Energy
Brent Crude was 0.84% higher to US$51.76 per barrel at 2.31pm.
Forex
Ringgit was down 0.16% to 4.2242 versus the US dollar at 3.02pm.
Top foreign stories
German exports plunge at fastest pace since global financial crisis: German exports plunged in August by their largest amount since the height of the global financial crisis and imports also fell sharply in the latest sign that Europe’s largest economy is feeling the pain from a slowdown in emerging markets. Data from the Federal Statistics Office showed seasonally-adjusted exports sliding by 5.2% to 97.7 billion euros month-on-month, while imports tumbled by 3.1% to 78.2 billion euros. Germany’s trade surplus narrowed to 19.6 billion euros. — Reuters
Lotte founding family clash escalates as eldest son to sue for control: The battle for control of Lotte Group, South Korea’s fifth-largest conglomerate, escalated as the founder’s elder son said he will seek to oust his younger brother and executives of a holding firm that fired the group patriarch this year. — Reuters
China’s yuan may play a bigger role as funding currency: China’s yuan is likely to be increasingly used as a financing currency for global borrowers in addition to its current role mainly as an investment tool if Beijing cuts interest rates further as expected to support the cooling economy. Appetite for yuan assets had been high since the offshore market came into being five years ago as yields were much higher than in other markets, and as investors bet that steady yuan appreciation would bring extra forex gains. — Reuters
Taiwan September shipments tumble more than expected: Trade-reliant Taiwan on Wednesday effectively wrote off any chances of a global export recovery this year after its September shipments tumbled more than expected, with weakening in all of its major markets, particularly China. Exports sank last month for the eighth month in a row and at the second-fastest pace in over two years. September shipments fell 14.6% from a year ago, worse than expectations for an 11.6% decline in a Reuters poll. — Reuters
Thai consumer confidence sinks as economy struggles to fire: Thai consumer confidence fell for the ninth successive month in September to a 16-month low, a university survey showed, as weak exports and low farm prices undermine an economic recovery that’s forced the government to offer fresh stimulus. The consumer confidence index of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce dropped to 72.1 in September - the lowest reading since June 2014 - from 72.3 in August. - Reuters
Macquarie to buy ANZ’s US$5.6bil car finance portfolio: Top Australian investment bank Macquarie Group on Thursday said it will buy ANZ Banking Group’s A$7.8 billion (US$5.59 billion) vehicle finance portfolio, building on its strategy to cut risk and focus on steadier returns. — Reuters
Top local stories
LPI kicks off Q3 earnings season on firm note: Insurer LPI Capital Bhd
kicked off the third-quarter results season on Thursday with earnings of RM75.84mil on better claims experience and lower commission expenses. LPI said on Thursday earnings were up 18.1% from RM64.19mil a year ago. Profit before tax surged 22.6% to RM94.87mil, while revenue rose 16% to RM349.51mil. Earnings per share were 22.85 sen compared with 19.39 sen before - StarBiz.
Miti: Economic conditions pushed Govt to work harder on trade pacts: The current bleak global economic conditions has spurred the Government to work harder on trade agreement initiatives including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the International Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) said. Apart from the TPP, Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said Malaysia is also working on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Malaysia-European Union Free Trade Agreement. — Bernama
AmInvest wins Malaysia’s Best Investment Management Company award: AmInvest has won Malaysia’s Best Investment Management Company award for the fourth time at the World Finance Investment Management Awards 2015 based in the United Kingdom. — Bernama
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