Latest news with #investorsentiment
Free Malaysia Today
a day ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Bursa ends lower amid US tariff concerns
KUALA LUMPUR : Bursa Malaysia erased early gains to close lower for the sixth consecutive day today, weighed down by selling pressure in regional emerging markets due to concerns over the ongoing US tariff conflict, said an analyst. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd equity research vice-president Thong Pak Leng said key regional indices closed mixed amid uncertainties surrounding US president Donald Trump's tariff war, prompting cautious investor behaviour. European equities slipped at the open due to weak sentiment and in anticipation of upcoming eurozone inflation figures. In contrast, markets in China and Hong Kong rallied on hopes of renewed US-China trade talks. On the domestic front, market sentiment remains subdued as investors adopt a wait-and-see stance amid ongoing foreign selling and escalating global trade uncertainties involving the US. The benchmark index is currently near its psychological 1,500 support level. 'Despite these challenges, we view this as an opportunity to pick up blue-chip stocks at lower prices due to their strong fundamentals, attractive valuations, and appealing dividend yields. 'As such, we anticipate the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) to trend within the 1,490-1,520 range for the week,' Thong told Bernama. Meanwhile, UOB Kay Hian Wealth Advisors Sdn Bhd head of investment research Sedek Jantan said market caution has intensified amid growing fears of a tariff-driven global slowdown and weakening external demand. Although the US has extended a pause on tariffs for certain Chinese goods until Aug 31, tensions have flared after Beijing rejected US accusations of breaching the existing tariff truce, instead blaming Washington for backtracking. 'A potential call between Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping this week may offer much-needed clarity on the future direction of trade relations,' he said. Locally, Malaysia's manufacturing purchasing managers' index edged up to 48.8 in May from April, but remained below the 50-point threshold, signalling continued contraction. 'Weak new orders and declining output reflect persistent demand weakness. 'As a trade-reliant economy, Malaysia remains vulnerable to global trade disruptions, with export-oriented sectors, particularly industrial products, technology, and small-cap stocks, most exposed to downside risks,' Sedek added. At 5pm, the FBM KLCI eased 5.10 points, or 0.33%, to 1,503.25 from last Friday's close of 1,508.35. The benchmark index opened 4.37 points higher at 1,512.72 and moved between 1,497.42 and 1,514.12 throughout the trading session. Market breadth was negative with decliners thumping gainers 705 to 297, while 423 counters were unchanged, 921 untraded and 15 suspended. Turnover fell to 3.04 billion units valued at RM2.20 billion compared with last Friday's 3.21 billion units worth RM5.04 billion. Bursa Malaysia was closed yesterday in conjunction with the official birthday of Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim. Among the heavyweights, Petronas Chemicals dipped 14 sen to RM3.28, QL Resources fell 10 sen to RM4.40, IHH Healthcare eased 15 sen to RM6.75, Press Metal dropped nine sen to RM4.95, and Hong Leong Financial Group lost 28 sen to RM16.30. Among active stocks, Permaju Industries eased 0.5 sen to one sen, ACE Market debutant ICT Zone Asia, Tanco, and Harvest Miracle Capital were flat each at 20 sen, RM1 and 18 sen respectively, and MyEG slipped three sen to 89 sen. On the index board, the FBM Emas Index trimmed 45.35 points to 11,254.45, the FBMT 100 Index lost 38.28 points to 11,022.72, and the FBM ACE Index sank 69.22 points to 4,481.81. The FBM Emas Shariah Index decreased 46.10 points to 11,210.15, while the FBM 70 Index retreated 59.35 points to 16,142.16. Sector-wise, the financial services index slid 77.90 points to 17,762.63, the industrial products and services index shed 2.57 points to 150.08, and the energy index fell 9.08 points to 698.96, but the plantation index increased 11.03 points to 7,218.88. The Main Market volume declined to 1.21 billion units worth RM1.90 billion against Friday's 1.88 billion units valued at RM4.82 billion. Warrants turnover expanded to 1.50 billion units valued at RM201.92 million from 1 billion units worth RM111.49 million previously. The ACE Market volume advanced to 323.10 million shares worth RM94.99 million versus 318.43 million shares worth RM107.68 million on Friday. Consumer products and services counters accounted for 270.72 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (184.66 million), construction (76.45 million), technology (139.98 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (85.81 million), property (164.11 million), plantation (29.49 million), REITs (11.64 million), closed/fund (3,400), energy (106.55 million), healthcare (57.20 million), telecommunications and media (43.34 million), transportation and logistics (18.57 million), utilities (31.21 million), and business trusts (20,700).
