Market Review & Outlook
Malaysia Market Review: The FBM KLCI (-0.3%) dropped for a fifth consecutive session on Wednesday, weighed down by continued selling in index heavyweights as investors adopted a risk-off stance. Lower liners also closed lower, in line with the broader market performance. Construction (+1.0%) and Plantation (+0.7%) sectors led the gainers, while Technology (-2.9%), Property (-0.9%) and Industrial Products & Services (-0.9%) sectors were the top laggards.
Global Markets Review: Wall Street plunged on Wednesday amid growing concerns over a deteriorating US fiscal outlook and climbing treasury yields, following a poorly received auction of 20-year US bonds. All three major indices ended the day with losses of more than 1% each. Meanwhile, European markets also declined, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 index closing 0.4% lower. In contrast, Asian markets traded mostly higher, shrugging off overnight losses on Wall Street. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.6%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.6%, while South Korea’s Kospi climbed 0.9%.
Market Outlook: With optimism from the temporary tariff cuts between the world’s two largest economy beginning to fade, the local bourse has entered a consolidation phase in recent sessions. Lingering concerns over long-term fiscal sustainability and the looming US debt overhang continue to weigh on investor sentiment. We anticipate consolidation to persist in the absence of fresh catalysts. Investors will now shift their attention to the upcoming local corporate earnings season, which could offer fresh impetus to the market. We see more trade deals and a more fiscally responsible US as keys to sustain the stock market recovery.
Sector focus. The Technology sector may come under selling pressure, tracking the overnight decline in the Nasdaq Index. Meanwhile, the Energy sector could also face pressure following comments by Oman's foreign minister that a new round of nuclear talks between Iran and the US is scheduled to take place later this week, exerting downward pressure on crude oil prices.
FBMKLCI Technical Outlook
Technical Commentary: The FBM KLCI extended its pullback phase as the key index drift further away from the SMA200 level. Indicators, however, remained positive with the MACD Line hovered above the Signal Line, while the RSI steadied above 50. A potential consolidation may take precedence over the interim. Technically, the immediate resistance is located at 1,600. Support is envisaged around 1,530.
Company News (source: various)
Public Bank Bhd saw its net profit rose 6% to RM1.75 billion in the first quarter ended March 31, 2025 (1QFY2025), as both interest and non-interest income expanded.
YTL Power International Bhd’s first supercomputer in Malaysia, deploying the Nvidia GB200 Grace Blackwell Superchip on Nvidia DGX Cloud, is on track to go live by the third quarter of this year.
Bumi Armada Bhd’s subsidiary, Armada Kojo BV (AKBV), has signed a production sharing contract (PSC) with Indonesia's Ministry of Energy for the Kojo block in the Makassar Strait.
S P Setia Bhd said it remains committed to achieving its RM4.8 billion sales target this year, despite posting a weaker first quarter due to lower revenue from land sales and international projects. Net profit for the quarter ended March 31 (1QFY2025) fell 13.3% to RM67.02 million, against RM77.33 million in the same quarter a year ago.
Mega First Corp Bhd has reported a 34.23% decrease in first quarter ended March 31, 2025 (1QFY2025) net profit to RM62.79 million, from RM95.46 million a year earlier, amid a weaker performance at its resources and packaging divisions.
Supermax Corp Bhd reported a wider net loss in the third quarter this year, dragged by higher operating expenses and a RM12.7 million unrealised foreign exchange loss following the depreciation of the US dollar against the ringgit. The net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2025 (3QFY2025), was RM23.81 million from RM686,000 in the same quarter a year earlier.
Apex Healthcare Bhd’s net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2025 (1QFY2025) dropped 7.1% to RM17.58 million from RM21.21 million in the same quarter last year on lower public sector sales.
Solarvest Holdings Bhd nearly tripled its net profit to RM20.53 million in the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2025 (4QFY2025), against RM7.73 million in the same quarter last year, following roll-outs of more utility-scale solar projects under the Corporate Green Power Programme.
Healthcare services provider TMC Life Sciences Bhd reported its second straight quarterly loss in the third quarter ended March 31, 2025, due to ended customer insurance contracts, higher costs and increased depreciation from recent investments. For the third quarter ended March 31, 2025, it posted a net loss of RM806,000 compared with a profit of RM9.96 million a year ago.
Boustead Heavy Industries Corp Bhd said it is exploring a potential collaboration with Airbus’s helicopter manufacturing division. The group inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Airbus Helicopters for a potential collaboration as an “industrial partnership” in Malaysia.
Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings Bhd has secured an injunction against a notice of arbitration issued by its subcontractor in relation to a dispute under a subcontract for the Bokor Phase 3 redevelopment project in Sarawak.
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Currency | Buy Rates (RM) | Sell Rates (RM) |
---|---|---|
USD | 4.212042 | 4.248408 |
EUR | 4.921000 | 4.929487 |
CNY | 0.591903 | 0.592919 |
HKD | 0.540309 | 0.544492 |
SGD | 3.268153 | 3.293573 |