U.S. Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen testifies at the House Financial Services Committee in Washington February 10, 2016 - Reuters
MarketWrap: Global markets traded cautiously on Wednesday, a day before the United Kingdom votes on whether to stay in the EU, with Wall Street stocks easing lower and sterling inching up. - Reuters
The DJIA fell 48.9 points, or 0.27%, to 17,780.83, the S&P 500 lost 3.45 points, or 0.17%, to 2,085.45 and the Nasdaq dropped 10.44 points, or 0.22%, to 4,833.32.
Forex summary
*The ringgit gained 0.42% to 4.0185 per US$
*It was 0.12% lower at 4.5536 per euro
*Down 0.68% to 5.9541 to the pound sterling
*0.03% higher to 3.0057 per Singapore dollar
*0.02% up to 3.0208 per Aussie
*Up 0.68% to 3.8365 per 100 yen
Energy
Oil prices settled down more than 1% on Wednesday after the US government reported a smaller-than-expected inventory drawdown, and as investors fretted about Britain's upcoming vote on whether to stay in the European Union. Brent's front-month contract, August, settled down 74 cents, or 1.5%, at US$49.88 a barrel. - Reuters
Top foreign stories
Fed's Yellen says no special meetings scheduled over Brexit: Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen said she has not scheduled special meetings for Friday or Saturday in order to respond to the "Brexit" vote in Britain over its membership in the European Union. "Brexit is a risk that we are monitoring. We will be watching closely to see what the vote is and what possible repercussions it might have," Yellen told lawmakers on Wednesday ahead of Britain's vote scheduled for Thursday. Reuters
Britain votes on EU membership after tight and bitter campaign: Britons will decide the future of their country and Europe on Thursday in a vote on European Union membership after a bitter campaign that appeared to divide the nation down the middle. - Reuters
Top local stories
Strong interest in P2P: As many as 100 parties are scurrying to submit their applications to run peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms, the latest in financial technology initiatives being carried out by the Securities Commission. Industry sources say they include some large corporates, financial institutions, tycoons and technology entrepreneurs. - StarBiz
Billionaire Ru n expects Cityneon’s expo to be big hit in Vegas: American billionaire Phil Ruffin has expressed his confidence that the Avengers S.T.A.T.I.O.N (Scientific Training And Tactical Intelligence Operative Network) and Transformers exhibition, the latest attraction in the world’s biggest entertainment-gambling city, will be a huge success. - StarBiz
Air Selangor may delay capex works: Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Air Selangor), which has spent close to RM850mil to maintain the state’s water assets infrastructure since 2011, may face delays in obtaining its operating licence due to uncertainties relating to the acquisition of Syarikat Pengeluar Air Sungai Selangor Sdn Bhd. - StarBiz
Reach crosses another hurdle: Special-purpose acquisition company Reach Energy Bhd
is one step closer to completing its proposed acquisition of a 60% stake in Palaeontol BV for U$154.9mil, as its vendor has obtained approval from its shareholders for the disposal. - StarBiz
Asia-Pacific banks face lower margins: Asia-Pacific banks are expected to face shrinking margins and dwindling returns on equity due to weakening balance sheets, slower macroeconomic growth and disruptive financial services from start-up companies, says management consultant McKinsey. - StarBiz
Operational exibility Ann Joo’s trump card: Ann Joo Resources Bhd is yielding the fruits of its massive RM600 million investment in its hybrid production process, which enables the long steel product maker to have the raw material mix that maximises its profit. With that, Ann Joo will enjoy some cost advantages over its rivals. - Edge FD
‘Lower cross-border M&A, commodity prices to hinder FDI’: Global foreign direct investment (FDI) is expected to decline 10% to 15% in 2016, says the UN Conference on Trade and Development , with slowdown seen in both developing countries like Malaysia and developed countries as it foresees a drop in cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As) and lower commodity prices. - Edge FD
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