HOLD
Cosco Pacific Bank of China International has reiterated its 'market perform' rating, but says that in light of the upturn in the shipping industry it will review the port operator's earnings and rating pending the release of the firm's interim results. At the weekend, Cosco unveiled plans to form a joint venture with Singapore's PSA Corp to manage two berths in the city state. Analyst Michael Chan said earnings contributions from the new venture were likely to start next year, as one of the berths was already operational. He also said Cosco would continue to develop its presence in the Bohai region.
BUY
Shanghai Industrial Holdings Daiwa Institute of Research has changed its neutral stance to 'buy', after the company announced better than expected interim results and plans to acquire a part of the Shanghai-Nanjing expressway and invest in sewage treatment plants in the Pearl River and Yangtze River deltas. Analyst Keith Li said the new investments would not fully compensate for the loss of earnings from the sale of road projects which had carried a high guaranteed rate of return. But he remained upbeat on the company's strong financials. Mr Li has a price target of $15.50 on the counter.
SELL
Television Broadcasts (TVB) Merrill Lynch has maintained its 'sell' rating on TVB, citing the counter's expensive valuation. TVB shares have rallied 14 per cent over the past month on expectations of a strong economic recovery in the six months after Sars, as investors sought out laggard stocks. While the brokerage expected a gradual economic recovery would mean higher advertisement sales for TVB, the upward turn was likely to be less pronounced than in previous economic cycles, analysts Simon Cheung, Agnes Ho and Alistair Scott said. This was due to deflationary pressure and the cannibalisation of sales from its new pay-television operation Galaxy, they said.