Asian currencies fell this week, led by the South Korean won and India’s rupee, as concern about the pace of a global economic recovery and the risk of debt defaults deterred investment in emerging-market assets.
State-run Dubai World met with creditors to restructure US$26 billion of borrowings and Fitch Ratings downgraded its credit rating for Greece. US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Monday the US economy faces “formidable headwinds” that will keep expansion to a “moderate” pace.
The won slid 1 percent this week to 1,164.05 per US dollar, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The Indian rupee weakened 0.5 percent to 46.53 and the Singapore dollar dropped 0.6 percent to S$1.3892.
Malaysia’s ringgit traded near a one-month low as the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index lost 0.8 percent this week. The ringgit weakened 0.5 percent to 3.3995 per US dollar in Kuala Lumpur, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It reached 3.4125 on Dec. 9, the weakest level since Nov. 6.
The New Taiwan dollar weakened 0.3 percent to NT$32.278 against the greenback this week.
The Indonesian rupiah fell 0.3 percent to 9,443 and the Philippine peso dropped 0.3 percent to 46.13. The Thai baht was little changed at 33.10, while the yuan traded at 6.8277 from 6.8270 last Friday.
The US dollar advanced to a two-month high against the euro as a bigger-than-forecast increase in retail sales and consumer sentiment indicated the US economic recovery may be gaining momentum.
The US dollar appreciated 1.7 percent to US$1.4615 per euro this week, from US$1.4858 last Friday. It touched US$1.4586 on Friday, the strongest level since October.
The greenback decreased 1.6 percent to ¥89.10, from ¥90.56 last week. The euro dropped 3.2 percent to ¥130.24, from ¥134.54 last week.
Sterling fell for a fourth consecutive week, declining 1.3 percent to US$1.6259 on concern the UK government’s budget deficit will keep growing as the government spends more money to revive the economy.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
At least 35 people were killed and dozens more injured when a man plowed his car into pedestrians exercising around a sports center in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai on Monday night. Footage showing bodies lying on the pavement appeared on social media in the hours after the crash, but had vanished by early Tuesday morning, and local police reported only “injuries.” It took officials nearly 24 hours to reveal that dozens had died — in one of the country’s deadliest incidents in years. China heavily monitors social media platforms, where it is common for words and topics deemed
Typhoon Usagi yesterday had weakened into a tropical storm, but a land warning issued by the Central Weather Administration (CWA) was still in effect in four areas in southern Taiwan. As of 5pm yesterday, Tropical Storm Usagi was over waters 120km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), the southernmost tip of Taiwan proper, and was moving north at 9kph, CWA data showed. The storm was expected to veer northeast later yesterday. It had maximum sustained winds of 101kph, with gusts of up to 126kph, the data showed. The CWA urged residents of Kaohsiung, Pingtung County, Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春) to remain alert to
RSS