Energy
Brent crude was 0.32% lower to US$30.74 per barrel at 2.27pm.
Forex
Ringgit down 0.04% to 4.1233 versus the US dollar at 2.52pm.
Top foreign stories
Rio Tinto slumps into annual net loss as slowdown bites: Rio Tinto on Thursday posted an annual net loss of US$866 million in what the mining giant said was a “highly challenging environment” as commodity prices plunged and the Chinese slowdown hit hard. The dire result compared with a US$6.53 billion net profit in the previous reporting year. — Reuters
Societe Generale 2015 net profit up almost 50%: French bank Societe Generale on Thursday reported its net profit rose almost 50% to 4 billion euros (US$4.5 billion) in 2015, compared with a year earlier. — AFP
Maersk, MSC, 13 others offer to settle EU pricing probe: Leading shipping container groups Maersk, MSC and 13 other firms have offered to change their pricing practices to settle an EU antitrust probe and stave off any fines, three people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. — Reuters
Thai central bank chief says monetary policy supportive: Thailand’s economy is recovering at a gradual but uneven pace and monetary policy is still supportive in the face of high downside risks, the central bank governor said on Thursday. — Reuters
Central banks and Chinese buyers helping to spur gold demand: Buying by central banks as well as Chinese investors seeking protection from a weakening currency helped lift demand for gold in the final quarter of last year and the trend looks set to continue, the World Gold Council said on Thursday. — Reuters
Top local stories
The banker at centre of Swiss bank BSI, 1MDB relationship: A private banker, caught up in Singapore’s money laundering probe linked to 1Malaysia Development Bhd, was a key link between the embattled state investor, a Swiss private bank and a Malaysian businessman connected to the troubled fund. Yak Yew Chee, a senior banker at Swiss-based BSI Singapore, has emerged for the first time as a key figure in Singapore’s money laundering probe, according to documents released at Singapore High Court last week. — Reuters
December industrial output exceeds forecast: Malaysia’s industrial output expanded at a faster pace of 2.7% in December last year, exceeding the forecast of just 1% growth, according to the Statistics Department. It said on Thursday the higher industrial production index (IPI) in December was supported by positive growth in manufacturing index (4.0%) and electricity index (5.6%). The mining index recorded a decrease of 1.5%. — StarBiz
Maybank IB: Sunway Construction could win up to RM5.6bil contracts this year: Maybank IB Research has maintained its “buy” recommendation on Sunway Construction Group Bhd
with a higher target price of RM1.65 as the company stands to secure up to RM5.6bil worth of new jobs this year. In a note on Thursday, the research house said the compny’s job replenishment prospect this year remains robust with potential job wins from railway, bus rapid transit, highways and building projects. — StarBiz
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