Service charge is standard and charged upfront whether you like it or not. It's the game's rule. If you want to join the game, you must adhere to the rules.

It won't be closed immediately. My PITTIKIAL is a good example. I made full switching two years ago. That day I called the CS if I could still top up to it since it reopened, she said can.

Tune Money Capital to offer unit trust products

KUALA LUMPUR: Tune Money Capital Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tune Money Sdn Bhd, plans to launch a few unit trust products by June this year, subject to Securities Commision (SC) approval.

Tune Money Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Tengku Zafrul Aziz, who is also a director of Tune Money Capital, said that the latter received its fund management licence from SC on Feb 6.

"The industry totalled RM169bil last year alone, of which private funds accounted for RM72bil.

"In addition, some RM71bil lay idle in savings accounts last year and the question is how to mobilise these funds. We think there is great potential for a new player with an innovative approach," he told a press conference yesterday.

Tune Money Capital, which boasts of a non-traditional business model, would be the first company to solely sell its unit trust products online via its own financial portal.

"We will not be using agents, thus reducing our upfront fees. Market upfront costs are about 3% to 5%. We intend to charge below this rate for our products," Tengku Zafrul said, adding that the company had spent RM10mil to develop the portal.

He declined, however, to give details on the products until it obtains SC approval.

The company, which has a paid-up capital of RM10.5mil, plans to manage some of the funds itself while outsourcing some to local fund managers.

"We would also consider investing the funds overseas, depending on its size. Furthermore, we are only allowed to invest 50% of the assets under management overseas as per the regulations," he added.

Tengku Zafrul said the target market for these products was those earning between RM3,000 and RM4,000 monthly, which are underserved financially.

"There are many people out there who want to invest but does not have the means under the present system," he said.

Tune Money, which has launched three insurance products to date, plans to roll out hospital, surgical and motor insurance products by June.

Its first life insurance product would be launched by the third quarter.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...98&sec=business

5sen dividend for ASK unit holders

ALOR STAR: Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid announced a five sen dividend per share for Amanah Saham Kedah (ASK) unit holders for the year ended Feb 29, 2008.

He said three sen would be paid in cash while two sen would be paid in shares.

"ASK has allocated RM7.57mil for the dividend distribution," he said Thursday after launching the Barisan Nasinal Alor Star parliamentary constituency's election machinery here.

Mahdzir said the dividends would be distributed from March 1.

He said ASK recorded a gross income of RM8.8mil from March 1 last year to Feb 21 this year, an increase of RM4.16mil compared to the previous year.

Last year, ASK unit holders received 2.25sen in dividends per share.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...42&sec=business

No promotional service charge during inital period?

CIMB-Principal launches Mideast-linked fund

KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB-Principal Asset Management Bhd yesterday launched the country's first fund that will offer investors exposure to large-cap stocks in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Chief executive Datuk Noripah Kamso said the CIMB-Principal MENA Equity Fund had a benchmark target of 10% growth in net asset value (NAV) per annum.

"The MENA region is made up of 12 countries with combined nominal gross domestic product (GDP) exceeding US$1tril. Its GDP growth is forecast to grow 5.9% this year, compared with 5.8% for the Asean region," chief investment officer Raymond Tang said at the fund's launch yesterday.

Tang said the oil-producing region was set to benefit from the commodity's record prices with the incoming flow of petro-dollars utilised to grow the region's economy rapidly.

The fund's main sectors are real estate and banks, sectors that are set to benefit from mega infrastructure projects.

Noripah said the fund offered Malaysian investors the opportunity to gain access to the MENA region, which would otherwise be unavailable or difficult for an individual to invest in.

"The fund also takes advantage of the region's booming sectors benefiting from the oil wealth in the MENA economies," she said.

According to her, the fund traded at a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.4 times which made it a cheaper valuation compared with other emerging markets in Asia which were trading at 21 times.

"Low correlation between the MENA region and other world markets makes it an opportune time to invest in this region amidst the current market volatility," she added.

The fund's initial offer period is from Feb 19 to March 10. It has an opening NAV of 50 sen per unit and approved fund size of 300 million units. Its annual management fee is 1.8%.

This initiative is in collaboration with global asset management company Societe Generale Asset Management (SGAM).

"We will increase the fund size depending on demand," Noripah said.

The fund feeds into SGAM's Ocean Fund/Equities MENA Opportunities Fund, which invests in securities of companies principally established and listed in the MENA region.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...50&sec=business

I'm wondering if PM is going to have a Vietnam Select Fund.

