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 (Jan 10): Bursa Malaysia reversed its gains on Tuesday to end lower on Wednesday, in sync with the downbeat regional market performances, weighed down by cautious sentiments ahead of the release of the US consumer price index (CPI) data on Thursday.
At 5pm, the FBM KLCI slid 11.97 points to 1,486.86 from Tuesday's close of 1,498.83.
The benchmark index opened 1.03 points weaker at 1,497.8 and moved between 1,486.72 and 1,497.8 throughout the day.
On the broader market, decliners led gainers 588 to 359, while 497 counters were unchanged, 775 untraded and 20 others suspended.
Turnover declined to 4.97 billion units worth RM2.84 billion from 6.44 billion units worth RM3.77 billion on Tuesday.
SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said Asian equity markets, including Bursa Malaysia, have been partly influenced by the struggles of the Hang Seng Index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500.
He said sentiments on the global markets have weakened with the US dollar strengthening, equity benchmarks declining and US Treasury yields falling.
“The exact drivers of these market movements are not entirely clear, as the overnight macro data did not indicate anything exceptional in terms of economic weakness.
“Global factors that stand out are the growing concerns ahead of the US CPI data, as inflation could run high and there might be a shift in the bullish narrative as global traders question whether bets on US Federal Reserve rate cuts are overdone," he said.
Back home, Innes said Bursa Malaysia is coming off a sizzling rally, attributed to the improving global goods cycle and product-specific trends, such as the artificial intelligence (AI) chip boom, benefiting local chip producers.
"While the AI sector is expected to continue thriving, some profit-taking may have set in," he added.
Among the heavyweights, Maybank Bhd, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd and Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd eased 10 sen each to RM9, RM5.95 and RM7, respectively, while Public Bank Bhd and Tenaga Nasional Bhd fell eight sen each to RM4.31 and RM10.48, respectively.
Of the actives, TWL Holdings Bhd was half a sen higher at five sen, while Minetech Resources Bhd and Pan Malaysia Holdings Bhd lost a sen each to 22.5 sen and 14 sen, respectively, Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd inched down half a sen to two sen and Fintec Global Bhd was flat at 1.5 sen.
On the index board, the FBM Emas Index erased 68.32 points to 11,097.83, the FBMT 100 Index reduced 69.96 points to 10,743.75, the FBM ACE Index slid 10.09 points to 5,432.85, the FBM 70 Index dropped 30.73 points to 15,078.64 and the FBM Emas Shariah Index shrank 31.69 points to 11,234.96.
Sector-wise, the Financial Services Index trimmed 188.13 points to 16,547.79, the Plantation Index slipped 14.68 points to 7,067.51, the Industrial Products and Services Index shaved 0.65 of a point to 176.46 and the Property Index gave up 8.45 points to 896.42, while the Energy Index rose 5.69 points to 850.18.
The Main Market volume dropped to 3.32 billion units valued at RM2.50 billion from 4.38 billion units valued at RM3.34 billion on Tuesday.
Warrant turnover weakened to 711.64 million units worth RM86.69 million from 1.03 billion units worth RM127.07 million the previous day.
The ACE Market volume narrowed to 923.63 million shares valued at RM257.19 million versus 1.03 billion shares valued at RM294.60 million previously.
Consumer products and services counters accounted for 576.18 million shares traded on the Main Market, industrial products and services (942.3 million); construction (189.63 million); technology (568.89 million); SPAC (nil); financial services (74.57 million); property (477.7 million); plantation (23.48 million); REITs (10.75 million), closed/fund (52,800); energy (128.73 million); healthcare (125.2 million); telecommunications and media (35.36 million); transportation and logistics (54.67 million); and utilities (115.52 million).
Source: The Edge
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