Globe and Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
4 Monster Stocks to Buy and Hold for the Next Decade
The U.S. equity market has been anything but calm in 2025, as several factors, including persistent trade tensions, rising macroeconomic uncertainties, and geopolitical challenges, have weighed on overall investor sentiment. But seasoned investors know this: Periods of market volatility offer a chance to acquire fundamentally strong, high-quality stocks with robust growth prospects and a strong competitive moat at attractive valuation levels. Historically, this strategy has yielded handsome returns for patient investors. Against this backdrop, here's why these four stocks can prove exceptional buy-and-hold picks in the next decade. 1. Microsoft Few companies are better positioned to ride the artificial intelligence (AI) wave than Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). The company plays a critical role in building AI infrastructure worldwide. Its deep partnership with ChatGPT developer OpenAI enabled it to infuse AI across its entire ecosystem. Copilot, its AI-powered assistant, integrated across the Office 365 productivity suite and GitHub, is all set to become a key revenue driver in the coming years. Then there's Azure, Microsoft's cloud computing platform, which now commands a 22% market share globally in the AI infrastructure space. The company is also building new data centers globally, opening new facilities in 10 countries in the third quarter alone. This has laid the foundation for Azure's future growth. Its highly diversified business model with recurring revenue streams truly sets Microsoft apart. The company's annuity mix (the proportion of its revenue derived from recurring sources like subscriptions and long-term contracts) was a very high 98% in the fiscal third quarter of 2025, which ended March 31. Commercial remaining performance obligations, a barometer to gauge future revenue visibility, also grew 34% year over year to $315 billion. The balance sheet is also robust, with a cash balance of $79.6 billion. This has allowed Microsoft to pursue an aggressive AI investment strategy while returning $9.7 billion to shareholders as dividends and share repurchases. All these factors make Microsoft a smart pick now. 2. Meta Platforms Meta Platforms' (NASDAQ: META) dominance in digital advertising and solid growth prospects make it attractive for long-term investors. The company generated nearly $41.4 billion in revenue in the recent quarter by reaching 3.4 billion people daily across its social media applications, almost 40% of the global population. Meta's AI investments are already showing tangible returns. The company's AI-powered content recommendation system has increased time spent on Facebook by 7% and Instagram by 6% in the past six months. The new AI-powered ads recommendation model for Reels has boosted the ad conversion rates by 5%. The Meta AI virtual assistant has nearly 1 billion monthly active users. Furthermore, there are also other avenues to monetize Meta's large customer base. The company aims to leverage WhatsApp's massive user base to strengthen its business messaging and mobile commerce position in developed markets. Meta is a highly profitable and free cash flow-positive company that plans to invest nearly $64 billion to $72 billion in fiscal 2025. Considering the robust tailwinds, Meta seems a worthwhile pick now. 3. Amazon Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) stands to benefit from several growth catalysts in the next decade. AWS dominates the cloud infrastructure services market with a 29% share. The cloud computing platform achieved a $117 billion annualized revenue run rate with a 40% margin as of the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2025. The company's e-commerce business is also getting stronger thanks to a newly redesigned inbound network, increasing adoption of robotics and automation, and expansion of the same delivery sites. Finally, advertising has also become a significant growth driver, generating $13.9 billion in revenue in the first quarter. Amazon is also leveraging its advanced AI capabilities across e-commerce, cloud computing, advertising, and all other business areas to boost productivity and improve cost efficiencies. CEO Andy Jassy confirmed the AI business is already a "multibillion-dollar annual run rate" that is "growing [at] triple-digit year-over-year percentages," despite being in its nascent stages. The company offers custom Trainium 2 chips, which have 30% to 40% better price-to-performance ratios than competitors. Meanwhile, their proprietary Nova foundation models and Bedrock platform are helping multiple large clients build custom AI applications. With a robust core business and a rapidly growing AI business, Amazon can become a significant wealth-generating machine in the coming years. 4. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Vertex Pharmaceuticals ' (NASDAQ: VRTX) dominance in the cystic fibrosis (CF) market and its successful diversification into pain management position it as an exceptional long-term investment opportunity now. Vertex generated over $10 billion in annual revenue from the CF franchise. The company's triple combination CF drug Trikafta (also known as Kaftrio outside the U.S.) is the primary revenue driver and can treat nearly 95% of CF patients in core markets. Additionally, the recently approved CF drug Alyftrek has demonstrated even better therapeutic efficacy in clinical trials and is effective for 31 additional genetic mutations of CF not covered by Trikafta. Plus, the drug offers improved patient convenience with once-daily dosing as compared to Trikafta's twice-daily dosing. This can further expand Vertex's penetration in the CF market. Beyond CF, Vertex's pain management drug Journavx is showing strong early adoption and expanding payer coverage. With the U.S. government policy firmly in favor of non-opioid pain management alternatives, the company sees tremendous growth potential for this oral non-opioid drug. Vertex's pipeline includes multiple late-stage programs with three potential filings expected by 2026. The company's acquisition of Alpine Immune Sciences has also added multiple potential kidney disease drug candidates to its research pipeline. Vertex is financially stable with $11.4 billion in cash on its balance sheet. Hence, the company has significant financial flexibility to invest in organic and inorganic growth initiatives. Considering Vertex's multiple tailwinds and financial strength, the stock is a compelling pick now. Should you invest $1,000 in Microsoft right now? Before you buy stock in Microsoft, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Microsoft wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $828,224!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to171%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Manali Pradhan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Tron's TRX Faces Rising Risk of Bearish Momentum After High-Volume Drop to 27 Cents
Tron's native token, TRX, faced intense selling pressure in the past 24 hours, marking a price from 27.7 cents to 27 cents. The high-volume decline happened alongside turbulence in the broader market influenced by geopolitical tensions and evolving investor sentiment. These macroeconomic factors compound the challenges already presented by high trading volumes. However, the final hour of analysis revealed some market resilience, where TRX slightly recovered from a dip below 27 cents. The 24-hour price drop from $0.277 to $0.270, with a closing price of $0.269, was accompanied by significant volume spikes, reaching 156.716 million, indicating selling pressure. Price volatility between a high of $0.278 and a low of $0.268 was observed. High trading volume points to potential further downward pressure on TRX prices. The quick rebound from under $0.27, coupled with a continued trading interest, suggests a critical support level that may prevent further declines. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Asian Penny Stocks To Watch In June 2025
As global markets navigate the complexities of trade policies and economic shifts, investor sentiment remains closely tied to developments in major economies like the U.S. and China. In this context, penny stocks—often smaller or newer companies—continue to attract attention for their potential to offer both affordability and growth opportunities. Despite being an older term, these stocks can still represent significant value when backed by strong financials, making them intriguing prospects for those seeking under-the-radar investments with long-term promise. Name Share Price Market Cap Financial Health Rating Halcyon Technology (SET:HTECH) THB2.66 THB798M ★★★★★★ CNMC Goldmine Holdings (Catalist:5TP) SGD0.425 SGD172.25M ★★★★★☆ YKGI (Catalist:YK9) SGD0.096 SGD40.8M ★★★★★★ Beng Kuang Marine (SGX:BEZ) SGD0.18 SGD35.86M ★★★★★★ Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings) (SGX:BS6) SGD2.12 SGD8.34B ★★★★★☆ Ever Sunshine Services Group (SEHK:1995) HK$1.90 HK$3.28B ★★★★★☆ Bosideng International Holdings (SEHK:3998) HK$4.40 HK$50.37B ★★★★★★ Lever Style (SEHK:1346) HK$1.18 HK$744.52M ★★★★★★ Goodbaby International Holdings (SEHK:1086) HK$1.23 HK$2.05B ★★★★★★ TK Group (Holdings) (SEHK:2283) HK$1.91 HK$1.59B ★★★★★★ Click here to see the full list of 1,163 stocks from our Asian Penny Stocks screener. We're going to check out a few of the best