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 14): Bursa Malaysia rebounded from Tuesday's (Dec 13) loss to end in positive territory as bargain-hunting emerged, in line with the regional markets’ uptrend performance.
At 5pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 0.89% or 13.05 points to 1,483.17 from Tuesday's closing of 1,470.12
The barometer index opened 1.77 points higher at 1,471.89 and moved between 1,471.64 and 1,483.17 throughout the day.
On the broader market, gainers surpassed decliners 532 versus 384,
while 418 counters were unchanged, 940 untraded and 13 others suspended.
Turnover slightly narrowed to 2.51 billion units worth RM1.90 billion versus 2.69 billion units worth RM1.84 billion on Tuesday.
Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd senior analyst Kenneth Leong said the local bourse recovered all its previous losses this week, driven by the optimism over the potential slower rate hike from the US Federal Reserve (Fed).
“For now, investors will be monitoring the US Fed interest rate decision later tonight (Wednesday, Dec 14) as well as guidance over future rate hikes moving into 2023.
“In the meantime, we expect the local bourse to stage further recovery as we approach year-end which typically may see window dressing activities towards the final weeks of the year,” he said.
Bursa heavyweights Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) added two sen to RM8.77, Public Bank Bhd gained nine sen to RM4.44, Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd rose two sen to RM8.50, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd bagged seven sen to RM5.83, and Tenaga Nasional Bhd earned 13 sen to RM9.34.
Of the actives, SNS Network Technology Bhd was up two sen to 27 sen, Advance Synergy Bhd ticked up half-a-sen to 17.5 sen, Top Glove Corp Bhd was flat at 78.5 sen, Borneo Oil Bhd was unchanged at 2.5 sen, ITMAX System Bhd ticked up one sen to RM1.39, while Dataprep Holdings Bhd lost half-a-sen to 25 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index advanced 73.17 points to 10,652.71, the FBMT 100 Index appreciated by 74.02 points to 10,356.62, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index strengthened 75.1 points to 10,782.91.
The FBM 70 Index edged up 24.53 points to 13,030.53, and the FBM ACE Index climbed 16.09 points to 5,510.99.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index was 97.44 points higher at 16,669.57, the Plantation Index went up 54.96 points to 6,740.89, the Industrial Products and Services Index increased 0.77 of-a-point to 181.38, and the Energy Index added 10.64 points to 795.36.
The Main Market volume slightly narrowed to 1.52 billion shares worth RM1.55 billion from 1.55 billion shares worth RM1.49 billion on Tuesday.
Warrants turnover decreased to 268.73 million units valued at RM65.20 million versus 284.18 million units valued at RM57.91 million.
The ACE Market volume dropped to 723.65 million shares worth RM284.05 million against 852.07 million shares worth RM290.35 million previously.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 303.14 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (435.81 million), construction (36.13 million), technology (276.91 million), SPAC (nil), financial services (77.28 million), property (81.31 million), plantation (25.87 million), REITs (3.84 million), closed/fund (5,000), energy (75.87 million), healthcare (114.82 million), telecommunications and media (38.09 million), transportation and logistics (35.52 million), and utilities (16.99 million).
Source: The Edge
Comments
Post a Comment