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Thai Hot Stocks - Steel makers, oil firms down

Reuters: [2008-05-26 11:21:00]

 (Adds steel makers) 
    BANGKOK, March 26 (Reuters) - Thailand's benchmark stock 
index <.SETI> was down 21.13 points, or 2.41 percent, at an 
one-week low of 854.46 points at 0846 GMT on Monday. 
    Thai stocks fell as weak overseas markets, high oil prices 
and political uncertainty at home weighed on investor sentiment, 
analysts said. 
     
    Stocks on the move included: 
     
    STEEL MAKERS TUMBLE AFTER RECENT RISES 
    Shares in steel makers fell after hitting their highest 
levels in more than one-year on Friday in the wake of positive 
broker comments on the sector due to higher global steel prices 
and demand. 
    By 0842 GMT, shares in top hot-rolled steel coil maker 
Sahaviriya Steel Industries <SSI.BK> were down 6.82 percent at 
1.23 baht, G Steel PCL <GSTE.BK> fell 4.07 percent lower to 1.65 
baht and Nokornthai Stripe Meel <NSM.BK> slid 9.52 percent. 
     
    SOLARTRON <SOLA.BK> 
    The solar energy firm surged 18.2 percent to 2.86 baht, 
having hit its highest since March 11 of 2.96 baht, after the 
Energy Ministry said it would encourage households to use more 
solar cells. 
     
    ENERGY SHARES <.SETEN> DOWN ON INFLATION FEARS 
    Oil firms dropped 2.6 percent as worries about the 
inflationary impact of high oil prices, which topped $135 a 
barrel last week, took centre stage, analysts said. 
    Shares in PTT PCL <PTT.BK> fell 3.2 percent to a 10-day low 
of 360 baht, while PTT Exploration and Production <PTTE.BK> 
dipped 3.5 percent to 193 baht. 
     
    REFINERS DOWN ON GOVERNMENT CALL FOR REFINERY MARGIN CUTS 
    Refiners were also hit after the Energy Ministry said it had 
asked big refiners to cut refinery margins in a bid to ease the 
impact of rising diesel prices to consumers. 
    Thai Oil <TOP.BK> fell 7.4 percent to 62.50 baht, having 
dropped to its lowest since April 2007 of 62 baht, PTT Aromatics 
and Refining <PTTAR.BK> fell 5.04 percent to 28.25 baht and 
Bangchak <BCP.BK> was off 1.55 percent at 12.70 baht. 
    "If the policy is implemented, it will be negative to listed 
refining companies and PTT, as a major shareholder," KGI 
Securities analyst Sutthichai Kumworachai said. 
     
    - For the Thai press digest click on [ID:nBKK304799] 
    - For Thailand's IPO diary click on <TH/IPOMENU> 
    - For Thailand's stock exchange news click on [TH-SET] 
    - For Thailand corporate earnings: [TH-RES-RTRS] 
    - For Thailand economic forecast: [POLL-ECI-TH-RTRS] 
 ($1=32.14 Baht) 
 (Reporting by Arada Therdthammakun; Editing by Ed Davies) 
 ((arada.therdthammakun@reuters.com; +662 648 9732, Reuters 
Messaging: arada.therdthammakun.reuters.com@reuters.net)) 
     
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Keywords: MARKETS THAILAND/STOCKS  
    

PRESS DIGEST - Indian Business News - May 26

Reuters: [2008-05-26 05:42:00]

MUMBAI, May 26 (Reuters) - Indian newspapers carried the following stories in their print or Web editions on Monday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

ECONOMIC TIMES (www.economictimes.com)

* Reliance Communications <RLCM.BO> is set to acquire UK-based global mobile virtual network operator Vanco in a 100 percent buyout.

* Godrej Industries <GODI.BO> and U.S. meat company, Tyson Foods <TSN.N>, are teaming up for a poultry processing and marketing joint venture in India, with Tyson holding 51 percent stake.

* Mid-sized technology services and IT engineering company, Rolta <ROLT.BO>, is close to acquiring a U.S.-based IT firm in the area of business intelligence.

* Apollo Hospitals <APLH.BO> is looking to buy tertiary level hospitals in Spain and Peru and has lined up 10 billion rupees to finance such deals.