CIMB has come out with a Middle East fund.

This post has been edited by David83: Feb 22 2008, 10:14 PM

Fund managers: Market likely to improve in H2

StarBiz speaks to some fund managers on the market's direction in view of the current strong sell-down.

GERALD AMBROSE, Managing director of Aberdeen Asset Management Sdn Bhd

The local bourse's performance yesterday was largely led by Gamuda Bhd's sharp share price plunge, triggered by the sell-down by Gamuda managing director Datuk Lin Yun Ling on Thursday.

The market reacted in the worst way possible. It was more of a sentiment thing.

Malaysia has always been a safe haven for investors and has been on the uptrend for a while.

Having said that, I think local investors are beginning to become anxious over future corporate earnings, given the unstable conditions in global markets.

DANNY WONG, Chief executive officer of Areca Capital Sdn Bhd

Investors should not worry too much about yesterday's performance. The road in the short-term may be a little bumpy but most equity markets recover faster than expected.

I foresee the local bourse performing better in the second half.

Our fundamentals remain intact with inflation under control, interest rates stable and gross domestic product figures strong.

As foreigners perceive our currency as having more upside, there will be an inflow of money into our market.

As for corporate earnings, we are "still there" although some recent earnings were below expectations. Firm pump priming measures should sustain earnings.

Should the US go into recession, Malaysia would be the least affected among the emerging economies as our (robust) commodity sector would help balance things up.

We are positive on mainly banking and construction stocks and neutral on the plantation sector, which has seen a strong run-up.

WEE KIM HONG, Head of research of M&A Securities Sdn Bhd

Our market was holding quite well even when the regional markets tumbled over the past couple of months. Investors may feel that at the moment there is not much news to drive the market and chose to take profit.

Having said that, I am more positive on the market now compared with a few weeks ago. I believe it will strengthen after the general election.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...40&sec=business

PIADF is a good income fund. Not top performer but it's an above average fund.

Precious Asian
- Tap into Asia's growth potential

Highlights
. Investments linked to the out-performance of a basket of 2 Asian Equity Indices against US Equity Index
. Capital guaranteed
. Short term of 4 years

With Asia's booming economic condition and upbeat market movements, there is no better time than now to tap into this region and take advantage of this upward economic trend. China, Hong Kong and Singapore markets are expected to enjoy good growth rates from flourishing financial, real estate and technological sectors in particular.

Ride this tide with Precious Asian, Maybank's latest offering that allows you to reap better investment returns at low risk as well as guaranteed capital protection when your investment matures within 4 years. The Fund's strategy garners you good returns based on the out-performance of two of the top Asian Equity Indices against the US Equity Index.

What is Precious Asian?
Precious Asian is a short-term, single premium investment-linked plan which offers full protection of your capital at maturity. It also offers an attractive potential return in just 4 years.

This investment strategy provides you with potential returns derived from investments linked to a basket of 2 Asian Equity Indices, i.e. the Hang Seng Index and the MSCI Singapore Cash Index against the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.

With Precious Asian, you will enjoy potential upside of 6.8%* per annum, with targeted returns of more than that of 12-month conventional fixed deposits rates. The projected return is based on a positive forward outlook on Asian economies, supported by an upward economic trend.

* Potential returns are based on backtesting results and is no guarantee of future results.

How does Precious Asian work?
Precious Asian will initially invest the majority of the single premium in fixed income instruments to provide capital protection. The remaining will be invested in derivative instruments, which is linked to the out-performance of Asian economies against the US market. The equity derivatives are provided by an at least single A internationally rated financial institution.

Why invest in Precious Asian?

100% Capital Guaranteed
Precious Asian provides 100% capital guaranteed upon maturity with potential returns over a 4-year tenure.

Active Fund Management
Precious Asian's performance will be monitored closely and allocation will reset according to the market condition to enhance the potential return and at the same time to mitigate adverse market movement effects.

Value-added Protection
As an investment-linked plan, Precious Asian provides you with a financial protection feature to safeguard your family in the event of an untimely demise.
The minimum guaranteed sum payable to your family is as follows:
. 125% of the single premium for entry age between 18 years old and 60 years old (next birthday)
. 105% of the single premium for entry age between 61 years old and 70 years old (next birthday)
Note: This policy does not cover death due to any pre-existing medical or health impairment, which existed 12 months prior to the policy application date. For further details, kindly refer to the Policy Contract.

