KUALA LUMPUR: Companies involved in water-related infrastructure projects and Ho Hup are expected to see trading interest on Thursday, Dec 31.

However, trading activity could be light as the year winds down and also in the absence of strong external leads.

On Wall Street, US stocks ended a smidgen higher in very light trading on Wednesday, Dec 30 as a stronger-than-expected report on Midwest US business activity was offset by investors taking profits in some of the year's better performers, according to Reuters.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 3.10 points, or 0.03 percent, to end at 10,548.51 on Wednesday. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index edged up just 0.22 of a point, or 0.02 percent, to finish at 1,126.42. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 2.88 points, or 0.13 percent, to close at 2,291.28.

At Bursa Malaysia, stocks to watch include JAKS Resources Bhd, Salcon Bhd, IJM Corporation Bhd, Gamuda Bhd and Puncak Niaga Holdings Bhd after the government invited local and international contractors to submit bids for the construction of the Kelau Dam.

The Kelau Dam is the upstream portion for the RM9 billion Pahang-Selangor Raw Water Transfer Project. This portion also includes Semantan intake and pump station and the pipeline. More details in THe Edge FinancialDaily.

Contractors likely to participate in the upstream portion of the project include JAKS and Salcon. JAKS shares lost 1.5 sen to close at 60.5 sen while Salcon gained 0.5 sen at 69 sen on Wednesday.

IJM, Gamuda and Puncak Niaga are some of the most likely-contenders for the downstream portion of the project, which include the Langat 2 water treatment plant. IJM closed one sen higher at RM4.43, Gamuda shed 3 sen at RM2.58 and Puncak unchanged at RM3.06.

As for Ho Hup Construction Company Bhd, the turnout for the EGM could be low as shareholders deliberate on the sale of two parcels of land for a total of RM12.9 million cash.

MEanwhile, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd's unit, CIMB Bank Bhd together with its related companies, will sell up to 65 properties to its substantial shareholder, the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), for RM302.45 million in a sale-and-leaseback agreement for the bank to raise cash and reduce its property exposure.

Other companies which could see trading interest are DRB-Hicom Bhd (DRBH), Malaysian Airline System Bhd (MAS) and AirAsia Bhd.

DRB-Hicom announced the termination of its joint venture with General Motors for the importation and distribution of Chevrolet vehicles here.

The termination of the existing arrangement with General Motors Asia Pacific Holdings Co LLC/General Motors South East Operations would take effect on Jan 1, 2010. The counter closed one sen higher at RM1.02 yesterday.

Malaysian Airline System Bhd and AirAsia Bhd may also see some interest after Japan Airlines' biggest lenders opposed a plan to restructure the company through bankruptcy. Japan Airlines' is the largest airline in the Asia Pacific region.

MAS shares ended 9 sen lower at RM2.91 while AirAsia shed 3 sen to end at RM1.35.