* India's AV Birla Group is in talks with French hotels and business services group, Accor <ACCP.PA>, to bring its budget hotel brand Formule-1 to India, to be opened besides AV Birla Group's More retail chain.

BUSINESS STANDARD (www.business-standard.com)

*India's Reliance Power <RPOL.BO> and GMR Infrastructure <GMRI.BO> are planning to bid for PowerSeraya and Senoko Power which account for more than 60 percent of power produced in Singapore.

* India's Videocon Industries <VEDI.BO> may merge some of its factories to improve efficiencies and boost sales of its brands.

* India's NMDC <NMDC.BO> may review exports to Japanese steel mills and South Korea's Posco <005490.KS> in a bid to increase availibility in the domestic market.

FINANCIAL EXPRESS (www.financialexpress.com)

* IndusInd Bank <INBK.BO> has decided to go for a global depositary receipts offering in the first quarter of the current fiscal year. (Compiled by Aniruddha Basu; Editing by Harish Nambiar) ((bharghavi.nagaraju@thomsonreuters.com; +91 22 6636 9059; Reuters Messaging: bharghavi.nagaraju.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: INDIA PRESS/

ASEC Mining extends gains, helps Egypt bourse up

Reuters: [2008-05-25 14:42:00]

CAIRO, May 25 (Reuters) - Egypt's main indexes rose on Sunday for the second straight session, with ASEC Mining (ASCOM) <ASCM.CA> extending gains after announcing plans to increase its capital and expand in the region, brokers said.

The stock added 6.8 percent to a 17 percent jump on Thursday after the company said it planned to buy an Algerian company and to increase its capital from 100 million Egyptian pounds ($18.7 million) to 250 million pounds.

"Egyptian retailers were buying-in as the capital increase move solved the problem of lack of liquidity in the stock," said Mohamed Fouad, the managing director at Global Securities.

"ASEC is the only listed mining company and so it has become attractive," he added. The stock last traded at 229.60 pounds.

Shares in Torah Cement <TORA.CA>, Egypt's second biggest listed cement firm, also surged after the Capital Market Authority approved its plan for a 2-to-1 share split, brokers said.

The stock last traded 13.3 percent higher at 171.99 pounds, crawling back from an all-time high price of 201 pounds during the session.

Investment services company Al Ahly for Development and Investment <AFDI.CA>, which was the second most-heavily traded stock by turnover, rose 5.1 percent to 76.01 pounds.

The stock gained more than 22 percent since Tuesday on market speculation about a possible merger with Cairo Capital Group, an investment bank. Ahly for Development and Investment has denied receiving any offer.

"The stock is overvalued but retailers are still expecting a corporate action," Fouad said.

Some big caps were also in the green such as Commercial International Bank (CIB) <COMI.CA><COMIq.L>, which rose 3.8 percent to 81.80 pounds and Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) <OCIC.CA><OCICq.L> which gained 1.5 percent to 384 pounds.

Overall, the benchmark Case 30 index <.CASE30> gained 1.3 percent to 10,803.04 points, while the Hermes index <.HRMS> rose 1.2 percent to 93,421.23 points. The broader CIBC index <.CIBC> rose 2.8 percent to 559.70 points.

($1 = 5.35 Egyptian pounds) (Writing by Wael Gamal) ((wael.gamal@thomsonreuters.com; Cairo newsroom +20 2 2578 3290/1))

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UPDATE 1-U.S. says lifts travel warning for Indonesia

Reuters: [2008-05-25 11:55:00]

(Adds economist comment)

JAKARTA, May 25 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department has lifted its travel warning for Indonesia, the U.S. ambassador in Jakarta said on Sunday, reflecting improved security and paving the way for closer ties between the two countries.

The Islamic militant group Jemaah Islamiah, which wanted to create an Islamic caliphate in Southeast Asia, carried out a series of deadly bomb attacks in Indonesia between 2002 and 2005, dealing a severe blow to the country's tourism and trade.

Following the bombings, the Indonesian authorities worked closely with foreign allies to arrest militants and step up security.

"The U.S. has lifted the warning due to objective improvements made by Indonesia in its current security situation," the U.S. embassy said in a statement.

"Indonesia has not experienced a major terrorist attack since October 2005, and the government of Indonesia has disrupted, arrested, and prosecuted numerous terrorist elements," it said. The embassy added that the warning had been in effect since November 2000 and that it was cancelled with effect from May 23.

