MONEY MASTER

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed lower on Friday amid mixed regional market performance as investors turned cautious over a possible rate hike by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) and upcoming US economic data that may influence the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) interest rate decision next week.   At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) pared most earlier losses to settle 4.55 points easier, or 0.28 per cent, to 1,616.52 from Thursday’s close of 1,621.07. The benchmark index, which opened 0.37 of-a-point lower at 1,620.70, moved between 1,609.67 and 1,621.25 throughout the day.  The broader market was negative, with decliners outpacing advancers 604 to 439. A total of 550 counters were unchanged, 1,151 untraded, and 18 suspended. Turnover declined to 3.17 billion units worth RM2.24 billion from 4.48 billion units worth RM2.75 billion yesterday. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-presiden...

Key Takeaways Fullerton is winding down its China hedge fund and private fund units, cutting most local staff. The move comes amid Temasek’s broader restructuring and weak progress by foreign managers in China’s hedge fund market. High competition from domestic firms and limited foreign brand recognition have hindered growth. Fullerton’s two Chinese private fund units together manage  less than 1.5 billion yuan . Several global firms, including BEA Union and Eastspring, have also scaled back in China in recent years. Temasek is consolidating subsidiaries Seviora and Pavilion Capital under a new organisational structure starting April 1. Despite restructuring, Fullerton says China remains an important market. Fullerton Fund Management Co, owned by Singapore’s Temasek Holdings, is winding down its China private fund operations — including its eight-year-old onshore hedge fund arm — amid increasingly difficult conditions for global asset managers in the market, according to people fam...

Key Takeaways Japan’s Nikkei fell  1.5%  as weak household spending deepened expectations of a BOJ rate hike. Japan’s 10-year bond yield hit  1.94% , the highest since 2007. Markets now price a  75% chance  of a BOJ rate hike in December. Asian markets were broadly subdued, with mixed performance across major indices. Investors await the delayed US  PCE inflation  report, expected to show core inflation rising 0.2 percent. Fed funds futures imply almost a  90% chance  of a rate cut next week despite divisions within the Fed. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell sharply on Friday, erasing its weekly gains as weak household spending data reinforced concerns about inflation and strengthened expectations of a Bank of Japan (BOJ) rate hike later this month. The index dropped  1.5% , placing it on track for a flat week. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan eased  0.1%  but remained up  0.5%  for the week. Japan’s h...

Key Takeaways Moore Threads surged up to  502%  on debut after a  US$1.13 billion  IPO, the second-largest onshore listing this year. The rally underscores strong investor interest in China’s  AI chip sector  amid tech self-reliance efforts. Retail subscriptions were oversubscribed  2,750 times , despite the firm still being unprofitable. Valuation remains stretched at  123x price-to-sales , above peer averages. The company, founded by a former Nvidia executive, rebounded after U.S. sanctions triggered restructuring. More major Chinese semiconductor firms are preparing IPOs, suggesting a deepening onshore pipeline. Moore Threads Technology Co, one of China’s leading artificial intelligence (AI) chipmakers, surged in its Shanghai trading debut after raising  8 billion yuan (US$1.13 billion)  in the year’s second-largest onshore IPO. The stock climbed as much as  502%  from its IPO price of 114.28 yuan, marking what could be the ...

The S&P 500 struggled for direction on Thursday, holding just shy of its all-time high as traders weighed next week’s Federal Reserve decision, uneven economic data, and renewed volatility in crypto and bonds. Bitcoin halted its rebound, Treasury yields climbed, and equities lacked clear momentum. The index closed near  6,860 , barely moving on the day. Despite a drop in jobless claims — distorted by Thanksgiving timing — expectations for a Fed rate cut next week remained firm. Small caps outperformed, with the  Russell 2000 adding  0.8% . Meta rose after reports it may cut spending in its metaverse division, while Hewlett Packard Enterprise fell in late trading after a disappointing sales outlook. Recent jitters around elevated artificial-intelligence valuations briefly pressured markets, but optimism around the sector’s earnings potential and anticipated policy easing continue to support the broader rally. Rate Cut Hopes Keep Seasonal Rally in Play “The key question...

U.S. stocks have climbed back toward record levels after a volatile month, but investors remain uneasy as persistent inflation and weakening labor data cloud the outlook. That’s why Friday’s release of the  September personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index  — the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge — is being viewed as a major test of the market’s renewed optimism. Despite rising equity prices, recession warnings from soft data such as consumer sentiment surveys and private payroll reports have kept sentiment mixed. Investors are hoping Friday’s delayed PCE report will provide the  “hard data” clarity  that has been missing. Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide, said investors are watching the PCE report more closely because many forward-looking indicators have been unreliable. “There’s this confusion that the data we’re getting is lagged or incomplete,” Hackett said. “The PCE fills in the blanks because soft data measures have been probl...

