IJM Corp, a Malaysian builder, is in advanced stages of securing more than RM5 billion of new construction contracts, which may double its existing orderbook to a record RM10 billion, according to Credit Suisse Group AG.
The contracts include the West Coast Highway project, hospital and rail projects, Danny Goh, an analyst at Credit Suisse, wrote in a report today. -- Bloomberg
Read more: IJM close to winning RM5b jobs: Credit Suisse http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/articles/20110330091454/Article/index_html#ixzz1I3LE5Tfl
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Radiation leaking from Japan's quake-hit nuclear plant
FUKUSHIMA, Japan (Reuters) - Radiation leaked from an unstable Japanese nuclear reactor north of Tokyo on Saturday, the government said, after an explosion blew the roof off the facility in the wake of a massive earthquake.
A helicopter flies past Japan's Fukushima Daiichi No.1 Nuclear reactor March 12, 2011. (REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon)
The developments raised fears of a disastrous meltdown at the plant, which was damaged by Friday's 8.9-magnitude earthquake, the strongest ever recorded in Japan.
"We are looking into the cause and the situation and we'll make that public when we have further information," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said.
Edano said an evacuation radius of 10 km (6 miles) from the stricken 40-year-old Daiichi 1 reactor plant in Fukushima
prefecture was adequate. TV footage showed vapour rising from the plant, 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo.
The quake sent a 10-metre (33-foot) tsunami ripping through towns and cities across the northeast coast. Japanese media estimate that at least 1,300 people were killed.
The blast came as plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) worked desperately to reduce pressures in the core of the reactor.
"An unchecked rise in temperature could cause the core to essentially turn into a molten mass that could burn through the reactor vessel," risk information service Stratfor said in a report before the explosion. "This may lead to a release of an unchecked amount of radiation into the containment building that surrounds the reactor."
NHK television and Jiji said the outer structure of the building that houses the reactor appeared to have blown off, which could suggest the containment building had already been breached.
Earlier the operator released what it said was a tiny amount of radioactive steam to reduce the pressure and the danger was minimal because tens of thousands of people had already been evacuated from the vicinity.
Reuters journalists were in Fukushima prefecture, about 70 km (40 miles) from the plant. Other media have reported police roadblocks in the area to prevent people getting closer.
Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology said the earth's axis shifted 25 cm as a result of the quake and the U.S. Geological Survey said the main island of Japan had shifted 2.4 metres.
Friday's tremor was so huge that thousands fled their homes from coastlines around the Pacific Rim, as far away as North and South America, fearful of a tsunami.
Most appeared to have been spared anything more serious than some high waves, unlike Japan's northeast coastline which was hammered by the huge tsunami that turned houses and ships into floating debris as it surged into cities and villages, sweeping aside everything in its path.
"I thought I was going to die," said Wataru Fujimura, a 38-year-old sales representative in Koriyama, Fukushima, north of Tokyo and close to the area worst hit by the quake.
"Our furniture and shelves had all fallen over and there were cracks in the apartment building, so we spent the whole night in the car ... Now we're back home trying to clean."
The unfolding natural disaster, which has been followed by dozens of aftershocks, prompted offers of search and rescue help from 50 countries.
The central bank said it would cut short a two-day policy review scheduled for next week to one day on Monday and promised to do its utmost to ensure financial market stability.
The disaster struck as the world's third-largest economy had been showing signs of reviving from an economic contraction in the final quarter of last year. It raised the prospect of major disruptions for many key businesses and a massive repair bill running into tens of billions of dollars.
In one of the worst-hit residential areas, people buried under rubble could be heard calling out for rescue, Kyodo news agency reported. TV footage showed staff at one hospital waving banners with the words "FOOD" and "HELP" from a rooftop.
The airport in coastal city Sendai, home to one million people, was on fire, Japanese media said.
TV footage from Friday showed a black torrent of water carrying cars and wrecked homes at high speed across farmland near Sendai, 300 km (180 miles) northeast of Tokyo. Ships had been flung onto a harbour wharf, where they lay helplessly.
The earthquake was the fifth most powerful to hit the world in the past century. It surpassed the Great Kant quake of Sept. 1, 1923, which had a magnitude of 7.9 and killed more than 140,000 people in the Tokyo area.
The 1995 Kobe quake caused $100 billion in damage and was the most expensive natural disaster in history.