Members of Jemaah Islamiah bombed bars in the Indonesian resort island of Bali in 2002, killing more than 200 foreigners and Indonesians. The group later bombed Western targets in the capital Jakarta, including the JW Marriott hotel and Australian embassy.

Indonesia, Southeast Asia's biggest economy, has the world's largest Muslim population.

While many U.S. firms already do business in Indonesia, including mining giant Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. <FCX.N>, a lifting of the travel warning should reduce security concerns and cut insurance costs for businesses operating in the country.

But economists such as Helmi Arman of Bank Danamon warned that security was only one of the many factors influencing investment flows into the country.

"Well, it is good, but the problem is this isn't only about security problems in Indonesia," he said.

"There are problems like competitiveness, label productivity, and also people's purchasing power. So if we expect that when a travel warning is lifted then investments will come, it's not really true." (Reporting by Ade Mardiyati in Jakarta; Writing by Sara Webb; Editing by Bill Tarrant) ((sara.webb@reuters.com; Reuters Messaging sara.webb.reuters.com@reuters.com; + 6221 384 6364)) Keywords: INDONESIA SECURITY/UNITED STATES

US copper futures end up in rebound from 2-mth low

Reuters: [2008-05-23 20:25:00]

NEW YORK, May 23 (Reuters) - U.S. copper futures ended up in mostly technical business on Friday after an overnight test of key support held, sparking a bout of short-covering into the close and ahead of the long holiday weekend, traders said.

NOTE: For detailed report, click on [MET/L].

* New York energy and commodity markets will be closed Monday in observance of Memorial Day. The London Metal Exchange will be closed on Monday for the Spring Bank Holiday. Both markets will reopen on Tuesday.

* Copper for July delivery <HGN8> settled up 2.35 cents at $3.7360 a lb on the COMEX metals division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The range spanned from $3.6485, its lowest level since March 25, to $3.7390.

* By 1 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT), volumes estimated at 10,542 lots. Final futures volumes on Thursday totaled 15,595 lots.

* Open interest in the market fell by 354 lots to 99,526 contracts open as of May 22.

* July contract's ability to hold support at $3.65 prompts investor short-covering into the close - trader.

* Market a bit oversold. Prices could be due for a bounce after absorbing some of the negative news over the past week, with a weaker dollar underpinning the positive turnaround - Steve Platt, futures analyst with Archer Financial Services in Chicago.

* The dollar fell against the euro as record high oil prices left the U.S. economy vulnerable to slower growth and rising inflation.

* The euro was up 0.3 percent at $1.5780 <EUR=>, off a one-month high of $1.5814 touched on Thursday. On the week, it rose 1.2 percent, the most since March.

* Copper market loses some of its bullish backing as concerns about strike threats and supply disruptions recede.

* With high oil prices threatening the global economy, it may well be that supply concerns will start to diminish and be overtaken by concerns over the prospects for falling demand - BaseMetals.com's metals analyst William Adams.

* U.S. existing home sales fell 1 percent in April to a 4.89 million-unit annual rate - the National Association of Realtors. [ID:nN23198558]

* Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange dropped 5,921 tonnes, or 11 percent, to 45,586 tonnes in the week ended Thursday. [ID:nBJD000294]

* Trade data showed Chinese imports of refined copper sank 31 percent in April from year ago levels.

* China imported 127,977 tonnes of refined copper in April, up 1 percent from 126,421 tonnes in March. [ID:nSP133874]

* LME copper stockpiles rose by 175 tonnes to 125,375 tonnes on Friday.

* COMEX copper stocks increased 198 short tons to 10,819 short tons on Thursday.

* In industry news, Mexico's mining union threatened to stage a one-day national strike next week if the labor ministry failed to confirm the re-election of their leader. [ID:nN21439364].

* World refined copper consumption exceeded production by 60,000 tonnes in February, compared with a deficit of 69,000 tonnes in February 2007 - International Copper Study Group. [ID:nN20335678]

* LME three-month copper <MCU3> closed at $8,180 a tonne, up $50 from Thursday's kerb close. (Reporting by Chris Kelly) ((chris.kelly@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6042; Reuters Messaging: chris.kelly.reuters.com@reuters.net))

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Keywords: MARKETS COPPER/COMEX

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