Us dollar

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit reversed its earlier gains to close weaker against the US dollar today as the falling crude oil prices continued to weigh on sentiments, said an analyst. At 6 pm, the local unit depreciated against the greenback to 4.4030/4060 from Friday's close of 4.4010/4045. The analyst said oil prices had eased on Monday as investors were cautious about moves against Russian oil and gas exports that might arise from the Group of Seven (G7) nations meeting. At the press time, benchmark Brent crude oil was traded at US$113.14 per barrel, down by 0.14 per cent. He also expects the USD/MYR (US dollar-ringgit pair) to remain volatile as growing fears of a recession are causing market participants to be defensive, leading to higher demand for safe-haven currencies. Meanwhile, the local currency was traded mixed against a basket of major currencies. The ringgit appreciated against the British pound to 5.4064/4101 from Friday's close of 5.4128/4171 and rose versus the … [Read more...] about Ringgit depreciates against US dollar

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 27): Costlier crude oil along with a stronger US dollar will erode Spritzer's Bhd profit margin, the bottled water producer admitted. "Costlier oil will translate into costlier PET resin, which is the main raw material used in making the [plastic] bottles. "PET resin is normally quoted in US dollar so a stronger US dollar would mean we will have to pay more for our PET resin," a company representative said in a brief email reply to theedgemarkets.com recently, when asked about the impact of surging oil prices on its manufacturing costs. According to the US-based PET Resin Association, PET — which is short for polyethylene terephthalate, the chemical name for polyester — is a clear, strong, and lightweight plastic made from crude oil and ethane extracted from natural gas that is widely used for packaging food and beverages, especially convenience-sized soft drinks, juices and water. Following Russia's incursion into Ukraine, oil prices … [Read more...] about Spritzer admits costlier crude oil, stronger US dollar will erode its profit margin

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 27): The ringgit reversed its earlier gains to close weaker against the US dollar on Monday (June 27), as the falling crude oil prices continued to weigh on sentiments, said an analyst. At 6pm, the local unit depreciated against the greenback to 4.4030/4060 from Friday (June 24)'s close of 4.4010/4045. The analyst said oil prices had eased on Monday as investors were cautious about moves against Russian oil and gas exports that might arise from the Group of Seven (G7) nations meeting. At the press time, benchmark Brent crude oil was traded at US$113.14 per barrel, down by 0.14%. He also expects the USD/MYR (US dollar-ringgit pair) to remain volatile, as growing fears of a recession are causing market participants to be defensive, leading to higher demand for safe-haven currencies. Meanwhile, the local currency was traded mixed against a basket of major currencies. The ringgit appreciated against the British pound to 5.4064/4101 from … [Read more...] about Ringgit depreciates against US dollar on June 27

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 27): Bursa Malaysia closed broadly higher on Monday (June 27) on persistent buying interest mainly in technology and energy stocks, said an analyst. At 5pm, the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 1.42 points to 1,438.12 from Friday's close of 1,436.7. The benchmark index, which opened 2.12 points higher at 1,438.82, fluctuated between 1,431.65 and 1,441.03 throughout the trading session. On the broader market, gainers beat losers 546 to 365, while 393 counters were unchanged, 1,004 untraded, and 55 others suspended. Total turnover expanded to 2.65 billion units worth RM1.43 billion from 2.46 billion units worth RM1.47 billion on Friday. Key regional markets also continued to trend higher following positive cues on Wall Street including the upbeat performance of the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite last Friday. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the FBM KLCI, which ended 0.1% … [Read more...] about Bursa ends broadly higher

- A + A BANGKOK (June 27): A tightening of Thai monetary policy will be conducted so it does not disrupt the recovery of Southeast Asia's second-largest economy, central bank officials said on Monday, reinforcing market expectations of interest rate hikes later this year. Thailand's economy will continue growing this year and next, driven by domestic demand and tourism, and could beat forecasts despite a risk that inflation will be higher than expected, Bank of Thailand (BOT) officials told an analysts' meeting. The BOT will try to prevent the economy from overheating, which would cause demand-driven inflation, by gradually shifting from the current very accommodative policy, assistant governor Piti Disyatat told the meeting. The BOT's task was to help the economy take off smoothly, he said. "It's a challenge for monetary policy to release the accelerator pedal appropriately and timely so that the recovery has good momentum," Piti said, referring to the current … [Read more...] about Thai central bank says policy tightening will not disrupt economy recovery