A helicopter flies past Japan's Fukushima Daiichi No.1 Nuclear reactor March 12, 2011. (REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon)
The developments raised fears of a disastrous meltdown at the plant, which was damaged by Friday's 8.9-magnitude earthquake, the strongest ever recorded in Japan.
"We are looking into the cause and the situation and we'll make that public when we have further information," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said.
Edano said an evacuation radius of 10 km (6 miles) from the stricken 40-year-old Daiichi 1 reactor plant in Fukushima
prefecture was adequate. TV footage showed vapour rising from the plant, 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo.
The quake sent a 10-metre (33-foot) tsunami ripping through towns and cities across the northeast coast. Japanese media estimate that at least 1,300 people were killed.
The blast came as plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) worked desperately to reduce pressures in the core of the reactor.
"An unchecked rise in temperature could cause the core to essentially turn into a molten mass that could burn through the reactor vessel," risk information service Stratfor said in a report before the explosion. "This may lead to a release of an unchecked amount of radiation into the containment building that surrounds the reactor."
NHK television and Jiji said the outer structure of the building that houses the reactor appeared to have blown off, which could suggest the containment building had already been breached.
Earlier the operator released what it said was a tiny amount of radioactive steam to reduce the pressure and the danger was minimal because tens of thousands of people had already been evacuated from the vicinity.
Reuters journalists were in Fukushima prefecture, about 70 km (40 miles) from the plant. Other media have reported police roadblocks in the area to prevent people getting closer.
Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology said the earth's axis shifted 25 cm as a result of the quake and the U.S. Geological Survey said the main island of Japan had shifted 2.4 metres.
Friday's tremor was so huge that thousands fled their homes from coastlines around the Pacific Rim, as far away as North and South America, fearful of a tsunami.
Most appeared to have been spared anything more serious than some high waves, unlike Japan's northeast coastline which was hammered by the huge tsunami that turned houses and ships into floating debris as it surged into cities and villages, sweeping aside everything in its path.
"I thought I was going to die," said Wataru Fujimura, a 38-year-old sales representative in Koriyama, Fukushima, north of Tokyo and close to the area worst hit by the quake.
"Our furniture and shelves had all fallen over and there were cracks in the apartment building, so we spent the whole night in the car ... Now we're back home trying to clean."
The unfolding natural disaster, which has been followed by dozens of aftershocks, prompted offers of search and rescue help from 50 countries.
The central bank said it would cut short a two-day policy review scheduled for next week to one day on Monday and promised to do its utmost to ensure financial market stability.
The disaster struck as the world's third-largest economy had been showing signs of reviving from an economic contraction in the final quarter of last year. It raised the prospect of major disruptions for many key businesses and a massive repair bill running into tens of billions of dollars.
In one of the worst-hit residential areas, people buried under rubble could be heard calling out for rescue, Kyodo news agency reported. TV footage showed staff at one hospital waving banners with the words "FOOD" and "HELP" from a rooftop.
The airport in coastal city Sendai, home to one million people, was on fire, Japanese media said.
TV footage from Friday showed a black torrent of water carrying cars and wrecked homes at high speed across farmland near Sendai, 300 km (180 miles) northeast of Tokyo. Ships had been flung onto a harbour wharf, where they lay helplessly.
The earthquake was the fifth most powerful to hit the world in the past century. It surpassed the Great Kant quake of Sept. 1, 1923, which had a magnitude of 7.9 and killed more than 140,000 people in the Tokyo area.
The 1995 Kobe quake caused $100 billion in damage and was the most expensive natural disaster in history.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Penang Park And Ride Free Shutter Service
Starting from 1 March 2011, the Penang government is launching a FREE shutter bus service that travels from Prai to Bayan Lepas.
This service will greatly benefit the workers who live in Prai but work in Bayan Lepas industrial zone. The Penang government has compromised utilizing the Sunway Carnival car park as the main bus terminal. But yet the parking fee hasn’t been announced.
It’s planning to have 40-50 bus stops in Bayan Lepas industrial zone to cater different destinations.
This Free service is available from Monday to Friday, from 6am to 9am and 4pm to 7pm.
With this service, the traffic congestion will be dramatically decreased. And it’s estimated to save around RM250 per month individually.
