[EPF cuma mampu memberi 6% sahaja dividen. Perhatikan saham apa yang dibeli oleh mereka kebelakangan ini. Mereka berkhidmat untuk penyimpan tabungkah atau kepada kroni? YTL dan WTK misalnya adalah dua syarikat yang terang-terang penuh dengan kroni.

Ia juga melabur dalam syarikat AMMB dan RHB yang kini dalam dilema untuk ditelan kerana masalah hutang. Banyak pelabur luar sudah meninggalkan saham-saham seperti ini tetapi EPF nampaknya lebih pakar dari mereka. Dari mana EPF belajar agaknya?

Soalnya apakah tidak ada cara lain untuk melabur sebegitu banyak wang (RM 40 bilion) selain bermain di pasaran saham? Lebih-lebih lagi saham institusi perbankan dan kewangan (Rugi mencecah RM 1 bilion) kerana sekarang semuanya sudah berada di dalam tangan Daim seorang. Pelabur luar sudah nampak peranan Daim malangnya EPF masih buta walaupun tidak berada di negeri seberang..... - Editor]

http://www.theedgedaily.com/article.cfm?id=1487

EPF and Great Eastern accumulating value stocks despite foreign selling

Thomas Soon

The trading activities on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange may be quiet for the last two months, but the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) Board and Great Eastern Life Assurance Co Ltd are busy accumulating value stocks.

In a market update, Sarawak Securities Sdn Bhd said notable purchases from the EPF and Great Eastern are Genting Bhd, Resorts World Bhd, Public Bank Bhd and YTL Corporation Bhd, as foreign funds had depressed their share prices over the past few weeks.

A check by TheEdge.Com.my showed that trading in these stocks have been substantial over the last few weeks.

For instance, the EPF increased its stake in Public Bank by a total of 22.06 million shares between June 19 and Aug 21 from 165.07 million shares to 187.13 million shares, or 7.7 per cent equity.

Great Eastern, which is part of the Overseas-Chinese Banking Corporation Ltd, also acquired another 10.68 million shares in Public Bank from Aug 11 to 28, increasing its direct and indirect shareholding in the latter to 58.91 million shares.

AMMB shares were also actively traded, even before the recent plunge in its share price. The EPF acquired a total of 18.42 million AMMB shares from June 23 to Aug 21, raising its stake to 38.69 million shares.

The EPF also acquired a total of 11.38 million shares in YTL Corporation from July 3 to Aug 21, increasing its stake to 113.08 million shares.

On the other hand, US-based Capital Group of Companies disposed of a total of 10.32 million YTL shares between June 21 and Aug 29 and reduced its shareholding to 29.59 million shares.

Another foreign fund, Schroder Investment Management Ltd also reduced its stake in Genting by a total of six million shares from 37.37 million shares to 31.38 million shares from June 22 to Aug 24.

It also sold eight million shares in Resorts World between June 21 and Aug 28, reducing its shareholding from 30.98 million shares to 22.99 million shares.

However, Great Eastern increased its stake in Resorts World by 11.08 million shares, which it acquired between Aug 4 and 24, from 24.78 million shares to 35.87 million shares.

The Central Depository (Pte) Ltd, Singapore ceased to be a substantial shareholder in Genting after disposing of 30.55 million shares on June 29.

The EPF was also seen raising its interests in other counters such as Road Builder (M) Holdings Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, Hong Leong Industries Bhd and WTK Holdings Bhd.

Despite the foreign-selling pressure, IOI Corporation Bhd and IOI Properties Bhd have attracted buying interest from the EPF and foreign funds.

The EPF raised its stake in IOI Corporation to 37.58 million shares following the purchase of 4.39 million shares between Aug 9 and 16. It also bought 3.28 million shares in IOI Properties between Aug 4 and 16, increasing its interest to 14.62 million shares.

The Capital Group also acquired 1.32 million shares in IOI Corporation between Aug 15 and 25 and raised its shareholdings to 58.85 million shares.

http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?T=finer99_auto.ht&s=AOp8sEhRpTWFsYXlz

Fri, 02 Mar 2001, 6:44pm EST

Malaysian Stocks Fall for a 3rd Day, Led By Telekom, Genting

By T.H. Chan, David Yong and Adeline Lee

Kuala Lumpur, March 2 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysian stocks fell for a third day after the government this week said the economy grew at its slowest pace in 1 1/2 years in the fourth quarter, fueling concerns earnings may slump.

