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 (Sept 30): Bursa Malaysia ended lower on Thursday due to continued selling activities in telecommunications, media, industrial products and services counters, amidst cautious sentiments in the regional markets, dealers said.
At 5pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) shed 9.85 points or 0.64% to 1,537.80 from Wednesday’s close of 1,547.65.
The index, which opened 1.22 points lower at 1,546.43, moved between 1,532.56 and 1,549.36 throughout the day.
Meanwhile, market breadth was negative with decliners surpassing gainers 530 to 458, while 453 counters were unchanged, 866 untraded and 68 others suspended.
Turnover rose to 4.39 billion units worth RM3.34 billion from 3.67 billion units worth RM2.71 million on Wednesday.
Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice president of Equity Research Thong Pak Leng told Bernama that profit-taking activities, particularly among banking and gaming heavyweights, had taken a toll on the local bourse.
“Key regional markets closed mixed as the energy crunch in China has hit industrial production, weighing on sentiment, while concerns about Chinese property giant Evergrande’s default risk eased after it reported plans to settle debt with a Chinese bank.
“Although broad-based sentiments continue to be cautious, we reckon bargain hunting in blue chips to persist, thus the benchmark index is expected to trend around the 1,540-1,550 range towards the weekend,” he said.
Meanwhile, Axiata Group Bhd and Press Metal Aluminium Holdings Bhd were the top two losers on the benchmark index on Thursday, declining by 14 sen and nine sen to RM3.91 and RM5.74, respectively.
As for other heavyweights, Malayan Banking Bhd slipped five sen to RM8.05, Public Bank Bhd fell three sen to RM4.07, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd went down two sen to RM8.70 and Tenaga Nasional Bhd shed seven sen to RM9.68, while IHH Healthcare Bhd was flat at RM6.70.
Of the actives, Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd decreased 1.5 sen to 32 sen, Kanger International Bhd was flat at five sen, while Green Ocean Corp Bhd added one sen to five sen and Widad Group Bhd earned half-a-sen to 39 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index dipped 33.94 points to 11,311.08, the FBMT 100 Index was 41.81 points easier at 10,998.02, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index contracted 35.34 points to 12,359.01.
The FBM 70 advanced 54.9 points to 14,980.76 while the FBM ACE fell 6.17 points to 7,158.9.
Sector-wise, the Industrial Products and Services Index decreased 0.84 of-a-point to 204.23, the Plantation Index went down 19.98 points to 6,328.34, and the Financial Services Index reduced by 52.52 points to 15,207.35.
The Main Market volume increased to 2.74 billion shares worth RM2.96 billion from Wednesday’s 2.5 billion shares worth RM2.35 billion.
Warrants turnover declined to 410.46 million units valued at RM63.61 million versus 419.08 million units worth RM69.34 million on Wednesday.
The volume on the ACE Market rose to 1.23 billion shares worth RM310.07 million from 746.93 million shares worth RM286.96 million on Wednesday.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 491.67 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (865.91 million), construction (120.54 million), technology (235.14 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (67.13 million), property (165.11 million), plantation (24.14 million), REITs (10.82 million), closed/fund (5,500), energy (359.09 million), healthcare (130.89 million), telecommunications and media (60.86 million), transportation and logistics (190.25 million) and utilities (14.19 million).
Source: The Edge
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