This service will greatly benefit the workers who live in Prai but work in Bayan Lepas industrial zone. The Penang government has compromised utilizing the Sunway Carnival car park as the main bus terminal. But yet the parking fee hasn’t been announced.
It’s planning to have 40-50 bus stops in Bayan Lepas industrial zone to cater different destinations.
This Free service is available from Monday to Friday, from 6am to 9am and 4pm to 7pm.
With this service, the traffic congestion will be dramatically decreased. And it’s estimated to save around RM250 per month individually.
Proton has reported a loss of RM52 million for Q3
Proton has reported a loss of RM52 million for Q3 of its 2010/2011 financial year, down from a RM81 million profit in Q2 of the 2010/2011 financial year. This resulted in a lower profit before tax of RM134 million for the first 9 months of the current financial year, compared to RM248 million for the same period of time in the last financial year.
Cumulative revenue as of 31st December 2010 was higher though compared to the same period in the last financial year – RM6.36 billion versus RM5.97 billion.
The losses were attributed to higher R&D and branding expenditure as well as restructuring expenses incurred as part of the business transformation plan of Group Lotus. The primary contributors to the loss were said to be higher marketing and selling costs for its cars as well as lower domestic sales volume due to competitors aggressively lowering prices during the seasonal break, as well as traditionally slower end of year demand.
Looking ahead, Proton is expecting to do well for the Q4 financial quarter as it says deliveries of the Proton Inspira and the recently launched Saga FL will support higher sales. Proton sold 15,805 units in January 2011. Its total sales for 2010 was 157,274 units.
“We are confident that our current strategy built on the principle of offering the right car, at the right price for the right market segment, will enable it to continue to capitalize on growing domestic sales,” said Proton Group Chairman Dato’ Sri Mohd. Nadzmi Mohd. Salleh.
“As for Lotus, higher expenditure is expected as the company is undergoing a restructuring exercise, but we are confident that the restructuring plan is making good progress. This is further supported by future plans which includes more efficient spending, continuous manufacturing efficiency and a consolidated marketing strategy, which is mainly to instill greater public awareness of new models,” he added.
Proton Group Managing Director Dato’ Haji Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir also revealed that the Proton Exora E-REV and the Proton Saga EV are currently in the final stages of testing before being made commercially available. Positive signs of the mentioned higher R&D expenditure can be seen on our roads as well, such as the Proton prototype that we’ve been seeing locally as well as at the Bosch ESP testing center in Sweden.
Cumulative revenue as of 31st December 2010 was higher though compared to the same period in the last financial year – RM6.36 billion versus RM5.97 billion.
The losses were attributed to higher R&D and branding expenditure as well as restructuring expenses incurred as part of the business transformation plan of Group Lotus. The primary contributors to the loss were said to be higher marketing and selling costs for its cars as well as lower domestic sales volume due to competitors aggressively lowering prices during the seasonal break, as well as traditionally slower end of year demand.
Looking ahead, Proton is expecting to do well for the Q4 financial quarter as it says deliveries of the Proton Inspira and the recently launched Saga FL will support higher sales. Proton sold 15,805 units in January 2011. Its total sales for 2010 was 157,274 units.
“We are confident that our current strategy built on the principle of offering the right car, at the right price for the right market segment, will enable it to continue to capitalize on growing domestic sales,” said Proton Group Chairman Dato’ Sri Mohd. Nadzmi Mohd. Salleh.
“As for Lotus, higher expenditure is expected as the company is undergoing a restructuring exercise, but we are confident that the restructuring plan is making good progress. This is further supported by future plans which includes more efficient spending, continuous manufacturing efficiency and a consolidated marketing strategy, which is mainly to instill greater public awareness of new models,” he added.
Proton Group Managing Director Dato’ Haji Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir also revealed that the Proton Exora E-REV and the Proton Saga EV are currently in the final stages of testing before being made commercially available. Positive signs of the mentioned higher R&D expenditure can be seen on our roads as well, such as the Proton prototype that we’ve been seeing locally as well as at the Bosch ESP testing center in Sweden.
