The potential peak in the rate cycles of central banks and the easing of the political risk premium on the local equity market could be the catalyst for a narrowing of year-to-date losses in the FBM KLCI in the second half of the year.
THE glove sector has undoubtedly been in the limelight since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out. However, of late, there has been much discourse on the sector, with one party, comprising mainly retail investors, making bullish bets, and another, the institutional investors, having a less sanguine view.
This has been further fuelled by the GameStop frenzy in the US, where a “battle” broke out between a group of amateur investors on Reddit who were buying shares of the video game retailer, leading to phenomenal gains in its share price and a multibillion-dollar hedge fund, which was betting against the stock.
In a bid to emulate the GameStop saga and mounting a challenge to short-sellers, a new forum on Reddit dubbed “BursaBets” was created by Malaysian investors on Jan 28 to buy up shares in rubber glove companies, in particular Top Glove Corp Bhd. The forum even has its own Telegram group dedicated to discussing the stock.
BURSA Malaysia-listed companies have realised how important it is to be cash rich when faced with an unexpected and severe situation like the Covid-19 pandemic.
This is especially given the tough economic conditions the business community has had to weather in the past year, with lockdowns enforced in Malaysia and its major trading partners to contain the spread of the virus, bringing activities practically to a standstill.
Many companies built up their cash positions in 2020 in anticipation of the severe economic downturn due to Covid-19, notes private investor and former investment banker Ian Yoong.
“Larger listed companies issued bonds and other fixed-income securities. It is a natural response to be conservative in the face of an impending severe economic downturn,” he says.
WITH the overnight policy rate (OPR) at a record low of 1.75% and with most economists pricing in another 25 basis point cut to 1.5% in the first quarter, savers with a higher tolerance for risk may opt for other alternatives for returns on their savings.
One option would be to invest in stocks that offer dividend yields of at least 4% or more, which is much higher than the prevailing fixed deposit rate of 1.75% to 2% offered by most banks.
“Dividend-yielding stocks are evergreen stocks as long as they keep paying. If you are buying [a stock] for dividend yields, then you should not expect too much from capital appreciation.