By Shreya Mariam Job
Feb 17 (Reuters) - Most Asian currencies eked out small gains against the dollar on Monday as China's central bank cut a key interest rate to support an economy jolted by the coronavirus outbreak, helping counter a string of weak economic data from regional economies.
In a bid to soften the impact from the epidemic that has killed more than 1,700 people, the People's Bank of China on Tuesday lowered the interest rate on its medium-term lending.
The move fuelled expectations of a reduction in the country's benchmark loan prime rate, which will be announced on Thursday.
"Markets are caught between relief rallies positioning off declining infections rates accentuated by strong stimulus on one hand; and on the other hand, hemmed in by underlying caution given the uncertainty" surrounding the epidemic, Vishnu Varathan, senior economist at Mizuho Bank said in a note.
The interest rate cut, along with other support measures outlined by the finance minister on Sunday, pushed the Chinese yuan CNY=CFXS 0.2% higher, putting it on course to snap three sessions of declines.
The improvement in sentiment also buoyed most other Asian units, with the Taiwan dollar TWD=TW firming 0.2%.
The Thai baht THB=TH was little changed data showed that Southeast Asia's second-largest economy grew at its weakest pace in five years in 2019.
However, the Indonesian rupiah IDR= and the Indian rupee INR=IN ticked lower, weighed down by weak trade data.
Indonesia's trade gap widened sharply in January with the economy posting a trade deficit of $870 million in the first month of 2020, compared with an estimate of a $270 million deficit, according to a Reuters poll.
Meanwhile, India's trade deficit rose slightly to $15.17 billion in January, the trade ministry said on Friday.
SINGAPORE BUDGET
The Singapore dollar SGD= ticked up 0.1%, shrugging off a cut to the city-state's 2020 growth and exports outlook on the expected economic impact from the coronavirus outbreak that poses a recession risk.
Singapore is expected to roll out a hefty package of measures to cushion the blow from the epidemic when it announces its budget on Tuesday. [nL4N2A727D]
Analysts said that the impact from the epidemic has overtaken the U.S.-China trade war as the predominant risk facing the Singapore economy.
"Policymakers are also cognizant of the downside growth risks, so a strong budget response and/or monetary policy response at the April MPS (Monetary Policy Statement) may help mitigate and cushion some of the downside risks from here," OCBC said in a note.
CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR
Change on the day at 0544 GMT
Currency
Latest bid
Previous day
Pct Move
Japan yen
109.820
109.74
-0.07
Sing dlr
1.390
1.3913
+0.12
Taiwan dlr
30.002
30.051
+0.16
Korean won
1182.300
1183
+0.06
Baht
31.160
31.15
-0.03
Peso
50.522
50.54
+0.04
Rupiah
13680.000
13670
-0.07
Rupee
71.430
71.40
-0.04
Ringgit
4.138
4.1405
+0.06
Yuan
6.976
6.9878
+0.17
Change so far in 2020
Currency
Latest bid
End 2019
Pct Move
Japan yen
109.820
108.61
-1.10
Sing dlr
1.390
1.3444
-3.25
Taiwan dlr
30.002
30.106
+0.35
Korean won
1182.300
1156.40
-2.19
Baht
31.160
29.91
-4.01
Peso
50.522
50.65
+0.25
Rupiah
13680.000
13880
+1.46
Rupee
71.430
71.38
-0.07
Ringgit
4.138
4.0890
-1.18
Yuan
6.976
6.9632
-0.18
(Reporting by Shreya Mariam Job in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni)
((ShreyaMariam.Job@thomsonreuters.com;))
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
"asian" - Google News
February 17, 2020 at 02:04PM
https://ift.tt/38yvGo9
EM ASIA FX-Most Asian units eke out small gains as China moves to support economy - Nasdaq
"asian" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2STmru2
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
No comments:
Post a Comment