Global

Emerging Markets See First Weekly Inflows since June - IIF. Investors pumped an additional $13.9 billion into emerging markets in October, marking the first monthly inflows since June on expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve will likely delay increasing interest rates until next year. Most of the inflows went to Asia, which received $9 billion, according to data from the Institute of International Finance, a global trade group of financial institutions. The sector's bonds had an additional $7.7 billion worth of cash invested while equities had $6.2 billion in inflows. Much of the investment into emerging markets in October was driven by investor expectations that the U.S. central bank will not raise interest rates this year. (Reuters)

Malaysia

Weak Commodity Prices to Weigh on Malaysia - Fitch. Weak commodity prices will continue to put pressure on Malaysia’s fiscal and broader economic outlook next year, says Fitch Ratings. The international rating agency said some of the detailed assumptions for the country’s Budget 2016 looked optimistic, hence, could potentially pose some downside risk to the government’s projections. Fitch noted that there could be a risk of Malaysia missing its 2016 fiscal deficit target of 3.1% of GDP, even though the Government’s debt level would likely remain stable. Fitch said it would expect Malaysia's federal debt to stay at about 52% of GDP until 2017. (The Star)

Fitch: Optimism In Budget 2016 May Pose Downside Risks. Fitch Ratings is of the view that some of the detailed assumptions in the recently tabled Budget 2016 may look optimistic, thus posing some downside risks to the projections. The ratings agency estimates that a slower growth in GST receipts in line with consumption would add about 0.1% of GDP on to the deficit. "Capital spending could provide a buffer in the event that there is slippage elsewhere in the budget, whether through 'normal' under-execution or deliberate restraint,” said Fitch. "However, this would in turn weigh on broader GDP growth both in 2016 and in the future." (The Edge)

1MDB Has Not Defaulted on Interest, Principal Payments. Strategic development company, 1MDB, has not defaulted on its loan repayments and is fully committed to its obligation to repay its debts of RM42 billion. The move would give more breathing space for the company to effectively implement its rationalisation plan, said President and Group Executive Director, Arul Kanda Kandasamy. 1MDB's fully disclosed audited and publicly available accounts from March 31, 2010 to March 31, 2014 showed that its total debts stood at RM42 billion. Right now, Arul Kanda said 1MDB was focusing on its rationalisation plan which was announced in June. (Bernama)

Malaysia Turning Point Weighed as Worst Asia Bonds Show Strength. Malaysia’s bonds are showing signs of stability, heating up the debate on when to pile back into Asia’s worst-performing debt. Malaysia’s corporate dollar-denominated notes have returned 1.5% this month, paring their losses for the year to 1.7%, the biggest on a JPMorgan Chase & Co. index. The cost of insuring the nation’s sovereign debt has fallen the most in four years in October. S&P kept Malaysia’s sovereign rating at A- in its latest assessment in August, citing the country’s strong external position and considerable monetary flexibility. (Bloomberg)

Asia

Indonesia Plans Tax Shakeup as Widodo Renews Push for Investment. Indonesia plans to cut tax rates next year, the nation’s fiscal policy chief said, as President Joko Widodo intensifies efforts to regain investor confidence in the world’s fourth-most populous nation. The government hasn’t yet decided how much of a reduction it will make in the income and value-added taxes next year, Suahasil Nazara, head of fiscal policy at the finance ministry, said on Monday. Plans to lower the levies are being developed even as slowing economic growth curbs tax revenue, which Nazara said will probably fall 150 trillion rupiah ($11 billion) short of target in 2015. (Bloomberg)

Singapore's Economy to See Modest Growth in 2015, 2016 - MAS. Despite the softening global economy, Singapore's economy is expected to see growth of 2.0%-2.5% in 2015, with risks tilted to the downside, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). In its half-yearly macroeconomic review released on Tuesday, MAS said a similar growth outcome is anticipated for 2016. Looking further ahead, as Singapore progresses into the next phase of economic restructuring, the central bank said growth will have to be driven by productivity gains that are underpinned by knowledge and skill upgrades. (Bernama)

Thai government approves $1.1 billion of measures to help rice farmers. Thailand's cabinet approved measures worth about 40 billion baht ($1.13 billion) to help rice farmers, a government spokesman said on Tuesday. The government gave the green light to three measures to help rice farmers prepare for the next harvest, including credits and an interest rate reduction for farmers, Sansern Kaewkamnerd, a government spokesman, said. (Reuters)

South Korea says consumption to keep improving in Q4. South Korea's finance ministry said on Tuesday that domestic consumption should continue to improve in the fourth quarter due to government measures, but exports were likely to remain weak. "Exports are expected to continue suffering on falling oil prices and the slowing increase of global demand, including China," the ministry said in a statement. (Reuters)

USA

Orders for US Durable Goods Down 1.2% in September. Orders for long-lasting manufactured goods fell in September, with a key category that tracks business investment plans declining for a second straight month. Orders for durable goods dropped 1.2% September, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. That follows a 3% drop in August, an even bigger downturn than first reported. Orders in a category that serves as a proxy for business investment fell 0.3% after a 1.6% drop in August. Durable goods orders have been down in four of the past six months, a sign of the problems facing manufacturers as they struggle with economic weakness in key export markets like China. (AP)