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 4 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia pared earlier losses to end marginally lower today as cautious sentiment prevailed ahead of the US Federal Reserve (Fed) meeting next week. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 1.77 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 1,621.07 from Wednesday’s close of 1,622.84. The benchmark index, which opened 1.79 points higher at 1,624.63, moved between 1,616.49 and 1,625.99 throughout the day.  The broader market was negative, with decliners surpassing advancers 463 to 458. A total of 699 counters were unchanged, 1,105 untraded, and seven suspended. Turnover expanded to 4.48 billion units worth RM2.75 billion from 3.28 billion units worth RM2.30 billion yesterday. IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said the US ADP Employment Report and the Institute for Supply Management Services Purchasin...

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 3 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia snapped its two-day rally to close lower today, as investors engaged in profit-taking amid a more cautious trading tone, mirroring the mostly downbeat performance of regional peers. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 7.76 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 1,622.84 from Tuesday’s close of 1,630.60. The benchmark index, which opened 0.86 of-a-point higher at 1,631.46, moved between 1,617.79 and 1,632.95 throughout the day.  However, the broader market was positive, with advancers beating decliners 584 to 523. A total of 541 counters were unchanged, 1,056 untraded, and seven suspended. Turnover narrowed to 3.28 billion units worth RM2.30 billion from 3.93 billion units worth RM3.32 billion yesterday. IPPFA Sdn Bhd director of investment strategy and country economist Mohd Sedek Jantan said that telecommunications and media counters led the declines among index cons...

Genting Malaysia Bhd (GENM) saw its share price fall for a second day, as growing concerns over a potential  credit ratings downgrade  overshadow optimism surrounding its front-runner status for a  downstate New York casino licence . CreditSights, a Fitch Solutions unit, warned that both  Genting Bhd  and subsidiary  Genting Malaysia  face elevated downgrade risks due to  high leverage and weak cash flow . Genting’s latest pro-forma results showed it breached downgrade triggers for  cash flow, leverage and EBITDA  at both Moody’s and Fitch. Genting Bhd’s takeover bid has lifted its stake in Genting Malaysia to  73.133% . GENM’s share price dropped as much as  3.1%  to RM2.18 at market open before recovering slightly to RM2.19, valuing the company at RM12.4 billion. Analysts Boost Earnings Forecasts on New York Optimism Both  TA Research  and  Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB)  raised their earnings proj...

Amazon and Nvidia have deepened their AI alliance, integrating Nvidia’s accelerated computing technologies directly into Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) next-generation custom silicon — marking a major escalation in the global AI infrastructure arms race. At AWS re:Invent, the two tech giants unveiled expanded support for  Nvidia NVLink Fusion , a new interconnect architecture that links Nvidia GPUs with AWS-designed chips such as  Trainium4  and future  Graviton  processors. AWS is building its future AI platforms using  NVLink Fusion + Nvidia MGX rack architecture , creating a unified high-performance fabric capable of powering the next wave of large-scale AI models. Advanced GPU Access & Sovereign AI Clouds AWS is also broadening access to  Nvidia’s Blackwell GPUs , which now power AWS’s new  AI Factories  — dedicated sovereign AI cloud clusters designed for global enterprises needing local, regulation-compliant compute. Nvidia says this ma...

 Amazon has officially stepped deeper into the  AI arms race , launching  Trainium 3 , a new chip built to challenge Nvidia’s dominance in the GPU market. The latest hardware — available through Amazon Web Services — promises  4x faster model training  than its predecessor while using the  same energy footprint . Each cluster of Amazon’s new “UltraServers” can run up to  144 Trainium 3 chips , enabling large-scale LLM training at hyperscaler level. The move positions Amazon directly against  Google and Nvidia , both of which dominate today’s AI infrastructure landscape. Google’s lead in the AI model race has reportedly pushed  OpenAI CEO Sam Altman  into a “code red” mode. Crypto Miners Become AI’s New Powerhouses The AI boom has created a problem even Big Tech struggles with:  massive energy and space requirements . Enter crypto miners — companies already running large-scale, power-heavy data centers. After the  2024 Bitcoin h...

