U.S: QE2 starts tomorrow . New York Fed - the Fed branch that will execute the second quantitative easing (QE2) totaling USD600b announced on 3 Nov - said it will buy USD105b worth of US Treasuries between 12 Nov and 9 Dec via 18 open market operations. This will also include the reinvestment of USD250b-USD300b from the maturing mortgage-backed securities and agencies debt bought by the central bank during QE1 between Dec 2008 and Mar 2010 that totaled USD1.7tr. These total US Treasury purchases of USD850b-USD900b will be conducted until June 2011. (Source: Bloomberg)
U.S: Mortgage applications increase on gain in purchases for a third straight week and refinancing picked up. The Mortgage Bankers Association's index increased 5.8% in the week ended Nov. 5. Refinancing rose 6% and purchase applications were up 5.5%, the most since Oct. 1. (Source: Bloomberg)
France: Industrial production increased in September as households boosted spending. Output from factories, mines and utilities rose 0.1% MoM after stalling in August. (Source: Bloomberg)
Philippines: Exports rose at a record pace in September as Asian demand boosted sales of electronics goods, countering declining shipments to the U.S. Sales abroad grew 46.1% YoY to an unprecedented USD 5.31b after rising 37% YoY in August, the National Statistics Office said in Manila. (Source: Bloomberg)
Australia: Home loan approvals climbed in September , capping the strongest quarter since the first three months of 2009. The number of loans granted to build or buy houses and apartments gained 1.3% MoM to 48,333 from August, when they rose a revised 1.1% MoM, the statistics bureau said in Sydney. (Source: Bloomberg)
Malaysia: BNM unlikely to raise rate
The prospect of an interest hike by Bank Negara Malaysia, which will hold its final Monetary Policy Committee meeting for the year tomorrow, appears remote. Economists believe BNM may want to see stability in the global economy, and improvement in the domestic backdrop before raising the OPR. (Financial Daily)
Malaysia: IPI growth rebounded in September
The industrial production index (IPI) grew 5.6% y-o-y in September to 106.3, but contracted on a m-o-m basis by 0.8%, weighed down by a fall in the manufacturing indices. The growth of 5.6% rebounded from below 4% in the past two months. However, on a quarterly basis, the growth in the IPI slowed for the second consecutive quarter, to 4.3% y-o-y in 3Q10, from 11.1% in 2Q. (Financial Daily)
China: Orders reserve ratio increase after trade surplus surges
China’s central bank raised lenders’ reserve requirements as cash from October’s larger-than-forecast USD27.1bn trade surplus threatened to add to the risk of asset bubbles and accelerating inflation. Reserve requirements will increase 0.5% points from 16 Nov, the People’s Bank of China said. Inflows of cash from monetary easing abroad and investors speculating on gains in the Yuan threaten to worsen Chinese inflation forecast to have risen to a two-year high in October. (Bloomberg)
China: Posts $27.1 billion trade surplus for October
China’s exports rose 22.9% in October from a year earlier as imports climbed 25.3%, leaving a trade surplus of USD27.1bn, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. The median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey of 27 economists was for USD25bn trade surplus. Analysts forecast a 23% gain in exports and a 28.3% increase in imports, according to the survey (Bloomberg)
Australia: November consumer confidence falls 5.3% on rate rise
Australian consumer confidence declined in November to a five-month low after the central bank resumed raising interest rates, sending mortgage payments higher. The sentiment index fell 5.3% to 110.7 this month, according to a Westpac Banking Corp. Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens and his board boosted the benchmark interest rate to 4.75% on 2 Nov, ending a five-month pause as a mining investment boom bolsters the economy. A gauge of family finances dropped 10.2%, the biggest decline among five components in the sentiment index, Westpac said. (Bloomberg)
US: Jobless claims fall to lowest level since July
The number of Americans filing initial jobless claims last week fell to the lowest level in four months, reinforcing evidence the US labor market is healing. Applications for jobless benefits declined by 24,000 to 435,000 in the week ended 6 Nov, lower than the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey, Labor Department figures showed. The total number of people collecting unemployment insurance fell to the lowest level since November 2008, and those receiving extended payments also declined. (Bloomberg)
US: Trade gap shrank as exports increase
The US trade deficit shrank more than forecast in September as exports climbed to the highest level in two years, showing a weaker dollar is helping strengthen the economic recovery. The gap narrowed by 5.3% to USD44bn, smaller than the USD45bn median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Another report showed the number of claims for jobless benefits fell last week to a four-month low. A 7.5% drop in the USD over the past four months is making American goods cheaper overseas as demand in emerging economies propels sales for companies like General Electric Co. (Bloomberg)
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