Jobstreet Corp (RM2.85; Buy; Price Target: RM3.30; JOBS MK)
4Q10 beat expectations
• 4Q10 net profit beat our forecast, but was in line
with street estimates; declared 2.5 sen net DPS
• Job posting momentum remained strong YTD,
which bodes well for 2011 earnings
• Maintain Buy and RM3.30 TP
• 4Q10 net profit beat our forecast, but was in line
with street estimates; declared 2.5 sen net DPS
• Job posting momentum remained strong YTD,
which bodes well for 2011 earnings
• Maintain Buy and RM3.30 TP
CB Industrial Product (RM4.14; Buy; Price Target: RM4.80; CBP MK)
Improved earnings momentum
• 4Q10 net profit was above expectations
• Surprised with 1-for-20 interim share dividend;
implies FY10 payout of 47% (above expectations)
• New contract flows are improving with better
margin mix; Maintain Buy with higher SOP TP of
RM4.80
• 4Q10 net profit was above expectations
• Surprised with 1-for-20 interim share dividend;
implies FY10 payout of 47% (above expectations)
• New contract flows are improving with better
margin mix; Maintain Buy with higher SOP TP of
RM4.80
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Apple iPad is entitled to LHDN personal income tax relief but not Samsung Galaxy Tab
In reference to Paragraph 46(1)(j) of Malaysian Income Tax Act 1967, an amount limited to a maximum of RM3,000 is deductible in respect of the purchase of non-business use personal computer for individual tax payer.
This deduction is allowed once in 3 years, but no deduction will be granted if the computer is used for business purpose.
Now, the question: are tablet computers such as Apple iPad, Samsung Galaxy Tab, Viewsonic ViewPad 7, Toshiba Folio 100, CSL Spice Mi700 DroidPad, Blackberry Playbook, ZTE V9, etc. entitled for this personal income tax relief?
I have asked this question to LHDN, and the official answer is: if the tablet computer only have computer features and is for home and family use only, then it will be treated as "computer" and is entitled to the personal income tax relief of up to RM3,000, claimable once in 3 years.
This will be the case for Apple iPad, Toshiba Folio 100 and Blackberry Playbook. Let's say you purchased an Apple iPad 64GB with Wifi+3G at the price of RM2,599 in year 2010, and your tax rate is 24%, when you file your 2010 personal income tax now, you can claim back RM2,599 tax relief, which is equilvalent to a saving of RM623.76 in your income tax. (If you have any family member or friend or colleague who purchased Apple iPad recently, please forward this good news to them using the "Share" button below.)
However, if the tablet computer also have handphone features in addition to computer features, which mean you can make phone calls and also send SMS/MMS using the telco service with the tablet, then it will be treated as a "phone" and is not entitled to personal income tax relief. This is the case for Samsung Galaxy Tab, Viewsonic ViewPad 7, CSL Spice Mi700 DroidPad, ZTE V9, etc. Bad news.
If you need to verify this information, can make a call to LHDN at 1300-88-3010 or email to callcentre@hasil.gov.my.
This deduction is allowed once in 3 years, but no deduction will be granted if the computer is used for business purpose.
Now, the question: are tablet computers such as Apple iPad, Samsung Galaxy Tab, Viewsonic ViewPad 7, Toshiba Folio 100, CSL Spice Mi700 DroidPad, Blackberry Playbook, ZTE V9, etc. entitled for this personal income tax relief?
I have asked this question to LHDN, and the official answer is: if the tablet computer only have computer features and is for home and family use only, then it will be treated as "computer" and is entitled to the personal income tax relief of up to RM3,000, claimable once in 3 years.
This will be the case for Apple iPad, Toshiba Folio 100 and Blackberry Playbook. Let's say you purchased an Apple iPad 64GB with Wifi+3G at the price of RM2,599 in year 2010, and your tax rate is 24%, when you file your 2010 personal income tax now, you can claim back RM2,599 tax relief, which is equilvalent to a saving of RM623.76 in your income tax. (If you have any family member or friend or colleague who purchased Apple iPad recently, please forward this good news to them using the "Share" button below.)
However, if the tablet computer also have handphone features in addition to computer features, which mean you can make phone calls and also send SMS/MMS using the telco service with the tablet, then it will be treated as a "phone" and is not entitled to personal income tax relief. This is the case for Samsung Galaxy Tab, Viewsonic ViewPad 7, CSL Spice Mi700 DroidPad, ZTE V9, etc. Bad news.
If you need to verify this information, can make a call to LHDN at 1300-88-3010 or email to callcentre@hasil.gov.my.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)