For weeks, the crypto market has felt broken. October 10 delivered the  largest liquidation event in crypto history . Bitcoin plunged, ETH and altcoins fell even harder, and every attempted rebound since has faded instantly. Many blamed President Donald Trump’s  100% China tariffs , macro jitters, or excessive leverage. Those factors triggered the crash — but they  don’t explain why the market remains stuck . The missing piece was a  quiet MSCI announcement  released on the  same day  — a document targeting the structures behind one of crypto’s biggest buyer groups:  Digital Asset Treasury companies (DATs)  such as MicroStrategy (now Strategy). That announcement may have revealed a structural shock that could hit crypto again in 2026. What Are DATs — And Why They Matter? DATs are publicly listed companies that raise capital to buy bitcoin or other digital assets. They became one of the two biggest structural buyers in this cycle, alongside sp...

 Malaysia’s real estate investment trust (M-REIT) sector may face a sharp drop in investor appeal if a long-standing  withholding tax relief on REIT distributions expires on Dec 31, 2025 , Maybank Investment Bank (Maybank IB) warned. The concession — in place since YA2016 — keeps tax on REIT income at  10% for most investors ,  0% for resident corporates , and  24% for non-resident corporates . Although repeatedly extended in the past, authorities have remained  silent  on whether it will continue into YA2026. What Happens If the Tax Relief Ends? Maybank IB said that without an extension, REIT distributions would revert to  marginal tax rates , potentially cutting  post-tax yields by 50–100 basis points . Such a reduction could: Lower net income for retail and institutional investors Make Malaysia’s REITs  less competitive  versus regional peers Deter foreign inflows Undermine sentiment despite the sector’s currently attractive...

 Malaysia’s banking sector is on track to end 2025 strongly, but analysts caution that  tighter liquidity and rising deposit competition  will dominate the landscape in 2026. MBSB Research, which maintained its  positive sector outlook , said banks remain supported by  robust fundamentals and attractive dividend yields , helping drive a solid 4Q2025 performance. “Multiple tailwinds continue to support the sector, and we expect share prices to extend their uptrend,” MBSB said in a Wednesday note. Dividends, loan growth and improving asset quality still supportive According to MBSB, several factors will continue to underpin bank valuations heading into 2026: High dividend yields Improving loan growth momentum Stable net interest margins (NIMs) Stronger fee income Further recoveries in gross impaired loans (GIL) While risks such as asset quality and liquidity pressures persist, MBSB views them as  manageable for now . However, the house flagged early signs of ...

Asian equities steadied on Wednesday, tracking an overnight recovery on Wall Street as a sharp selloff in global bonds and cryptocurrencies took a breather. The calmer tone helped lift risk appetite across the region. Bitcoin reclaimed the  US$90,000  level, while futures for both the  Nasdaq  and  S&P 500  edged up  0.1% . MSCI’s broadest Asia-Pacific index outside Japan rose  0.3% , and Japan’s  Nikkei  advanced  0.8% . Global Market Turbulence Eases Markets bounced back after a rocky start to the week triggered by renewed expectations of a  Bank of Japan (BOJ) rate hike , which sent global bonds tumbling and deepened the slide in digital assets. “The moves in spreads and the yen likely reignited fears around carry trades and forced unwinding of leveraged positions,” said Kerry Craig, global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management. He added that while crypto prices have often been used as a proxy for risk sentiment...

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 2 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia’s key index sustained its uptrend but closed off its intraday high as investor sentiment continued to improve amid broad gains across major Asian markets, said an analyst. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) added 6.03 points, or 0.37 per cent, to 1,630.60 from Monday’s close of 1,624.57. The benchmark index, which opened 2.50 points firmer at 1,627.07, moved between 1,624.47 and 1,634.35 throughout the day.  However, the broader market was negative, with decliners outpacing gainers 606 to 489. A total of 577 counters were unchanged, 1,016 untraded, and 10 suspended. Turnover narrowed to 3.93 billion units worth RM3.32 billion from 3.99 billion units worth RM2.79 billion yesterday. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said that rising expectations of a potential US Federal Reserve rate cut lifted risk appetite despite firmer US Treasury yields. ...

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia started the final month of the year on a firmer footing, with the key index climbing 1.25 per cent at Monday’s close, supported by renewed bargain hunting and year-end portfolio rebalancing by institutional investors.   At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 20.10 points, or 1.25 per cent, to 1,624.57 from last Friday’s close of 1,604.47. The benchmark index, which opened  3.79 points higher to 1,608.26, moved between 1,608.26 and 1,625.42 throughout the day.  However, the broader market was negative, with decliners surpassing gainers 681 to 526. A total of 505 counters were unchanged, 977 untraded, and 10 suspended. Turnover slipped to 3.99 billion units worth RM2.79 billion from 4.09 billion units worth RM3.36 billion last Friday.