Malaysia and Singapore are examining the prospect of expanding the scope of the proposed Rapid Transit System (RTS) between Singapore and Johor Baharu to include underground road link between the two neighbours, PM Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said yesterday. A study has been commissioned for the most viable option for the project, targeted to be operational by 2018, Najib said. It will study the viability of water taxis to boost links, he noted. Malaysia has proposed selling electricity to Singapore, he said. (Bernama, BT)
Iskandar Malaysia (IM) recorded total cumulative committed investments of RM84.78bn in various sectors from its inception in 2006 till end of Dec 2011. Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman said that 45% of that cumulative committed investments had been realised. "Iskandar Malaysia is currently in Phase 2 of its Comprehensive Development Roadmap covering the period 2011 to 2015," he said adding that the RM15.3bn new investments which IM attracted last year represented 21% of the 2011-2015 target. The manufacturing sector in IM led the surge in total committed investments with RM31.22bn, followed by the property sector (RM27.3bn). (Bernama)
US planned firings rose 30.6% yoy to 41,785 in Dec (-12.8% in Nov), which were the fewest since Jun 2000, according to Chicago-based Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. Job cuts totaled 606,082 for all of 2011, up 14% from the previous year, the report showed. (Bloomberg)
For the first time since 1996, the components of the US leading economic indicator index (LEI) will change, according to the New York-based Conference Board. Gone will be the inflation-adjusted money supply, the Institute for Supply Management‟s supplier deliveries gauge, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan‟s measure of consumer expectations and the Commerce Department‟s orders for non-defense capital goods. Replacing the money supply will be the Conference Board‟s own Leading Credit Index, which aggregates measures of the yield curve, interest-rate swaps and the Federal Reserve‟s senior loan officer survey. The ISM‟s supplier deliveries gauge will give way to the group‟s index of new orders. Instead of using one measure of consumer confidence, the Conference Board will include an equally weighted average of the Michigan sentiment expectations reading and its own measure. Finally, the capital goods component will be replaced by the one that excludes commercial aircraft.
The changes respond to structural changes in the US economy and are aimed at making the LEI a better predictor of peaks and troughs in the business cycle, the Conference Board said. The new index will start with the Dec number coming out on 26 Jan and readings will be revised retroactively to 1990. (Bloomberg)
The US Institute for Supply Management‟s services index rose to 52.6 in Dec (52.0 in Nov), albeit at virtually the same level as at halfway through 2011, with companies reporting cautious gains in business. (AFP)
Initial jobless claims in the US fell 15,000 from the prior week‟s 387,000 to 372,000 in the week ending 31 Dec, the Labor Department reported. The four-week moving average accordingly fell to 373,250, a decline of 3,250 from the previous week. (AFP)
Private employers in the US added 325,000 jobs to their payrolls in Dec (204,000 in Nov), the ADP National Employment Report revealed. The median forecast was for a gain of 178,000 jobs. (Reuters)
US: Consumer comfort climbs to five-month high
Consumer confidence in the U.S. rose last week to the highest level in more than five months and the pace of firings declined, showing an improving job market is bolstering the biggest part of the economy. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index climbed to minus 44.8 in the period ended 31 Dec, the best reading since mid-July, from minus 47.5 the prior week. A pickup in hiring will further lift Americans’ moods, raising the odds household spending, which accounts for about 70% of the economy, will keep climbing. (Bloomberg)
Japan‟s domestic sales of new cars, trucks and buses lost 15% in 2011 to 4.21m vehicles, mostly attributed to the widespread disruption to production wreaked by the earthquake and tsunami in Mar 11, according to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association and the Japan Mini Vehicles Association. (AFP)
China‟s trade surplus narrowed to about US$160bn in 2011 (US$183bn in 2010) due to evidently weaker demand from its key export markets like the US and Europe, according to Commerce Minister Chen Deming. Total trade volume, however, grew more than 20% to US$3.6tr in the year. (AFP)
Australia: Trade surplus in November unexpectedly narrows
Australia’s trade surplus unexpectedly narrowed in November as exports of resources slowed while aircraft imports increased. Exports exceeded imports by AUD1.38bn (USD1.43bn), from a revised AUD1.42bn surplus in October, the Bureau of Statistics said in a report yesterday The report showed stable demand for Australian exports that were outpaced by an increase in goods and services coming into the country. The Reserve Bank of Australia last month made its first back-to-back interest-rate cuts since 2009 as weaker commodity prices ease inflation pressure. (Bloomberg)
European industrial orders increased less than economists estimated of 1.8% mom in Oct (-7.8% in Sep), adding to signs of a deepening economic slump in the single-currency region. Economists had forecast orders to increase 2.5%. (Bloomberg)
UK banks expect to toughen the criteria on loans to companies and households in 1Q12 because of strains in wholesale funding markets, which may impede investment and economic growth, the Bank of England said in its fourth-quarter Credit Conditions Survey. “Developments in the euro area and their impact on banks‟ funding conditions would be a key determinant of credit availability over the coming quarter,” it said. (Bloomberg)
UK: Services surge may help Britain avoid a recession
Service industries in the UK grew at the fastest pace in five months in December and strengthened in the US, suggesting their economies are partly withstanding the euro-area debt crisis. A gauge of UK services activity based on the survey of purchasing managers rose to 54 from 52.1 in November, Markit Economics and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said yesterday. The data suggest the UK economy strengthened in December after surveys earlier this week showed construction and manufacturing improved. Still, the euro-area crisis is clouding the outlook for the global recovery. (Bloomberg)
Bank Indonesia remains mindful of inflation even as it sees room to cut interest rates further if needed, Deputy Governor Hartadi Sarwono said. Gains in the rupiah are helping reduce imported price pressures and policy makers are “happy” with the trend of easing inflation, Sarwono said. The central bank‟s 2012 inflation target for prices to rise 3.5-5.5% will likely be met, he said. The next policy meeting is scheduled for 12 Jan. (Bloomberg)
The Philippine central bank may “unify and simplify” rules on banks’ reserve requirement this month, a change that will have a “neutral effect,” Governor Amando Tetangco said. The monetary authority may review its benchmark interest rate and banks‟ reserve requirement ratio on its 19 Jan policy meeting, Tetangco said. There‟s room for monetary easing and authorities do no see signs of a property bubble, he said. (Bloomberg)
Philippine inflation eased to an 11-month low of 4.2% yoy in Dec (4.8% in Nov) as gains in food and utility costs slowed, boosting scope for an interest-rate cut to aid economic growth. Economists had forecast for a 4.7% gain. (Bloomberg)
China will implement initiatives to drive domestic consumption in 2012 as the economy is buffeted by gathering external headwinds, according to Commerce Minister Chen Deming said. These efforts might be in the form of encouraging purchases of energy-saving products like cars and household appliances and the promotion of online shopping and tourism. (Bloomberg)
Reserve Bank of India deputy governor Subir Gokarn said the country‟s persistently high inflation may prevent an imminent reversal of record interest-rate increases, as the weakening rupee and the rebound in the price of oil narrow the scope for monetary easing. (Bloomberg)
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