Digi:Just to Touch..........

It must have been some sort of de javu for Digi shareholders when Digi touched its highest historical price peak of RM3.88 momentarily this morning.

Riding beyond RM3.88 in 2012?

It is definitely consoling when it managed to breached the RM3.80 price obstacle.

That it has been firm in maintaining above this price continues to be re-assuring as the day moved on.

After trading in a tight range of RM3.85 and RM3.86,Digi finished 10 sen up for the year-end at RM3.88. So, it ended highest for the year. Good omen for the Year of the Dragon!

Finishing up 10 sen for 2011

It has been a good two months since Digi went ex-split. If you have entered at RM32.00 cum split, you would have made a tidy sum of RM6,800 by year end.

Happy New Year 2012.

A Most Forgetful Penang Holiday

Looking back over the years, there were some episodes of food poisoning courtesy of Penang's street food.

As good as you can get

This time around, the holiday was most forgetful.

The reasons, you may ask.

Quality deficiency

Firstly, I never did eat a real good plate of char keow tiau. Quality has really gone down the chute.

Quite good still

The same goes for my other favourites except for the famous Ayer Hitam laksa which is still very good.

Losing taste

Curry mee and or chien were so-so and the lobak was below standard.

Okay

The keow chiap at Jelutong market was okay.

Tolerable mee rebus

Worse thing, I got food poisoning on the way home to Petaling Jaya.

Palatable

What a nerve wracking episode...

Below par

Digi:Two Difficult Rubicons

If you follow the price trend of Digi shares, you will notice this.

Boxed Pattern

It really had a tough time moving from RM3.60 to RM3.70. Now it is again at the threshold of another barrier-the second Rubicon to cross-the RM3.80 barrier.

Today, it can be seen that there is a deluge of sellers at RM3.79. Fortunately, buyers sprung out at RM3.78 to support Digi's price.

There is just two whole trading days left before we enter the Year of the Dragon.

Today, it  closed at RM3.79 for a one sen gain.

Will Digi pass the RM3.80 threshold in this given time?

First Malaysian in a Same Sex Marriage

For ultra-conservative Muslim Malaysia who will say a no-no to same sex marriage, this one takes the cherry.

A medical student,Ariff Alfian Rosli has just married his male friend, Jonathan in Dublin.

I think the Malay Muslim community is most concerned. This is the first for this ethnic group and from Malaysia as well.

Here are the photos of the wedding.

Exchanging rings

A Kiss on the lips

Rejoice!

Digi-Grooming for Growth

Quest for lower spectrum bands

Digi would like to have more spectrum in the lower bands especially in the 800Mhz and 900Mhz as it deemed it necessary to provide 'better user experience' for its customers.

According to DiGi CEO Henrik Clausen, the company which has allocated RM800mil in capital expenditure for 2012 was assigned a block of the 2.6G spectrum

He added that though Digi have spectrum,they would like to add more to provide enough capacity. The 2.6G
spectrum would be good for high speed connections but lower range spectrum is also necessary.

As Digi is expanding its network, they would like adequate amount of spectrum in the right bands,so says Clausen.

For the 2.6G, DiGi has been allocated 2x10Mhz (or 20Mhz) of spectrum which can be used by  Jan 1, 2013 provided its business plan was approved by the industry regulator.

This is not the first time the company is asking for more spectrum but Clausen said it was a “very cost effective way to provide broader coverage indoor and for 3G.”

The company is on a three-year transformation journey which started last year to modernise its network to cater for more capacity and coverage.

The transformation is necessary as it is moving from a basic voice celco to one that offers Internet. Data will be the next growth driver for DiGi and other celcos and while speed and capacity is crucial, providing the “customer experience” would differentiate one service provider from the other.

Clausen said the planning for the network began last year and the equipment swapping began this year and would be completed by end of 2012.

“By end 2012, we would have swapped 5,000 sites with new equipment and that in itself will give users a better experience when they use their devices to access Internet,” he said.

He elaborated that by then its 3G coverage would have increased to 70% from 52% from the current level.

“Customer expectation is increasing by the day. Unless we embark on the transformation we cannot become the best. We want to provide Internet to all and we have to transform the company and make radical changes to our network, product and process so that we can give the consumers what they want," he said.

He intimated  that the big change to its network would happen next year but the full impact of the transformation could be in 2013, he said.

On the capex, Clausen said the company had previously allocated RM650mil for this year but has only spend RM550mil and the additional RM100mil amount would flow into next year, hence the higher allocation for 2012.

The capex is self-funded as the company has accumulated RM1.7bil in operating free cash flow as at third quarter of financial year 2011. It posted a net profit of RM860mil for the first nine months of current financial year.

Digi's share price was last traded at RM3.70.

Taking YTL Cement Private

 Beginning to be a bird of prey

I wonder whether the reason given by YTL Corp to take YTL Cement private via a share swap can hold water.

Just read the reasons given:

Firstly, relatively low trading activity of the YTL Cement counter.

Secondly, a new platform for YTL Cement shareholders to maximise investment value through YTL Corp shares through improved liquidity.

So what is the modus operandi?

YTL Corp acquires all equity interest in YTL Cement including all outstanding irredeemable convertible unsecured loan stocks.

In return-YTL Corp shares to be issued to YTL Cement holders at RM1.42 sen each.

To motivate YTL Cement shareholders, YTL Corp went up 8 sen today to RM1.54. 

I would expect YTL Corp shares to be priced beyond RM1.57 sen for the swap offer to be convincing.

Less one on the Bursar?

The current price is about the price when YTL Corp went ex-split to 5 shares of 10 sen each for every 50 sen shares held about  a couple of months back.

So, with that, YTL Cement will be the first YTL counter to be taken private.

So, what about YTL Power? Will that be next?

Bungling on the Line

On the Jinx

Will the CEO of Singapore's  Mass Rapid Transit (SMRT) step down or be bodily removed from the position?

If angry commuters are any indication, she will certainly have been put to pasture.

Imagine 3 major disruptions in 4 days!

The CEO, Saw Phaik Hwa, was from the famous Bukit Nenas Convent in Kuala Lumpur, currently mired in political controversy. A graduate of  the National University of Singapore, Saw first  cut her teeth in  retail and marketing. She then went on to helm DFS Venture Singapore as regional president in charge of Malaysia and Indonesia  before being pole-vaulted to the driver's seat in SMRT.

Singapore's image now is in tatters as far as mass rapid transport is concerned and one likely reason is the archaic "command and control" mentality that still lurks in the subconscious of Singapore's administrators who have started to exhibit their weaknesses where decentralisation and empowerment best served such as when the MRT breaks down.

Singapore-you can now join the mediocre club across the Causeway where delays, maladministration and command and control is the order of the day!

Change or be changed!