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...
KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 21): The FBM KLCI fell 4.93 points or 0.3% mainly on late selling of Petronas Dagangan Bhd and Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd (KLK) shares. The KLCI fell amid lower Bursa Malaysia share-trade volume possibly due to the year-end holiday season.
At 5pm, the KLCI closed at 1,629.59 points. Petronas Dagangan fell 22 sen to RM23.52 while KLK dropped 14 sen to RM23.66.
Petronas Dagangan and KLK were Bursa Malaysia's third and fifth-largest decliners respectively as investors took profit following both stock's recent gains.
Bursa Malaysia saw 1.16 billion shares valued at RM1.56 billion traded. There were 353 gainers and 369 decliners.
Yesterday, the bourse saw 1.29 billion shares transacted.
Today, Inter-Pacific Securities Sdn Bhd research head Pong Teng Siew said: "A lot of fund managers and investors are probably on vacation right now, which is apparent, looking at the thin trading volume of shares."
"Nonetheless, with careful stock picking, there could be some opportunities in some small caps, which are doing reasonably alright. The blue chips on the other hand are not that exciting at this point," he told theedgemarkets.com.
Source: The Edge
Comments
Post a Comment