Malaysia

· Record RM235.9 Billion in Approved Investments in 2014. Malaysia flexed its investment muscles to chart a new record RM235.9 billion in approved investments last year against a challenging global environment. And International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said private investments again surpassed the RM148 billion average annual target set under the Tenth Malaysia Plan with a record RM181.45 billion in 2014. “The record investments will fund 5,942 approved projects and are expected to create 178,365 new jobs,” he said when releasing details of the annual investment performance by the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA). Domestic investments contributed to a large chunk of investments versus foreign sources, with 72.6% of the total. The services sector remains the biggest magnet for investments, attracting a total of 5,059 approved projects in 2014 with investments amounting to RM149.6 billion, and they are expected to create 98,543 job opportunities. The manufacturing sector proved no less attractive to investors in 2014 as approved investments surged by 38% to RM71.9 billion. (New Straits Times)

Asia

· South Korea Q4 Household Mortgage Loan Growth Hits Record High. Mortgage loans owed by South Korean households rose 10.2% by the end of December over a year earlier, marking the fastest growth since records began in late 2008, central bank data showed on Thursday. Mortgage loans at households rose to 460.60 trillion won ($419.5 billion) by the end of December from 418.12 trillion won a year before and gained 3.5% from 445.16 trillion won three months earlier, the Bank of Korea data showed. The quarterly growth was also the fastest on record. Robust growth in mortgage loans underscores a recovering property market but at the same time adds to concerns about the risks from heavy household debt to Asia's fourth-largest economy. (Reuters)

· Five Chinese City, Rural Banks Get Approval for RRR Cuts. Five Chinese city and rural commercial banks have been approved by the central bank to cut their reserve requirement ratio (RRR) by an extra 50 basis points as part of sweeping RRR cuts announced early this month, an official newspaper said on Thursday. The People's Bank of China made a system-wide cut to bank reserve requirements on Feb. 5, the first time it has done so in over two years, to unleash a fresh flood of liquidity to fight off economic slowdown and looming deflation. The central bank simultaneously announced that it would cut RRR by an additional 50 basis points for qualified urban and rural banks, if they applied for further reductions. Bank of Beijing Co Ltd and Shengjing Bank Co Ltd said in separate statements they had received approvals for the additional cuts. (Reuters)

USA

· Consumer Prices Plunge 0.7% on Cheaper Fuel Costs. A plunge in gasoline prices last month lowered consumer prices by the most in six years. But excluding the volatile food and energy costs, prices rose. The consumer price index fell 0.7% in January, the sharpest drop since December 2008, the Labor Department said Thursday. Tumbling prices at the pump drove nearly all of the decline. Core prices, which exclude food and energy, rose 0.2%. Despite the sharp drop in the overall index, economists see signs that many prices are moving higher. The cost of services, such as hotels, restaurant food and rents, all rose last month, lifting core prices. Higher prices domestically are offsetting cheaper oil and a strong dollar, which is lowering import prices. Overall consumer prices have slipped 0.1% over the past 12 months. It is the first year-over-year drop in five years. And over the past year, core prices have risen just 1.6%. (AP)

· Applications for US Jobless Aid Rises to 313,000. More Americans sought unemployment aid last week, though the number of applications was still consistent with steady hiring. The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly applications rose 31,000 to a seasonally adjusted 313,000, the most in six weeks. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, increased 11,500 to 294,500. Applications are a proxy for layoffs. The average has been near or below 300,000 since September, a historically low number that suggests companies are holding onto their staffs and may even be stepping up hiring. "Despite larger-than-expected weekly swings, the trend in claims remains consistent with an improving labor market," Derek Lindsey, an economist at BNP Paribas, said in a note to clients. (AP)

Europe

· German Unemployment Hits Lowest Level since Dec 1991. German unemployment fell to its lowest level in more than two decades in February and consumer morale hit a more than 13-year high, boosting expectations that private consumption will help drive growth in Europe's largest economy this year. Data from the Labour Office showed the number of people out of work in Germany decreased by 20,000 on a seasonally-adjusted basis to 2.812 million - the lowest since December 1991, just over a year after German reunification. It fell further than forecast - a drop of 10,000 had been expected according to a Reuters poll. The jobless rate stayed at a record low of 6.5% for a third straight month in February. (Reuters)

· German Consumer Morale Hits Highest Level In More Than 13 Years. German consumer sentiment jumped to its highest level in more than 13 years heading into March as low oil prices benefited households, freeing up cash for them to spend on other things. GfK market research group said its consumer sentiment indicator, based on a survey of 2,000 Germans, rose to 9.7 points from 9.3 a month ago. That was the highest reading since Oct. 2001 and topped the Reuters consensus forecast of 9.5 points. Private consumption has overtaken exports as Germany's main engine of growth and may keep boosting the economy after the country's biggest labor union, IG Metall, clinched a 3.4 percent rise in wages for 3.7 million workers. (Reuters)