Added Benefits
Free units of 0.5% for investment amount greater than RM50,000 per policy throughout the offer period.

Eligibility
Individuals aged between 18 and 70 are eligible to take advantage of Precious Asian. The minimum single contribution amount is RM15,000. Any higher single contribution amount will be in multiples of RM1,000.

Fund size
The minimum fund size for this plan to be viable is RM50 million.

Limited offer period
Subscription is open from 28 February 2008 and is on a "first come, first served" basis only**.

** The Company will have the right to increase the fund size subject to approval or refund all the premiums paid with interest at 3% p.a. after the offer period if the minimum fund size is not reached.

URL: http://www.maybank2u.com.my/consumer/onlin...iousasian.shtml

This post has been edited by David83: Mar 1 2008, 09:40 AM

HLB offers Double Happiness FRNID

KUALA LUMPUR: Hong Leong Bank Bhd recently launched its third floating rate negotiable instrument of deposit (FRNID).

The Double Happiness FRNID is a three-year principal protected investment with a guaranteed return of 10% per annum within the first quarter.

It can be potentially enhanced in subsequent quarters by leveraging on the combined performance of four underlying shares that focus on the oil and gas (O&G), gold and precious metal and alternative energy sectors.

Hong Leong Bank said in a statement the instrument would invest in PetroChina Co Ltd, Royal Dutch Shell PLC, Barrick Gold Corp and First Solar Inc, which are all industry class leaders.

It said the performance outlook for the O&G sector and related equity over the next 12 to 24 months remained positive while gold prices were speculated to strengthen against the weakening US dollar and other external factors that included the subprime crisis and possible recession in the US.

"The Double Happiness FRNID is ideal for investors who share a positive outlook for the three sectors and four selected underlying shares," it added.

Initial investment starts at RM100,000 with subsequent investment in multiples of RM50,000. The offer period ends on March 10.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...02&sec=business

Public series are sold by Public Mutual agents. PB series are sold by Public Bank staffs/agent. Both series are managed by Public Mutual.

As far as I know, most of the general PA are burnt type.

New guideline for unit trust industry

KUALA LUMPUR: The Securities Commission (SC) yesterday issued a set of revised and new guidelines to facilitate continued growth and enhance competitiveness of the unit trust industry.

In addition to the Guidelines on Unit Trust Funds (UTF Guidelines), which have been revised to streamline with international standards, the SC also issued new guidelines to enhance disclosure requirements of unit trust prospectuses to enable investors to make informed investment decisions.

The new Prospectus Guidelines for Collective Investment Schemes act as a single source of reference for disclosure requirements for unlisted unit trust funds, as well as listed funds such as real estate investment trusts, exchange traded funds and closed-end funds.

According to the SC, the revised UTF Guidelines provide greater flexibility in structuring innovative products that would appeal to Malaysian and foreign investors.

It would also offer greater flexibility for fund managers to enhance returns to investors, the commission said in a statement.

A notable amendment to the UTF Guidelines was the relaxation of transaction in derivatives for investment purposes, it said.

"The relaxation allows unit trust funds to have higher exposure in derivatives, subject to clear disclosures on the risks involved," the SC said.

The revision also provided for greater relaxation on securities lending provisions and removal of the requirement to seek SC approval for foreign markets, the commission said.

This was subject to the foreign market meeting certain criteria, it added.

To ensure remaining unit holders interest were not affected as a result of large disposals of assets to meet large repurchase requests, unit trust funds were now allowed to borrow cash to meet repurchase requests, the SC said.

Where applicable, the revised UTF Guidelines had also changed prescribed limits with prudential limits, it added.

The guidelines are a follow-up on the announcement by SC chairman Datuk Zarinah Anwar on Feb 26 to promote a more vibrant unit trust industry, which recorded a 39% growth in net asset value and 26% growth in the number of funds in 2007.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...84&sec=business

This post has been edited by David83: Mar 4 2008, 06:46 PM

CIMB expects 12% returns from product

KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB-Principal Asset Management Bhd is confident that its latest product, the syariah-compliant CIMB Islamic DALI Equity Theme Fund, would provide annual returns of 8% to 12% by investing in Malaysian oil and gas, plantation and construction companies.

Chief executive Datuk Noripah Kamso said the fund would invest in sustainable sectors that would potentially give long-term enhanced returns.

