Malaysia: Mier revises upward 2010 GDP forecast to 6.5%
The Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (Mier) has revised the country’s GDP growth forecast for the year to 6.5% from 5.2% previously. Its executive director Dr Zakariah Abdul Rashid said the upward revision was based on the strong 1QGDP growth of 10.1% and the good export performance. (StarBiz)
Indonesia: Q2 growth better than expected
Indonesia’s economy grew a faster-than-expected 6.2% in the second quarter, picking up pace from the first, and will accelerate to peak in the three months to the end of September, the statistics bureau said. South-East Asia’s biggest economy has started to attract more interest from foreign direct investors this year, with a flurry of announcements just this week, suggesting it may see far more commitments in the coming months. (StarBiz)
India: Splits in inflation fight, bets on monsoon to damp prices
India’s officials are splitting over how to quell the inflation hammering the 828m people who live on less than USD2 a day, with the government counting on monsoon rains to end a debate that risks policymaking paralysis. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee warned growth will suffer if interest rates rise too fast, after the Reserve Bank of India last week accelerated its pace of increases. (Bloomberg)
Japan: BOJ waits for ‘noose’ to tighten before adding Japan stimulus
The Bank of Japan is likely to hold off on increasing monetary stimulus next week as policy makers are unconvinced the yen’s approach toward a 15-year high will derail the nation’s economic recovery. The BOJ will keep unchanged its bank-loan program and monthly bond purchases on 10 Aug, according to all but one of 17 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. (Bloomberg)
Argentina: Bond risk sinks most as GDP forecasts climb
Argentina bond risk fell the most in Latin America over the past three months as quickening economic growth and an USD12.9bn debt restructuring boosted confidence in the country’s ability to pay its debt. The cost of protecting Argentine debt against non-payment for five years with credit-default swaps tumbled 85 basis points, or 0.85 percentage point, according to CMA DataVision. (Bloomberg)
UK: BOE keeps stimulus to aid recovery in budget squeeze
The Bank of England kept its bond-stimulus plan in place and left its benchmark interest rate at a record low as official sustained emergency aid for the economy during the biggest budget squeeze since World War II. The nine-member Monetary Policy Committee, led by Governor Mervyn King, held the target for bond holdings at GBP200bn (USD318bn), matching the median estimate of 34 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The bank kept the key interest rate at 0.5%. (Bloomberg)
German: June factory orders jump more than forecast
German factory orders surged more than twice as much as economists forecast in June as the global recovery gathered strength and European companies increased investment. Orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, rose 3.2% from May, when they dropped a revised 0.1%, the Economy Ministry in Berlin said. Economists forecast a 1.4% gain after an initially reported 0.5% decline the previous month, according to the median of 23 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. (Bloomberg)
EU: ECB keeps rate at 1%, may weigh second run at exit
The European Central Bank left interest rates at a record low as policy makers start to consider how to scale back the crisis-fighting measures introduced over the past two years. The ECB’s Governing Council meeting in Frankfurt set the benchmark lending rate at 1% for a 16th month, as predicted by all 51 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The ECB will not raise its key rate until the 3Q of 2011, a separate survey showed. (Bloomberg)
US: Jobless claims unexpectedly rise to three-month high
Initial jobless claims climbed by 19,000 to 479,000 in the week ended 31 July, the most since April and exceeding the highest estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, Labor Department figures showed. The number of people receiving unemployment benefits dropped, while those getting extended payments rose. (Bloomberg)
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