Stocks Roundup

PROPERTY investment fund JSM Indochina announced last week it had not taken “any firm decisions” on the accelerated return of uninvested cash as voted for by shareholders in a series of resolutions on December 7 last year as trading in the firm remained suspended in London.

The announcement Tuesday was in response to “recent press speculation”, the board said, adding that a further announcement would be reported in due course.

The Post reported December 24 that the manager of the AIM-listed closed end fund had recommended to the board it return US$103 million in uninvested capital in accordance with the December 7 vote by shareholders.

Craig Jones, chief executive officer of JSM Indochina Capital, which manages the fund’s investment activities, said his recommendation came with reservations but was in line with shareholder wishes. The uninvested capital amounts to US$0.45 per share, Jones said.

Trading in the company’s shares is currently suspended following the resignation of its nominated adviser on December 7.

The firm will be delisted unless it appoints a new adviser by Thursday, according to the rules of the AIM Board, an alternative investment market under the London Stock Exchange.

JSM’s shares are listed at US$0.66, well below the fund’s net asset value of $1.08 per share, or $248 million in total.

Meanwhile, Bangkok-listed Samart Corporation, owner of Cambodian Air Traffic Services (CATS), continues to trade in the high 5 baht range, closing December 30 at 5.80 baht ($0.174).

Cambodian authorities still have control of its Cambodia operations more than one and a half months after they kicked the firm’s Thai employees out of the country after a Thai employee leaked fugitive former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s flight details to the Thai government.

The firm was trading well-above 6 baht prior to the furore, reaching as high as 6.9 baht in mid-October.

Asahi Breweries, which last month dropped a Cambodian trial in which it priced its flagship Super Dry product below its competitors, fell 0.87 percent from a near 52-week high of ¥1,737 ($18.66) to close at ¥1,712 on December 30 after Nikkei English News reported the Tokyo-listed brewer may report a group pre-tax profit of more than $1 billion for the year, exceeding estimates.