Asia Round Up - India’s Inflation at Series High, 14-Year High In Philippines
(RTTNews) - Friday, strong numbers on the inflation front were in focus as the week came to a close. India’s inflation touched a series high, while in the Philippines, it rose to 14-year high. In other news, the leading index for Japan unexpectedly declined in May.
India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a report that the wholesale price index weekly inflation rose to 11.63% for the week ended June 21 from 11.42% in the previous week. The current rate is the highest since the series began in 1995. Official data showed that higher prices of food and commodity pushed the rate higher.
The Reserve Bank of India said in its weekly statistical supplement that official foreign reserves as on June 27 accounted for US$311.79 billion, down from $312.48 billion in the previous week.
In Malaysia, the Department of Statistics reported that trade surplus surged 95.5% year-on-year to RM15.6 billion in May. This is the 127th consecutive month of trade surplus since November 1997. Exports rose 22% year-on-year to RM60.6 billion. On the other hand, imports increased 7.9% to RM44.99 billion.
Inflation in the Philippines jumped to an annual rate of 11.4% in June. The rate was the highest in 14 years, pushed higher by record high prices for oil and food. The annualized rate for May was upwardly revised to 9.5%.
According to a preliminary report from the Cabinet Office, Japan’s leading index declined slightly to 92.6 in May from 92.8 in April. Economists had expected a reading of 93. Meanwhile, the coincident index climbed to 103.4 from 101.7 in April, slightly below the consensus forecast of 103.4.
Elsewhere, the Japan Automobile Importers Association said sales of foreign-made motor vehicles in the country declined 15.1% in June compared to one year earlier. The group said sales of imported cars, trucks and buses totaled 20,725 in June, compared to 24,406 from June 2007. Overall imported auto sales, including domestic sales of vehicles produced overseas by Japanese companies, were lower by 20.8%.
The Bank of Thailand reported that the nation’s international reserves for the week ended June 27 rose to US$106.01 billion from US$105.5 billion recorded in the prior week.
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