"The oil and gas sector is driven by global energy demand; the plantation sector enjoys escalating crude palm oil prices and the construction segment is expected to benefit from development projects under the Ninth Malaysia Plan," she told reporters at the launch yesterday.

Noripah said the volatility in the world financial markets had affected investors, particularly those with exposure to global markets.

"Malaysia, however, has been resilient in the face of market turbulence, with growth largely driven by domestic consumption and investment.

"Hence, this fund was conceived to take advantage of the strong fundamentals of the Malaysian economy, with a potential for high growth and low volatility," she added.

Noripah said one of the domestic catalysts for growth was the rollout of the three major corridors and the Iskandar Development Region which had, for example, attracted RM8.1bil worth of investments since its inception.

"As a reflection of investor confidence, Malaysia was recently ranked as the 14th most attractive destination for foreign direct investments," she said, adding that the KL Composite Index was expected to hit 1,560 points this year.

The open-ended fund has a total approved fund size of 600 million units priced at 25 sen each. The minimum investment is RM1,000

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...11&sec=business

Maybank's new fund focuses on HK and Singapore

KUALA LUMPUR: Risk-averse investors now have the opportunity to cash in on the robust growth outlook of Asian economies, which are expected to continue to outperform the US economy over the next four years.

Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) yesterday unveiled its latest structured product called the Precious Asian fund, a capital-guaranteed investment-linked plan it claimed to be the first one in the market that focused on Hong Kong and Singapore.

"This investment-linked plan is suitable for investors who believe that the Hong Kong and Singapore stock market will outperform the US (market) over the next few years,'' senior executive vice-president and head of consumer banking, Spencer Lee, told a media briefing yesterday.

The new RM350mil fund joins Maybank's portfolio of 13 conventional funds and four takaful funds totalling some RM3.3bil launched to date.

So far, the Precious Asian fund has attracted some RM70mil worth of investment, and will remain on sale till March 27.

The four-year term plan is expected to generate "good returns" from investments linked to a basket of two major Asian equity indices - the Hang Seng Index and the MSCI Singapore Cash Index - against the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.

Basically, the two Asian indices need to outperform the US benchmark during the four-year period for investors to reap the projected returns.

"At the end of the investment tenure, Precious Asian is expected to provide a potential return of 27.2%,'' Maybank said in a statement.

The latest fund is available at a minimum investment of RM15,000 that comes with financial protection feature underwritten by Etiqa Insurance Bhd.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...25&sec=business

New AmInvestment fund sets high target

KUALA LUMPUR: AmInvestment Bank Bhd is targeting for its AmGlobal Emerging Market Opportunities fund, which taps on the cream of emerging markets, to outperform the MSCI emerging market index's 33% annual returns.

Managing director T.C. Kok said emerging markets such as Brazil, Russia, Turkey, South Korea and Thailand were set for strong growth and would continue to outpace the mature economies.

"With their natural resources, rising middle class, low-cost labouras well as massive economic and structural improvements in recent years, the emerging markets have outpaced the developed markets," he said at the launch yesterday.

Kok said as the emerging markets were less reliant on the US and developed market, they would, therefore, be less affected by the downturn in these countries.

Being a feeder fund, AmGlobal Emerging Market Opportunities will invest a minimum of 95% of its net asset value (NAV) into Schroder International Selection Fund (ISF) Global Emerging Market Opportunities while maintaining up to a maximum of 5% in liquid assets.

The target fund would be managed by Schroder Investment Management (S) Ltd.

Kok said the target fund would have a unique investment strategy and an absolute return target as it sought to take an aggressive approach in both bull and bear markets.

He said that the fund - AmInvestment's second to be launched this year - would fully invest in the most attractive stocks within the selected top six emerging markets globally if the macro outlook for the emerging market was positive.

"When the economic outlook is uncertain, the fund has the flexibility to strategically move up to 30% into cash and 30% into bonds," he said, adding that this distinctive investment strategy was more dynamic than a typical emerging markets fund.

AmGlobal Emerging Market Opportunities has an authorised fund size of 300 million units.

The fund is offered to the public at RM1 per unit during the initial offer period from March 18 to April 9.

The minimum investment amount is RM1,000 while the minimum additional investment is RM500.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...98&sec=business

CIMB's RM1.5bil bonds 2.6 times subscribed

KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB Bank Bhd's five-year RM1.5bil nominal value subordinated bonds was 2.6 times subscribed.

