Latest news with #RM1.8mil
The Star
19 hours ago
- General
- The Star
Jumbo rampage destroys crops
Compiled by FAZLEENA AZIZ, TAN SIN CHOW AND R. ARAVINTHAN A HERD of wild elephants has wreaked havoc on a coconut plantation in Johor, destroying 6,000 trees and causing estimated losses of RM1.8mil over the past nine months, Kosmo! reported. The intrusions, which began in October last year, have devastated the Sedili Kechil Food Production Zone in Kota Tinggi involving crops cultivated by 32 entrepreneurs and six farming organisations. Pengerang Area Farmers' Organisation managing director Mohamad Azhar Din said 6,171 coconut trees were damaged. 'These elephants are believed to roam in small groups of three to five and typically strike during the night until dawn,' he said, adding that the most recent incidents on June 16 and 17 destroyed 380 trees and caused RM90,000 in losses. 'Those trees were planted in late 2023 and expected to begin bearing fruit by the end of next year.' He said numerous mitigation efforts had been implemented, including building fences and drainage systems and conducting patrols, as recommended by the Wildlife and National Parks Department. He warned that continued attacks by the elephants could undermine the state government's agrofood development. Previously, the plantation had only faced threats from monkeys, wild boars and rats. > Popular entertainer Nabil Ahmad has touched hearts online with his plan to transform his family home in Mambau, Negri Sembilan, into a madrasah. The multi-talented 42-year-old, whose full name is Ahmad Nabil Ahmad, shared on social media that the dream is close to becoming a reality. 'My mother had expressed her desire for our family home to become a madrasah for religious learning and events. 'She also hoped it could provide a source of income for our family as the land is ours,' he told Berita Harian. He said renovations are slated to start early next year, with the existing home to be demolished in order to make way for a small mosque. 'I also plan to build a tahfiz and provide accommodation for students and the ustaz. For starters, we will accept only male students and offer free Quran classes,' he said. Nabil added that he would consult the Negri Sembilan Islamic Religious Council on the process of land endowment and official establishment of the madrasah. (The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.)
The Star
09-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Distribution division to affect UMedic's profitability
PETALING JAYA: UMediC Group Bhd 's distribution division may continue to see soft earnings, which will drag the group's profitability lower for financial year 2025 (FY25) and the next two years. UMedic is involved in the marketing and distribution of branded medical and consumable devices, as well as the development, manufacturing and marketing of own brand medical consumables. In the third quarter ended April 30, 2025 (3Q25), it posted a profit after tax and minority interest (Patmi) of RM1.8mil. This result was below the consensus of research firms. Nine-month Patmi stood at RM5.4mil, down close to 20% year-on-year. According to Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB) Research, the negative deviation was mainly due to lower-than-expected revenue at UMedic's distribution division due to the lower appetite for medical devices and consumables. 'As such, we cut the FY25-FY27 profit forecasts by 10%/12%/11% respectively to reflect lower revenue assumption for its distribution division. 'Following three consecutive quarters of earnings underperformance, we have also decided to downgrade the stock to a 'hold' from a 'buy' with a lower target price of 43 sen from 69 sen before,' HLIB Research said in a report. On the other hand, the manufacturing division saw a strong rebound from the previous quarter, mainly supported by demand for respiratory-related products. 'Going forward, we believe the sales volume of respiratory products within the manufacturing division will be supported by global healthcare megatrends, particularly the growing ageing population. 'However, this positive outlook may be partially offset by ongoing uncertainty at the distribution division,' added the research firm. It said its revised 43 sen target price is based on a lower price-earnings multiple of 19 times, which is minus two standard deviations below its three-year mean. 'This is down from our previous valuation of 26.5 times average against its reduced 2026 earnings per share of 2.3 sen from 2.6 sen before. The lower valuation multiple reflects the series of profit disappointments and our more cautious outlook going forward,' said the research firm. Shares of UMedic were trading at 40 sen at the time of writing, down more than one-third since the start of the year.