Telekom Malaysia Bhd. led declines.

``There will be more downward revisions'' of corporate earnings estimates by brokerages houses, said Muzni Mohamad, a research manager at Pelaburan Johor Bhd.

The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index fell 2.48, or 0.4 percent, to 699.52. The broader KL Emas Index fell 0.63, or 0.4 percent, to 162.69.

The following shares are active on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange.

Malaysia's biggest companies fell after they reported weaker earnings as a slowing economy crimp demand. Telekom Malaysia Bhd. (T MK ), the nation's biggest phone company, dropped 10 sen, or 0.8 percent, to 11.80 ringgit. Genting Bhd. (GENT MK ) fell 25 sen, or 2.5 percent, to 9.85 ringgit, its fifth day of decline after the casino and power company said it swung to a loss of 245.5 million ringgit ($65 million) in 2000 from a profit of 1.1 billion ringgit a year ago.

British American Tobacco Malaysia Bhd. (ROTH MK ) rose 25 sen, or 0.7 percent, to 37.75 ringgit, as investors bet the country's biggest tobacco company will be able to maintain earnings growth even as the economy slows. Last week, the company said fourth quarter profit rose almost five times to 91.2 million ringgit, aided by the acquisition of a rival as part of an international merger.

Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd. (CMS MK ) rose 5 sen, or 2.4 percent, to 2.14 ringgit, as investors bet the Sarawak-state based builder will win business from the revival of the 9 billion ringgit Bakun hydroelectric dam project in the eastern Malaysian state.

Gamuda Bhd. (GAM MK ), Malaysia's second largest builder, fell 2 sen, or 0.5 percent, to 3.98 ringgit. Its closely held unit Ganaz Bina Sdn. paid 18.4 million ringgit ($4.8 million) to Gopeng Bhd. to increase its shares in closely held GB Kuari Sdn. by 30 percent.

Malaysian National Reinsurance Bhd. (MNRB MK ), the country's sole local reinsurer, fell 33 sen, or 9.9 percent, to 2.99 ringgit, on concern earnings will be hurt after the government said it plans to open up the industry for more competition.

Oriental Holdings Bhd. (ORH MK BQ ) rose 10 sen, or 2.7 percent, to 3.82 ringgit, after Malaysia's fourth- biggest carmaker gave shareholders a special dividend of 32 sen per share, on top of the 8 sen per share final dividend for a total return of 40 sen, or 40 percent per share.

Resorts World Bhd. (RNB MK ) fell 5 sen, or 0.7 percent, to 7.10 ringgit, after the casino company said it slipped to a loss of 876.6 million ringgit in 2000 from a profit of 645.8 million ringgit a year ago.

http://www.emedia.com.my/Current_News/NST/ Saturday/NewsBreak/20010303190348/Article/

Other Thots

Lesson From EPF's Disappointing Dividends

by A. Kadir Jasin

THE Employees Provident Fund, which on Monday announced a lower annual dividend of six per cent for last year, has been urged to review its investment policy.

A Bernama report, which attributed the instruction to an official, says it was to enable the EPF to better reflect market realities and to show the correct financial position at any given time.

The EPF had cited the expanded membership base and a slightly higher provision for unrealised investment losses as the reason for the lower dividend. Its cross income had in fact is marginally from RM11.24 billion to RM11.29 billion.

Painful as it may be to the contributors - this scribe being among the 9.7 million - the outcome was not totally unexpected. Share prices on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange were disappointingly weak last year.

With the EPF putting a sizeable amount (about RM40 billion last year) in stocks and shares, the outcome was expected.

In retrospect, the EPF must be made accountable for the losses, more so when it was reported that as much as RM1 billion was from a single banking and finance group.

Neither the EPF statement nor the Bernama report revealed the counter but sources familiar with EPF investment believed that the losses for which the provision was made involved three counters in a banking and finance conglomerate.

They are believed to be RHB, RHB Capital and RHB Sakura. EPF was believed to have taken a bullish view of these counters in 1996 and started investing heavily in them at the time when share prices were very high.