picks from our screener tool. Simply Wall St Financial Health Rating: ★★★★★☆ Overview: Jinhai Medical Technology Limited is an investment holding company that primarily provides manpower outsourcing and ancillary services to building and construction contractors in Singapore, with a market cap of HK$6.93 billion. Operations: The company's revenue is derived from two segments: Products, contributing SGD 25.93 million, and Services, contributing SGD 24.31 million. Market Cap: HK$6.93B Jinhai Medical Technology Limited, with a market cap of HK$6.93 billion, reported revenue of SGD 50.24 million for 2024, up from SGD 45.64 million the previous year. Despite this growth, the company remains unprofitable with a net loss of SGD 17.97 million due to increased administrative expenses and share-based payments costs. The company's short-term assets exceed its liabilities, providing some financial stability alongside sufficient cash runway for over three years if current cash flow trends persist. However, challenges remain with an inexperienced management team and a rising debt-to-equity ratio now at 32.9%. Dive into the specifics of Jinhai Medical Technology here with our thorough balance sheet health report. Understand Jinhai Medical Technology's track record by examining our performance history report. Simply Wall St Financial Health Rating: ★★★★★★ Overview: United Energy Group Limited is an investment holding company involved in upstream oil, natural gas, clean energy, and energy trading operations across Pakistan, South Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa with a market cap of HK$12.15 billion. Operations: The company's revenue is primarily derived from its Exploration and Production segment, generating HK$9.86 billion, followed by the Trading segment with HK$7.66 billion. Market Cap: HK$12.15B United Energy Group has transitioned from a net loss to a net income of HK$1.56 billion for 2024, driven by reduced one-off impairments and stable operations. The company trades at an attractive valuation, significantly below its estimated fair value, and maintains strong financial health with short-term assets covering liabilities and cash exceeding total debt. Despite insider selling in the last quarter, the seasoned management team provides stability. However, earnings quality is impacted by a large non-recurring loss of HK$442.4 million in 2024. A proposed dividend of HKD 0.05 per share reflects ongoing shareholder returns amidst these dynamics. Click here and access our complete financial health analysis report to understand the dynamics of United Energy Group. Review our growth performance report to gain insights into United Energy Group's future. Simply Wall St Financial Health Rating: ★★★★☆☆ Overview: Aurora Optoelectronics Co., Ltd. focuses on the R&D, production, and sale of sapphire crystal materials in China, with a market cap of CN¥7.27 billion. Operations: Aurora Optoelectronics Co., Ltd. has not reported distinct revenue segments. Market Cap: CN¥7.27B Aurora Optoelectronics Ltd. has shown improvement in its financial performance, with a reduction in net loss from CN¥675.28 million to CN¥171.42 million for 2024 and an increase in revenue to CN¥365.97 million from the previous year. The company's short-term assets exceed both its short-term and long-term liabilities, indicating a stable financial position despite being unprofitable with a negative return on equity of -20.51%. While debt levels have decreased significantly over five years, the cash runway remains limited to less than one year, posing challenges for sustained operations without additional financing or revenue growth. Get an in-depth perspective on Aurora OptoelectronicsLtd's performance by reading our balance sheet health report here. Examine Aurora OptoelectronicsLtd's past performance report to understand how it has performed in prior years. Gain an insight into the universe of 1,163 Asian Penny Stocks by clicking here. Ready To Venture Into Other Investment Styles? Explore 22 top quantum computing companies leading the revolution in next-gen technology and shaping the future with breakthroughs in quantum algorithms, superconducting qubits, and cutting-edge research. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include SEHK:2225 SEHK:467 and SHSE:600666. This article was originally published by Simply Wall St. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Bloomberg
6 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
UBS' MacLeod on Trade, Investor Sentiment
Niall MacLeod, Head of APAC Product Management at UBS, discusses the key highlights of the 'UBS Asian Investment Conference', and investor sentiment from clients. He speaks with David Ingles in Hong Kong. (Source: Bloomberg)
