industry source said.

He also said that the PSA Group, which makes the world famous Peugeot and Citroen cars, is looking to open an Asian research and development (R&D) centre.

“That means if they bag Proton Malaysia, it would naturally benefit by being named PSA’s Asian R&D centre,” he said.

Therefore, joining hands with a foreign strategic partner (FSP) would enable the national car manufacturer to go global.








Currently, as a standalone company and under-utilising the manufacturing capacity of its two plants, he said it would be impossible for Proton to achieve the economies of scale to compete in the global market.

“Proton requires know-how and funds for R&D programmes to compete with global car brands, locally and abroad, as it is still at the bottom of the ladder in homegrown automotive technology.

“This is simply because the cost of R&D runs into billions of ringgit and Proton, on its own, cannot afford to go it alone,” he told Bernama.

A case in point is the development cost of just one model, the Proton Iriz, which was at RM600mil and this did not include marketing, distribution and other related costs.

Just to recover the development cost of RM600mil – at roughly RM60,000 per unit, Proton would have to sell 10,000 Iriz cars, the source said.

Other players such as Honda and Toyota are able to spread their costs across millions of cars as their cars are sold worldwide.

“Thus, the cost is spread with the volume across many countries,” the source said.

Early last week, Chinas Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd said it is prepared to share with Proton its know-how, co-developed with its Swedish subsidiary Volvo car, as part of the companys pitch to seek control of Proton.

In addition, Geelys Volvo in Malaysia had attained energy-efficient vehicles (EEV) status for its models equipped with Drive-E powertrain last year.

The source said the writing on the wall is all too clear for Proton to join hands with a FSP if it is to succeed.

“The only way to do this is by marrying a big auto player, two of which have submitted their bids, as of Feb 15, seeking Proton’s hand in marriage for what could be a long-term mutually rewarding relationship,” he said.

An auto analyst cited how Proton still produced cars with Euro 4 engines, which made it impossible to sell cars to the United Kingdom as the European market only wanted engines with Euro 6 car-emission standards.

However, a foreign partner could facilitate the production of new engines through new and updated designs and technologies, which are accepted in developed markets.

In the process, penetrating developed markets, which would ramp up production at its manufacturing facilities, could go a long way to revive Proton. — Bernama

Read more at http://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2017/02/27/psa-to-make-msia-rd-centre-if-its-partners-proton/#axtsYgm6DM5rqqcT.99

Time to sell lah.....



Pestech 2Q net profit down 24% as revenue slips


KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 24): Power systems technology firm Pestech International Bhd's net profit fell 24% to RM13.16 million in the second quarter ended Dec 31, 2016 (2QFY17), from RM17.3 million a year ago, mainly due to lower revenue.

A filing with Bursa Malaysia showed its quarterly revenue declined 18% to RM119.94 million from RM146.33 million, which the company explained was due to the current project phases.

Higher administration expenses and finance costs during the quarter also impacted profit.

For the six-month period (6MFY17), net profit fell 34% to RM25.1 million from RM37.85 million — though revenue grew 14% to RM222.77 million from RM194.62 million. The weaker earnings was due to higher cost of sales, expenses and finance costs.

On prospects, Pestech said it has always readied itself to embrace immense and pressing requirements for power infrastructure build-up in the region.

The group continuously expand its business reach in the regional countries that it has built solid footprints, and also diligently explore potential new markets to sustain its momentum for growth.

"We anticipate to experience positive business contribution from our home turf, Malaysia, Indochina area, especially Cambodia, and the Central Asia region. Whilst charting its growth path, the management is always mindful to endeavour the equitable development of its power transmission, rail electrification, power plant control systems, and power products business segments," it added.

Pestech said the eventual cohesive and integrated development of all those segments of business would propel the further transformation of the group into a well-rounded power infrastructure services and products corporation in the region.

At 3.21pm, shares of Pestech were traded unchanged at RM1.74, with 2.17 million shares traded, for a market capitalisation of RM1.34 billion. The counter has been on an upward trend since the beginning of the year, climbing more than 13%.

Assuming a modest premium of 10%, the warrants should be worth =

4.65 (Gamuda closing price) x 1.1 (10% premium) - Exercise Price 4.05 = 1.065 (current price 0.90)

Still got plenty of room to go up. Buy Buy Buy !!

arc888 , good sample formula ! thx

kps will up .... 1.50

MBSB price target RM2.75

MBSB ... gonna move ... price target RM2.75 . AFTER CIMB / RHB CAP... price increase .. .. next MBSB gonna move..

predict the next move osk stock goin up on Monday 29/12/2014.... price target 2.10