Markit Services PMI Unexpectedly Falls in October. U.S. service-sector activity in October grew at the slowest clip this year as new growth and spending slowed, according to data released Tuesday. The Markit Economics services PMI fell to 54.4 this month from a final reading of 55.1 in September. In August, the indicator stood at 56.1. Economists surveyed expected the index to edge up to 55.5. While the October Markit services reading marks the 24th straight month of growth for the sector, output growth moderated to a nine-month low. Service providers still remain upbeat about their prospects over the next 12 months, according to Markit. (Dow Jones)

US Consumer Confidence Slips in October. Americans turned slightly more anxious about the job market this month. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index fell to 97.6 in October, down from a nine-month high of 102.6 in September. Fewer people surveyed for the business research group described jobs as "plentiful" compared to September, with that measure slipping to 22.2% from 24.8%. Global pressures have shifted more of the burden for economic growth onto U.S. consumers - an uneasy transition in recent months. Auto sales, home-buying and spending at restaurants have advanced. But continued gains will hinge in part on steady job gains. (AP)

Europe

U.K. Economy Expands Less Than Forecast as Production Cools. U.K. economic growth cooled as manufacturing contracted for a third quarter and construction shrank the most since 2012, a sign that Britain may be falling prey to global headwinds. The slowdown to 0.5% in the three months through September from 0.7% was sharper than economists had forecast. The Office for National Statistics said construction shrank 2.2% in the quarter and manufacturing contracted 0.3%, while overall production growth cooled to 0.3% from 0.7% Compared with a year earlier, U.K. GDP expanded 2.3% in the third quarter, compared with 2.4% in the second. (Bloomberg)

Greece Needs to Recapitalize its Banks by Year End: Dombrovskis. Greece needs to have its biggest lenders recapitalized by the end of the year, EU Commission Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis said on Tuesday. Dombrovskis is in Athens for talks on reforms Greece needs to complete before a review which would unlock new aid for the country under an 86 billion euro bailout. Under the deal, Greece is set to receive up to 25 billion euros of international money to recapitalize its banks. The European Central Bank's Single Supervisory Mechanism is currently assessing the capital needs of National Bank of Greece, Piraeus, Alpha Bank and Eurobank. (Reuters)

EU Accelerates U.S. Talks to Clinch New Trans-Atlantic Data Pact. The European Union stepped up the pace of talks with the U.S. toward a new trans-Atlantic data agreement after the EU’s top court said an earlier pact allowed mass access by U.S. spies on European citizens’ private details. “We have immediately resumed discussions with our American counterparts and already had several meetings at technical level,” EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourova told EU lawmakers. “These discussions are not easy, but I am confident that by mid-November, we should already have seen progress,” Jourova said. (Bloomberg)

Currencies

Dollar Edges up as Fed Statement Looms. The dollar rose slightly Wednesday against a basket of currencies as weak U.S. data and a wait-and-see approach to the Federal Reserve's Wednesday policy announcement buoyed the greenback. In late trading, the dollar index was up 0.08% at 96.948, rebounding from an earlier low of 96.583. Globally, oil-linked currencies suffered as oil prices fell for a third straight day on fears that an oversupply would bog down crude prices and hurt oil exporters such as Norway and Russia. The Norwegian crown lost 1.65% at 8.4623 crown per dollar, and the Russian currency fell more than 3% to 64.9475 rouble to the dollar. (Reuters)

Commodities

Oil Falls to Multi-Week Lows on Persistent Supply Glut. Oil prices fell a third straight session to multi-week lows on Tuesday on the persistent global supply glut ahead of data expected to show another increase in U.S. crude inventories. Futures felt pressure from expectations that U.S. crude inventories rose 3.4 million barrels last week, a fifth consecutive build after gaining 22 million barrels in a four-week span. Brent futures fell $0.73 to settle at $46.81 a barrel. The settlement and the $46.41 session low were the lowest since September 15. U.S. crude fell $0.78 to settle at $43.20, lowest settlement since August 27. (Reuters)

Gold Rises Quietly Above $1,160/Oz as Fed Meeting Starts. Gold edged up on Tuesday as the beginning of a two-day Federal Reserve meeting had investors turning cautious, and moves were muted as buyers awaited clues on the timing of a possible U.S. interest rate hike. Spot gold was up 0.3% at $1,165.90 an ounce at 1913 GMT, while U.S. gold futures for December delivery settled down 0.03% at $1,165.80 an ounce. Silver was flat at $15.83 an ounce, while platinum was down 0.9% at $984.25 an ounce and palladium was down 0.2% at $677.75 an ounce. (Reuters)

U.S. Natural Gas Falls below $2 for First Time in Three Years. U.S. natural gas traded below $2 per million British thermal units on Tuesday for the first time since April 2012 as a glut of the power-plant and heating fuel expands toward a record. Unusually warm weather for this time of year is threatening to crimp gas demand. Drillers are using hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling that stockpiles of the fuel are on track to reach a record 3.956 trillion cubic feet this month, based on a U.S. Energy Information Administration forecast. Gas for November delivery slid to $1.997 per million Btu on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the lowest intraday price since April 26, 2012. (Bloomberg)

Algeria Backs Venezuela on OPEC, Non-OPEC Summit to Boost Prices. Algeria supports Venezuela’s call for a summit among heads of state from OPEC and other oil-exporting nations in a bid to lift crude prices, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra said. Venezuela has proposed that heads of state from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and other oil producers meet in November to discuss the price needed to sustain investments in future supplies. The country’s Oil Minister Eulogio del Pino said Venezuela seeks to set an “equilibrium price” of about $88 a barrel. Algeria and Venezuela are among the OPEC states most affected by the 44% slump in oil over the past year. (Bloomberg)