The bank said on Monday, the investors comprised of asset managers, insurance companies, statutory bodies, financial institutions and private banking investors.

The issue was launched with an initial size of RM1bil but was subsequently increased to RM1.5bil due to strong investor demand.

"Proceeds from the issue will be used for CIMB Bank's working capital purposes, which include refinancing the RM300mil subordinated debt redeemed in November 2007, as well as another US$300mil in subordinated debt which is callable in October 2008," it said.

CIMB Bank said the strong demand from investors amidst current market conditions further demonstrated investors' confidence in CIMB Bank.

It said this followed its recent upgraded senior rating to AA+ by Malaysian Rating Corporation Bhd (MARC) and the issue rating of AA for the subordinated bonds.

"The success of this transaction also demonstrates the level of maturity and sophistication of the ringgit domestic currency debt capital markets as a reliable funding source for high grade Malaysian corporates," said CIMB's group chief executive Datuk Nazir Razak

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...03&sec=business

Move to boost non-ringgit bonds

KUALA LUMPUR: The Government's proposal to liberalise the bond market approval framework announced at the launch of Invest Malaysia 2008 may see the issuance of more non-ringgit denominated debt.

The liberalisation would involve the extension of the "deemed approved" process to all domestic or foreign issuers that have been rated AAA by domestic rating agencies or a minimum BBB rating by foreign agencies.

The "deemed approved" process would also be extended for the issuance of non-ringgit bonds by all local and foreign issuers with a minimum BBB rating by foreign agencies.

Additionally, ringgit bond issuers that have been accorded "deemed approved" status would be exempted from trust deed and trustee requirements.

Currently, there is an existing "green lane" process for bond offerings made by highly-rated bond issuers in which such issuances were "deemed approved" and issuers only had to submit applications to the Securities Commission as a matter of formality.

According to Aseambankers Malaysia Bhd vice-president and head of fixed income research Tan Chee Wee, this was done to encourage the issuance of non-ringgit denominated securities, which was currently minimal compared with ringgit-denominated securities.

He said according to Practice Note 1A issued by Bursa Malaysia, non-ringgit denominated bonds had to have a rating of at least A- for it to be fast-tracked.

Tan was commenting on the speech by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at yesterday's Invest Malaysia 2008 launch.

"As of January 2008, the corporate debt market has RM208.8bil outstanding while the government debt market has RM225.2bil outstanding," Tan told StarBiz.

He said the measures to liberalise the approval framework would also increase the market size, making it more competitive and vibrant.

Tan said there was no question of the bonds' quality despite the liberalised approval framework.

"They'll still have to go through the rating agencies first where the bonds will be assessed on risks and then the Securities Commission will go through the reports," he added.

RAM Rating Services Bhd managing director Wong Fook Wah said in an e-mail statement that the company welcomed the establishment of a third rating agency in the country.

"We welcome another agency, especially if there are credible shareholders to ensure the new agency operates on international standards like RAM. Competition is good for the market," he said.

Wong was commenting on the Government's proposal to allow the establishment of a third rating agency in the country.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...57&sec=business

HwangDBS targets 6%-8% return from latest fund

KUALA LUMPUR: HwangDBS Investment Management Bhd targets an annual return of 6% to 8% for its newly launched Asia Aspire Capital Protected Fund that invests in Australian treasury bills and 10 global brands.

Chief executive officer and executive director Teng Chee Wai said that in a bullish market, the fund would invest in these global brands that would benefit from rising consumer spending and affluence among the Asian middle-class.

"We hope to capitalise on the increasing affluence of Asia's households and rising consumption of the middle-income class," he said at the launch of the fund yesterday.

The investments would be made in companies involved in the financial services, luxury fashion, consumer electronics, motor vehicles and telecommunications sectors such as Apple, Nokia, Ping An Insurance, Standard Chartered Bank and Toyota.

In a bearish market, the fund will automatically switch to defensive assets - one-month Australian treasury bills - which have a yield of 7.6% a year.

The fund is available until May 10 at selected third-arty distributors, including ABN AMRO Bank Bhd, Affin Bank Bank Bhd, Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd, AmPrivate Banking, CIMB Wealth Advisors Bhd, EON Bank Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd, RHB Bank Bhd and Standard Chartered Bank (M) Bhd.

Teng also said HwangDBS hoped to launch five to six more funds this year.

The group currently manages 26 funds with a total value of RM6bil.

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?f...96&sec=business