The Star
06-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Ecomate acquires 60% stake in ICT business for RM8.4mil
PETALING JAYA: Ecomate Holdings Bhd is venturing into the information and communications technology (ICT) solutions business through the acquisition of a 60% stake in Progressive Computer Systems Sdn Bhd (PCS) for RM8.4mil. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, Ecomate will buy the stake in PCS from Law Seng Peng, the sole director and shareholder of PCS. Upon completion of the proposed acquisition, PCS will become a subsidiary of Ecomate and Law will remain as a director and shareholder of PCS and 'continue to be involved in the daily operations of PCS.' PCS is principally involved in marketing and servicing of computers, computer-related accessories, and peripherals. It is also engaged in the sale of computer software, software development, programming services, and training on software applications. According to the exchange filing, Law has given a 'unconditionally and irrevocably, guarantees and covenants' that PCS will earn at least RM3mil in audited profit after tax for the financial year ending Feb 28, 2026 (FY26), as well as for each of the following two financial years. 'In the event that PCS shall incur loss after taxation of any amount in any financial year within the profit guarantee period, a payment of RM1.8mil representing 60% of the profit guarantee for each financial year, shall be made in full,' it noted. The purchase consideration of RM8.4mil, which implies a price-to-earnings (PE) multiple of 2.8 times based on the guaranteed profits, is at a 13.6%-19.1% discount to the indicative fair market value of PCS, and deemed the price 'fair'. Ecomate, a ready-to-assemble furniture manufacturer, said the acquisition represents 'a diversification of the existing business operations to include information and communications technology ('ICT') solutions.' Currently, Ecomate is primarily involved in the production of ready-to-assemble (RTA) furniture products including living room and bedroom furniture. With PCS projected to contribute more than 25% of the group's future net profit, Ecomate expects the acquisition to broaden its earnings base. Meanwhile, to reward shareholders, Ecomate also proposed a bonus issue of up to 358.03 million new Ecomate shares on a 1-for-1 basis, and a free warrant issue of the same amount, also on a 1-for-1 basis. Upon completion of both proposals, Ecomate's issued share capital will increase from 358.03 million shares currently to 716.05 million shares, and to 1.07 billion shares assuming full exercise of the warrants. These proceeds raised from the exercise of the warrants will be used for working capital.
The Star
06-06-2025
- The Star
Penang Customs thwarts RM5mil vape smuggling bid
BUTTERWORTH: The Penang Customs Department has thwarted an attempt to smuggle in over 80,000 vape pods and nearly 1,000 litres of vape liquid, worth a staggering RM5.1mil including taxes, into the country via Penang and Selangor. Its director Rohaizad Ali said the first raid revealed that the illicit consignment had been declared as plastic materials and hidden among other imported goods in a bid to evade detection. The first raid saw Customs officers inspecting a container at the North Butterworth Container Terminal at around 1.15pm on April 3. 'Our officers seized 14,200 unit of vape pods and 220 litres of vape liquid worth about RM1.5mil, including taxes,' he told a press conference yesterday. Rohaizad added that during the raid, two men – a port agent and a Chinese national in their 30s – were detained. In the second raid at Port Klang on April 10, Customs officers confiscated 71,886 vape pods and 786 litres of vape liquid and electronic gels worth about RM3.64mil. A port agent was arrested to assist in investigations, said Rohaizad. Meanwhile, the department also seized more than 18kg of ganja buds worth some RM1.8mil in separate operations in the state. Rohaizad said on April 16, a team from the Customs narcotics unit conducted checks on parcels at Pos Malaysia's mail courier centre in Batu Kawan and discovered four packages containing dried plant material believed to be ganja buds. He said the seized drugs weighed slightly over 2.2kg and were valued at RM219,128. To avoid detection, the parcels were declared as containing nine units of 'comic books' and exported to the United Kingdom before being returned with the status of 'returned parcel'.
The Star
05-06-2025
- The Star
RM1.8mil in ganja buds seized in Penang
BUTTERWORTH: The Customs Department seized more than 18kg of ganja buds worth some RM1.8mil in separate operations in Penang. Its state director Rohaizad Ali said in an operation on April 16, a team from the Customs Narcotic Unit conducted checks on parcels at the Mail Courier Centre of Pos Malaysia in Batu Kawan around 1pm. "An inspection, with the assistance of a narcotics detection dog, led to the discovery of four packages containing dried plant material believed to be ganja buds," he told a press conference at the Bagan Jermal Enforcement Storage Facility on Thursday. He said the seized drugs weighed slightly over 2.2kg and were valued at RM219,128. The parcels had been declared as containing nine units of "comic book" and were exported to the United Kingdom before being returned with the status of a "returned parcel", he added. He said investigations are ongoing to identify the owner of the parcels. In another operation at Penang International Airport around 11.35am on March 4, a team of officers discovered a piece of suspicious baggage at the baggage carousel. Rohaizad said checks found that the unclaimed baggage contained 29 transparent packs of dried plant believed to be ganja buds. The drugs weighing about 16.2kg and worth some RM1.5mil, he said. He said further investigations found the baggage had arrived from China. He said Customs believe the drugs were smuggled through a private baggage that had been checked in before departure. He said both cases are being investigated under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act, which carries the death penalty or life imprisonment with not less than 12 strokes of the cane upon conviction. He urged members of the public with information on smuggling activities involving cigarettes, liquor, firecrackers, drugs or vehicles to contact the Customs Toll Free Line at 1-800-88-8855 or reach out to any nearby customs office.
