US Market Falls On Rising Crude
US stocks retreated on June 27, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing 0.9%. That left the US equity bellwether within 0.1% of a so-called bear market, defined as a 20% slump. Crude oil for August delivery rose as much as 1.2% to $141.93 today on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after surging to a high of $142.99 last week.

Sino Construction Bags Rmb202m Deal
Sino Construction, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Daqing City Dazheng Building Installation Co Ltd, was awarded a contract worth Rmb202m by Daqing Hi-Tech City Construction Investment Development Co Ltd for the construction of Daqing Service Outsourcing Industrial Park (Phase 2). Work is expected to begin in June 2008 and complete in December 2008. Deal is expected to contribute positively to Sino Construction’s earnings for FY08.

SingTel Raises Stake In Globe Telecom To 47.34%
SingTel, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Singapore Telecom International Pte Ltd, has agreed to purchase from Ayala Corporation 3.8m common shares of Globe Telecom (Globe) for an aggregate cash consideration of Philippine Pesos 4,598m (approximately $141.4m), or Philippine Pesos 1,210 per common share. As at 26 June 2008, the closing market price of the Globe common shares was Philippine Pesos 1,185 per common share. On completion, SingTel’s stake in Globe will rise from 44.47% to 47.34%.

Innovalues Expects Lower Earnings For 1H08
Innovalues expects operating performance for 1H08 to be lower than 1H07, due mainly to continued weakness of the US$ against the S$ and currency of countries in which it operates. Raw material prices, in particular for Free Cutting Steel, have spiked significantly. Innovalues has secured upward price adjustment from its customers, with the exception of HP, which is still pending official confirmation.

Popular’s FY08 Pre-Tax Profit Fell Despite Higher Revenue
For full year ended 30 April 2008, Popular Holdings’ turnover grew 9.2% from $398.2m to $435m in 2008, mainly attributable to a 12.6% increase in the turnover of the retail & distribution business from $332.1m to $374.1m. Although the Group achieved higher retail turnover compared to prior period, the profit before tax in the retail & distribution division decreased 24.6% from $12.4m to $9.3m because of the higher operating costs that offset the increase in gross profit.