ALAYSIA
Policy rate raised to 3%
Bank Negara Malaysia yesterday unexpectedly raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter point, as it sought to pre-emptively ward off any risk of future financial imbalance amid lingering price pressures. The central bank hiked the overnight policy rate to 3 percent, a move predicted by just three out of 19 economists in a Bloomberg survey. “The balance of risk to the inflation outlook is tilted to the upside and remains highly subject to any changes to domestic policy including on subsidies and price controls, financial market developments, as well as global commodity prices,” it said in a statement.
TURKEY
Inflation slows, but still high
Inflation slowed below 50 percent for the first time in more than a year, with risks for price stability rising as the country goes to the polls in less than two weeks. Consumer prices grew an annual 43.7 percent last month, down from 50.5 percent in March, official data showed yesterday. Core inflation — which strips out volatile items such as energy and food — was an annual 45.5 percent, down from 47.4 percent in March. While slowing slightly more than expected by economists in a Bloomberg survey, inflation is now forecast to plateau at about 44 to 45 percent for the rest of the year.
AUSTRALIA
Retail sales rise further
Retail sales rose for a third straight month in March, driven primarily by food inflation, as household spending begins to cool under the weight of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s aggressive interest rate increases. Sales advanced 0.4 percent from a month earlier, compared with a forecast 0.2 percent gain, Bureau of Statistics data showed yesterday. Every category outside of food and eating out recorded a decline. The result suggests consumers are beginning to hunker down in the face of rising borrowing costs, in line with the central bank’s aim.
AIRLINES
Lufthansa upbeat on profits
Deutsche Lufthansa AG yesterday said it expected earnings to rise above pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels in the second quarter as air travel continues to recover, putting the carrier closer to achieving its longer-term profit goals. Adjusted earnings before interest and taxes this quarter are forecast to surpass the 754 million euros (US$833 million) achieved in the same period in 2019, Europe’s biggest airline group said in a statement. Lufthansa said summer flights to Spain are particularly popular, with demand for city breaks, a favorite among Europeans before COVID-19 struck, recovering significantly, despite inflation squeezing disposable incomes.
AUTOMAKERS
Stellantis beats forecasts
Stellantis NV’s first-quarter sales climbed more than expected thanks to strong vehicle prices and higher shipments of models like the Jeep Compass. Revenue rose 14 percent to 47.2 billion euros, ahead of analysts’ expectations of 45.8 billion euros, the maker of Ram pickups and Fiat cars said yesterday. The company reaffirmed full-year guidance for a double-digit adjusted operating income margin and positive industrial free cash flow. Stellantis, which has been battling logistics snags, particularly in Europe, said new vehicle inventory was at 1.3 million at the end of March, reflecting a return to more normal levels. Shipments during the quarter rose 7 percent after the availability of semiconductors improved.
‘SWASTICAR’: Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s close association with Donald Trump has prompted opponents to brand him a ‘Nazi’ and resulted in a dramatic drop in sales Demonstrators descended on Tesla Inc dealerships across the US, and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top adviser to US President Donald Trump. Waving signs with messages such as “Musk is stealing our money” and “Reclaim our country,” the protests largely took place peacefully following fiery episodes of vandalism on Tesla vehicles, dealerships and other facilities in recent weeks that US officials have denounced as terrorism. Hundreds rallied on Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in Manhattan. Some blasted Musk, the world’s richest man, while others demanded the shuttering of his
ADVERSARIES: The new list includes 11 entities in China and one in Taiwan, which is a local branch of Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur Group The US added dozens of entities to a trade blacklist on Tuesday, the US Department of Commerce said, in part to disrupt Beijing’s artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced computing capabilities. The action affects 80 entities from countries including China, the United Arab Emirates and Iran, with the commerce department citing their “activities contrary to US national security and foreign policy.” Those added to the “entity list” are restricted from obtaining US items and technologies without government authorization. “We will not allow adversaries to exploit American technology to bolster their own militaries and threaten American lives,” US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said. The entities
Taiwan’s official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) last month rose 0.2 percentage points to 54.2, in a second consecutive month of expansion, thanks to front-loading demand intended to avoid potential US tariff hikes, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. While short-term demand appeared robust, uncertainties rose due to US President Donald Trump’s unpredictable trade policy, CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s economy this year would be characterized by high-level fluctuations and the volatility would be wilder than most expect, Lien said Demand for electronics, particularly semiconductors, continues to benefit from US technology giants’ effort
Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) yesterday told lawmakers that she “would not speculate,” but a “response plan” has been prepared in case Taiwan is targeted by US President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, which are to be announced on Wednesday next week. The Trump administration, including US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, has said that much of the proposed reciprocal tariffs would focus on the 15 countries that have the highest trade surpluses with the US. Bessent has referred to those countries as the “dirty 15,” but has not named them. Last year, Taiwan’s US$73.9 billion trade surplus with the US
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