- A + A SHANGHAI (June 27): China's yuan edged up against the dollar on Monday (June 27) after Shanghai declared victory against Covid-19 over the weekend, but gains were limited ahead of more convincing signs of a recovery. Shanghai, the country's commercial hub, will gradually resume dining-in at restaurants from June 29 after the city's Communist Party chief declared victory in the battle against the latest wave of Covid-19 shocks that put the city under lockdown for two months. Shanghai lifted a two month citywide lockdown on June 1, but many establishments have remained unable to offer indoor dining since mid-March. Traders said the news lifted market sentiment, but investors remained cautious and looked to data to gauge the pace of the economic recovery before placing huge bets on the currency. June economic indicators, including official factory activity data, are due later this week. Prior to market opening, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) set the … [Read more...] about Yuan edges up as Shanghai declares Covid-19 victory; outlook remains cautious

- A + A HONG KONG (June 27): China's fourth-biggest developer may miss a local bond payment for its first time ever, pressuring an onshore credit market that has remained resilient amid a property debt crisis and record offshore defaults. Sunac Real Estate Group Co said in an exchange filing on Friday it likely would not be able to raise enough funds to make a 400 million yuan (US$60 million) payment due June 30 for a portion of the note principal along with related interest. The deadline is part of an instalment plan Sunac got approval for several months ago that extended full repayment of the four billion yuan security by 18 months. A separate note maturing next year fell 15% on Monday while some due in 2025 closed at record lows, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. China's US$12.3 trillion local bond market has so far held up relatively well despite a cash crunch in the property sector sparked by a government crackdown on excessive leverage and housing … [Read more...] about Chinese builder Sunac may miss local bond payment in a first

- A + A HONG KONG/JOHANNESBURG (June 27): Prosus NV is planning to sell more of its US$134 billion stake in Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd to finance a buyback programme, reversing a pledge to hold onto the full shareholding. Tencent declined in Hong Kong on Monday as investors pondered the extent to which Prosus, the Chinese company’s biggest shareholder, will unload its stock. The shares fell as much as 2.5% and traded 1.6% lower at the close. “We will keep selling Tencent shares to buy back our own, it’s open-ended and an unlimited programme,” Prosus Chief Executive Officer Bob Van Dijk said in an interview. “It’s actually a small part of Tencent daily traded volumes — it should be maximum between 3% to 5%.” The move represents a change of heart by Dutch e-commerce giant Prosus — majority owned by South Africa’s Naspers Ltd — which said after its last sale in April 2021 it wouldn’t offload more shares for three years. The company, spun off from … [Read more...] about Tencent backer Prosus to cut US$134 bil stake to buy stock

- A + A MUMBAI/MANILA (June 27): Signs of distress flashing in bond markets suggest the world's poorest nations are set to see a wave of debt restructurings. But a growing cohort of investors say that is a buying opportunity. Panic selling in the aftermath of Sri Lanka's economic collapse has sent the average yield in junk-rated emerging economies to almost 900 basis points above US Treasuries, the highest risk premium in 13 years except for the Covid-19-related rout in 2020, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co data. Yet, initial fears about a widespread default Armageddon across emerging markets is easing, and money managers are looking beyond the handful of countries that may reschedule their debt. This shift in perception means at least some smaller developing nations, called frontier markets, have been unduly punished in the recent sell-off and now offer highly attractive yields. Even in the event of debt restructuring, their bonds will offer greater recovery … [Read more...] about Frontier-debt buyers look past default risk in hunger for yield

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 27): Financially troubled Sapura Energy Bhd returned to the black in the first quarter ended April 30, 2022 (1QFY23) with a net profit of RM91.93 million, on the back of foreign exchange gains arising from the appreciation of the US dollar against the ringgit. In the preceding quarter, it had posted its biggest ever net loss of RM6.78 billion. In the same period last year, Sapura Enery had posted a net loss of RM97.08 million. In a Bursa Malaysia filing on Monday (June 27), the oil and gas service provider said its quarterly revenue, however, declined by 39.75% to RM886.08 million against RM1.47 billion in the year-ago corresponding period, due to lower project activities from its engineering and procurement (E&C) segment. Earnings per share for the quarter amounted to 0.58 sen, from losses per share of 0.61 sen. On a quarterly basis, revenue more than doubled from RM426.60 million in 4QFY22. Sapura Energy said that it continues … [Read more...] about Sapura Energy returns to black in 1Q with net profit of RM91.93 mil on forex gains