Halister News

(Bloomberg) -- Ringgit rises 1.0% to 4.1735 per dollar, helped by a 7.2% jump overnight in Brent crude.

• Malaysia’s GDP probably expanded 4.1% y/y in 4Q, according to median est. in Bloomberg survey; that would be slowest pace of growth since at least 2011, based on govt data compiled by Bloomberg
• FX pair is below pivot point at 4.2070; support broken at 4.1915, next at 4.1657, 4.1244; resistance at 4.2328, 4.2483, 4.2896
• USD/MYR is above 38.2% Fibonacci retracement of trading range since May; see chart here, also above its 200-DMA at 4.0824 since Oct. 2014
• Ringgit’s 1-mo. NDF rises 0.2% to 4.1772
• Malaysia is going to face more difficulty in the coming months given Jan. 28 warning from BNM’s Zeti that inflation may spike to over 4% this qtr, according to BofAML note yesterday
  • Growth is decelerating, with exports contracting in Dec. at steepest pace in three years, says BofAML
  • Higher levies on foreign workers will increase wage cost pressures which could be passed on to consumers
  • Other risks include central bank succession, dwindling current account surplus and tightening fiscal measures
• Yield on 3.955% govt bond due Sept. 2025 closed 1 bp lower yesterday at 3.929%
• Five-year credit-protection costs for Malaysia declined by 6 bps to 178 bps yesterday, lowest since early December: CMA