Taiwan Dollar and Malaysian Ringgit Fell
Ups and Downs: Asian Currencies Traded with a Weakening Bias
Taiwan dollar fell
Asian currencies were trading on a weak note on February 5, 2016, against the US dollar amid a slew of data releases in the region. The US Dollar Index also ended on the higher side at the end of the day. The inflation rate in Taiwan increased to 0.81% on an annual basis in January—the highest level since November 2014 compared to 0.14% in the previous month. It beat estimates of a 0.72% price rise. On a monthly basis, Taiwanese inflation reduced by 0.56% in January—compared to a fall of 0.2% in the previous month. The US dollar-Taiwan dollar currency pair increased by 0.74% at the end of the day.
Malaysian ringgit fell as export-import trade slid
Malaysian exports in January grew by a slower pace of 1.4% in December on an annual basis compared to the previous month’s growth of 6.3%. It was below estimates of a 5% rise. Imports also saw sluggish growth. They rose by 3.2% in December against a rise of 9.1% in November and expectations of a 4.3% increase. The US dollar-Malaysian ringgit currency pair increased by 0.28% at the end of the day.
Impact on the market
Looking at the performance of ETFs on February 5, 2016, the iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF (EWT) ended on a lower note by 1.6%. It was in sync with the Taiwan dollar. The iShares MSCI Malaysia ETF (EWM) fell by 2.1% on the day.
Looking at Taiwanese ADRs (American depositary receipts), Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASX) was trading 2.2% lower. On the other hand, United Microelectronics (UMC) was trading 0.50% higher. AU Optronics (AUO) ended on a negative trajectory by 0.39%.
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