The Bank of Russia unexpectedly maintained its key interest rate at a record-high 21% , defying analysts’ expectations of another significant hike as inflation remains stubbornly elevated. The decision marks a shift toward a more measured approach in balancing economic growth and price stability. Key Details Inflation Concerns: Annual inflation climbed to 8.9% in November, well above the central bank’s 4% target , with inflation expectations reaching 13.9% in December. Policy Rationale: The central bank cited the significant tightening of monetary conditions after October’s 200-basis point hike as sufficient to resume disinflationary processes. Governor Elvira Nabiullina emphasized avoiding both economic overheating and severe slowdowns. Economic Overheating: Elevated government spending on the war in Ukraine and social programs, coupled with labor shortages and rising wages, have fueled strong domestic demand, exacerbating price pressures...
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| Wall Street Update |
Stocks closed sharply lower Tuesday as renewed declines in oil prices weighed amid mixed reaction to some key earnings reports.
Here is a quick look at some of the updates on the commodity price in the Energy sector.
"The oil rally, which occurred around those rumors (about an output cut), has reversed and dragged down the stock market and long-term interest rates," said David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Funds.
U.S. crude oil futures settled down $1.74, or 5.5 percent, at $29.88 a barrel, weighed by concerns about demand and rising supply, as hopes for a deal between OPEC and Russia on output cuts diminished.
The Dow lost 295 points. Goldman Sachs accounted for about 55 points the index as the greatest weight on the Dow. As of intraday trade, financials were the worst performer year-to-date in the S&P 500. The index fell below the psychologically key 1,900 level in afternoon trade.
The Nasdaq composite underperformed, falling more than 2 percent as Apple, biotechs and several major tech stocks declined.
Alphabet, Google's parent company, halved gains in afternoon trade to hold about 1.6 percent higher. Facebook gave up gains and held about half a percent lower. Amazon traded down more than 3.5 percent.
The Dow transports declined more than 2.5 percent, with Avis Budget and American Airlines leading decliners. UPS was the only advancer.
Shares of Exxon Mobil briefly declined 2.5 percent after the firm reported a 58 percent drop in profit, hurt by low oil prices. The world's largest publicly traded oil company also said it would cut spending this year by one-quarter, Reuters reported.
The S&P 500 lost nearly 2 percent as energy fell more than 3 percent and financials lost more than 2.5 percent in afternoon trade, with only utilities gaining.
So how bad will this affect Bursa Malaysia? My guess is another red of sea especially given the likelihood of pundit clearing of energy counters....
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