NST Online Business Times : latest

Posted: 18 Nov 2012 06:14 PM PST

Affin Investment Bank cut its rating on Parkson Holdings Bhd to 'reduce' from 'buy', following its retail unit's disappointing earnings in the first nine months of the year due to uncertain operating conditions in China.

Parkson Retail Group's surprising weaker year-to-date same-store-sales growth was caused by a slowdown in China's consumer spending and gross domestic product, the research house said on Monday.

Parkson's third-quarter core net profit plunged 42 percent year-on-year because of losses at new stores, rental hikes and high costs in its e-commerce segment, Affin added.

Affin lowered its target price on Parkson Holdings to RM4.84 from RM5.35.

As of 0154 GMT, Parkson shares were down 3.2 per cent, underperforming the Malaysian benchmark index which dropped 0.2 percent. - Reuters

Karex to expand condom output capacity

Posted: 18 Nov 2012 05:53 PM PST

Karex Industries Sdn Bhd, the world's biggest condom manufacturer, will expand capacity after selling shares next year, boosting Malaysia's bid to rejuvenate its rubber industry amid competition from Thailand and Vietnam.

"Demand for condoms is continuously growing," said Goh Miah Kiat, whose great-grandfather started the company as a grocery store on a Malaysian rubber plantation almost a century ago. "It's a very good time. With the company going public, additional funds could be raised for it to expand further."

From trading rubber, the Gohs' business evolved into exporting contraceptives. Their move up the value chain mirrors Malaysia's as it seeks to shift from an agricultural base into more lucrative industries, ranging from latex medical gloves to petrochemicals, as part of a strategic move to escape what economists call the middle-income trap.

"When we got into condoms, it was pretty much a dirty word," Goh, executive director at Karex, said in a Nov. 12 interview. "Today, things have changed. Asia is going to create a lot of demand because our population is very young."

The Selangor-based company, which supplies the United Nations and markets including Brazil, the U.S. and China, is seeking funds through a share sale to double annual production capacity to 6 billion pieces, Goh said. The Southeast Asian country is the world's biggest condom producer, according to the Malaysian Rubber Board. -- Bloomberg

Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Ahad, 18 November 2012

NST Online Business Times : latest

NST Online Business Times : latest

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