· Italian Business And Consumer Morale Rise Sharply In February. Morale among Italian businesses and consumers rose sharply in February, raising the prospects of recovery for the country's stagnant economy, data showed on Thursday. National statistics institute ISTAT's manufacturing confidence index increased to 99.1 in February from an upwardly revised 97.6 in January. That was the highest level since July last year and well above the median forecast of 98.0 in a Reuters survey of 15 analysts. ISTAT's composite business morale index, combining surveys of the manufacturing, retail, construction and services sectors, rose for the second month running in February to 94.9 from 91.6, reaching the highest level since June 2011. Consumer confidence jumped even more strongly to 110.9 from an upwardly revised 104.4 in January, far above all forecasts in a Reuters survey of 14 analysts which pointed to a rise to 104.5. The level of consumer morale in February was the highest since June 2002, ISTAT said. (Reuters)

· Eurozone Lending Shows Sign of Turnaround as Morale Improves. Bank lending in the euro zone fell slightly in January but at a slower pace than a month earlier, suggesting the economy may be turning a corner as consumer morale picks up in the bloc's largest economies. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said late on Wednesday that "all in all, the outlook is more positive than it was a few months ago" in the 19-country euro zone, which has been blighted by recession in the south and falling prices. Sparse lending to firms continues to dog the economy, but data released by the ECB on Thursday showed the overall level of lending to households and firms in the euro zone fell by 0.1% in January from a year earlier, after a 0.5% drop in December. Lending has not risen since July 2012 (Reuters)

 · UK Business Investment Slips as Oil Prices Fall, Trade Boosts GDP. British business investment fell at its sharpest rate in nearly six years late last year, after tumbling global oil prices hit the North Sea petroleum industry, but stronger exports helped make economic growth a bit more balanced. Gross domestic product between October and December grew by a quarterly 0.5%, data showed, confirming a preliminary reading. That was the slowest growth rate in a year, although there have been signs the economy started 2015 more strongly. Economists said the second consecutive quarterly fall in business investment raised questions about the recovery. The 1.4% drop in business investment was the biggest since mid-2009. Economists had expected it to rise slightly. (Reuters)

Currencies

· Dollar Reaches One-Month High on U.S. Data, Fed Officials' Remarks. The dollar rose to a one-month high against a basket of currencies on Thursday as data on U.S. inflation and business orders revived confidence in the world's biggest economy and supported bets the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in the middle of the year. The dollar's rise followed back-to-back days of declines stemming from perceived dovish signals from Fed Chair Janet Yellen in her semiannual testimony before Congress. The dollar index climbed to one-month highs, and last traded up 1.1% at 95.269. It was within striking distance of 11 year-plus year highs set on Jan 23 a day after the European Central Bank embarked on a massive bond purchase program. The euro tumbled 1.4% against the greenback, to a one-month low at $1.1184 on the EBS trading system. It was less than a cent away from an 11-year low in late January. It slipped to three-week lows versus the yen, last down 0.9% at 133.715 yen. The dollar gained nearly 0.4% against the yen to 119.385 yen in late trading. (Reuters)

Commodities

· Oil Retreats as Rising U.S. Inventories Continue to Weigh. Crude oil futures fell sharply on Thursday as rising inventories in the United States pressured both Brent and U.S. contracts and countered expectations for recovering demand. While Brent losses were tempered by those expectations for improving global demand and geopolitical concerns about energy supplies from Libya and Russia, U.S. crude losses more than wiped out Wednesday's gains. Brent April crude fell $1.58, or 2.56%, to settle at $60.05 a barrel, off a $62.63 intraday peak. On Wednesday, Brent surged 5%. U.S. April crude fell $2.82, or 5.53%, to settle at $48.17, after rallying 3.47% on Wednesday. Brent's premium to U.S. crude on Thursday increased to $12.06, the widest spread since January 2014. (Reuters)

· Gold Pares Gains after Firm U.S. data but Remains Higher. Gold pared gains on Thursday after stronger-than-expected U.S. data lifted the dollar and impetus from Chinese buying petered out, but it remained higher after the Federal Reserve indicated this week that it was in no rush to raise interest rates. Spot gold was up 0.3% at $1,208 an ounce by 2:56 p.m. EST (1956 GMT). Earlier it hit a session high of $1,220.00 above the 100-day moving average at $1,216.20, before retreating as the dollar firmed. Other precious metals also advanced, with spot palladium rising to its highest since Jan. 14 at $815.35 an ounce. Silver was up 0.1% at $16.57 an ounce. Spot platinum was up 0.5% at $1,173.30 an ounce. (Reuters)