A few hours before budget

29-08-2008: KLCI up 14 pts in mid-morning trade
By Surin Murugiah, 29 Aug 2008 9:54 AM

PETALING JAYA: The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) rose 13.75 points to 1,084.21 at mid-morning, led by the gains at Bumiputra-Commerce Holdings Bhd (BCHB) and other key blue chips

Surviving the 2008 recession

today 19.8.08 at 10.00 am

12. Look at your stock portfolio and make smart moves. I know lots of you don’t look too closely at what you’re invested in. Lots of people really got hurt last time there was a downturn in the stock market. Are you diversified? Do you have more than a small percent of your portfolio in any one company? Have you sat down with a financial planner lately and talked through your portfolio?

A series of economic recession

British Economy Down

In stark confirmation that Britain is in the grip of recession, Government statistics showed on Wednesday that the economy fell by 1.2 percent in the third quarter. It was the biggest fall since 1980. The decline in gross domestic product, which measures the total value of goods and services produced in the period, compared with a rise of four-tenths of a percent in the second quarter. The most widely accepted definition of recession is two consecutive quarters of economic decline. Economists widely predict that the fourth quarter will also show a contraction.

18-08-2008: KLCI down 7.64 points at midday
by Cindy Yeap
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PETALING JAYA: Local stocks ended midday lower as concerns about higher inflation taking a toll on the economy as well as sliding crude palm oil (CPO) futures won over any upbeat sentiments on the slide in crude oil prices in recent weeks.

The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index ended midday at 1,087.41 points, down 7.64 points, or 0.7%, dragged lower by declines at Sime Darby Bhd, KNM Group Bhd and Gamuda Bhd.

Sime Darby fell 20 sen to RM6.45, KNM slid 18 sen, or 10.98%, to RM1.46 while Gamuda dipped 19 sen to RM2.83. The trio collectively accounted for 4.19 points, or 55%, of the KLCI’s decline at midday. KNM is down for a third straight day today as investors trimmed positions on speculations that the company may incur higher costs for its takeover of German components maker Borsig GmbH, Bloomberg newswire reported this morning.

Japan’s economy contracts in April-June quarter

Japan appears to be sinking into recession, government data showed Wednesday, the latest sign that the global economic slowdown is worsening among the world’s biggest economies.

“The numbers were awful,” Hideo Kumano, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute in Tokyo, said after the Japanese government reported that the nation’s gross domestic product shrank at an annual 2.4 percent rate in the three months through June 30. “Things are going to be very tough in the second half of the year.”

Even as commodity prices are beginning to ease, the twin credit and housing crises in the United States, coupled with the highest inflation in a generation, are weighing on consumers around the world.