KUALA LUMPUR (April 12): Affin Hwang Capital Research has downgraded Media Chinese International Ltd (MCIL) to “Hold” at 22 sen with a lower target price of 23 sen (from 30 sen) and said the weakness in hardcopy circulation and adex has so far showed no signs of abating and continues to hit all print media players.

It a note today, it said MCIL has not been spared and is constantly beefing up its digital initiatives to diversify its revenue stream.

“In addition, we expect a more challenging outlook for its travel business due to the popularity of digital booking platforms.

“Our earnings projections for FY19-21E are revised downwards by 5- 35%, to take into account the challenging operating environment in both the publishing and travel divisions.

“We downgrade MCIL to a Hold with a lower target price of 23 sen,” it said.