Malaysia

Money Supply And Credit Slowed In February. Broad money in circulation moderated in February, as M3 posted a 6.1% YoY growth, compared to 6.7% seen in January. The main reason behind the moderation in overall money supply was due to a smaller growth on claims to the private sector, which expanded by 10.5% YoY compared to 10.7% previously. This is synonymous with the winding down on spending after festival season. Meanwhile, loans growth in February expanded by 10.7% YoY, a slight moderation from 11.0% seen previously. On MoM-basis loans grew by just 0.2%, the slowest in 24 months, suggesting that the BNM’s macroprudential measures are beginning to work its way through to cool off credit growth for speculative purposes and deal with the high household debt. (Please refer to Economic Viewpoint for further comments)

Domestic PPI For February Rises 2.6%. Malaysia’s domestic Producer Price Index (PPI) for February was up by 2.6% to 129.4 from 127.9 in the same month last year, according to the Statistics Department. Month-on-month, the domestic PPI rose 1.2% from 127.9 in January due to an increase in the PPI for local production by 1.6% and in the import price index by 0.1%. “Year-on-year comparison showed the PPI for local production increased by 2.6% and the import price index improved to 0.6%. “The index for electricity, gas and water supply surged 8.5%, followed by mining 6.5%, fishing 4.6%, agriculture 2.3% and manufacturing 0.3%,” the department said in a statement yesterday. (Bernama)

Asia

Japan Factory Output Slows Unexpectedly In February. Factory output in Japan declined by 2.3% in February, official figures released on Monday show. The fall could add to concerns about a slowdown in the world's third-largest economy. February's figure was the first decrease in three months, and it surprised many analysts who were expecting a boost ahead of a planned tax increase. Sales tax will increase in Japan from 5% to 8% on 1 April. The move is intended to combat Japan's growing debt load, and it is part of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's plan to boost prices. (BBC)

Thai February Consumption Falls. Thailand posted a much bigger current account surplus of US$5.07bil in February compared with the previous month while exports rose slightly from a year earlier and consumption was down, the central bank said. The Bank of Thailand (BOT) said that its private consumption index in February fell 1.2% from the previous month and 2.5% from a year earlier. Its private investment index dropped 1.9% in February from January and 7.7% from a year earlier. (Reuters)

Singapore February Bank Lending Up. Total bank lending in Singapore rose 0.4% in February from January, led by loans to manufacturing companies, central bank data showed on Monday. Loans and advances by domestic banking units in the city-state amounted to S$584.5bil (US$464.1 billion) last month, up from S$582.2bil in January, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore. From a year earlier, February bank lending rose 14.6%. Loans and advances in Asian currency units (ACU) increased to S$496.3bil in February from S$488.4 billion in January. (Reuters)

USA

Yellen Says Slack In Job Market Shows Need For Support. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, easing investor concern that interest rates may rise earlier than previously forecast, said the world’s biggest economy will need Fed stimulus for “some time.” Yellen said today the Fed hasn’t done enough to combat unemployment even after holding interest rates near zero for more than five years and pumping up its balance sheet to $4.23 trillion with bond purchases. “This extraordinary commitment is still needed and will be for some time, and I believe that view is widely shared by my fellow policy makers,” Yellen said at a community development conference in Chicago. “The scars from the Great Recession remain, and reaching our goals will take time.” (Bloomberg)

Europe

Eurozone Inflation Falls To 0.5% In March. Inflation in the euro area fell to 0.5% in March, down from 0.7% in February and its lowest rate since November 2009. The Eurostat estimate puts the inflation rate well below the European Central Bank target of just below 2%. The figure is lower than the 0.6% rate expected by analysts. The lower-than-expected rate may reinforce concerns that the 18-nation eurozone risks a damaging period of deflation. Eurostat's March's figure is a "flash" or initial estimate, meaning it could be revised later. However, it is the sixth consecutive month that the rate of inflation has been below 1%. (BBC)

Currencies

Aussie, Kiwi Jump Against Dollar In First Quarter. The Australian dollar gained 4% against the U.S. unit in the first quarter, boosted by sharp gains at the end of March, as market participants weighed comments from Australia’s central bank and a possibility of stimulus in China. The Australian dollar rose to 92.73 U.S. cents from 92.46 U.S. cents late Friday. For the month, the Aussie gained 3.9%. The New Zealand dollar jumped 5.6% against its U.S. counterpart in the first quarter. The ICE dollar index , a measure of the dollar’s strength against six rivals, eased to 80.113 from 80.170 late Friday. The index was up 0.1% for the quarter and 0.4% for the month. The euro rose to $1.3777 from $1.3759 late Friday. For the month, the euro is down 0.2% against the dollar, but has gained 0.2% in the quarter. The British pound rose to $1.6666 versus $1.6647 late Friday, for a quarterly gain of 0.6%. But the pound was down 0.5% on the month. The dollar rose to 103.23 yen from ¥102.82 late Friday. The dollar gained 1.4% in March but was down 2% against the yen in the first quarter. (Market Watch)

Commodities

Crude Futures Slip In Volatile End-Quarter Trading. Crude futures dipped in volatile end-of-quarter trading on Monday, pulled off highs by news Russia was withdrawing some troops on the Ukrainian border and concerns about the struggling U.S. labor market voiced by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen. Brent crude for May delivery fell 31 cents to settle on Monday at $107.76 a barrel, having earlier fallen to $107.05 after reaching $108.33. U.S. May crude fell 9 cents to settle at $101.58 a barrel, after trading from $100.88 to $101.97. (Reuters)

Gold Down For Day; Posts First Monthly Decline In 2014. Gold fell on Monday, notching its first monthly decline this year as improving prospects for the U.S. economy eroded investment interest and aroused an appetite for riskier assets. Spot gold was down 0.7 % at $1,283.81 an ounce by 2:39 p.m. EDT (1839 GMT), having earlier touched $1,282.04, its lowest level since Feb. 11. Among other precious metals, platinum rose 0.6% to $1,411.55 an ounce and palladium gained 0.4% to $772.57 an ounce, as labour strikes continued in top producer South Africa. Silver was unchanged from Friday's close at $19.77 an ounce. (Reuters)