LONDON Aug 29 (Reuters) – Emerging stocks hit their lowest
levels in nearly four weeks on Wednesday, pressured by a sharp
drop in Chinese shares on fading hopes for monetary easing from
Beijing.
The Hungarian forint hit a one-month low following a rate
cut in the previous session.
Shanghai shares closed 1 percent lower at their
weakest since Feb 2009, as hopes faded for a further cut in
Chinese banks’ reserve requirements any time soon.
China is the largest country component of the MSCI benchmark
emerging equities index, which hit its lowest since
early August.
Markets are also jittery ahead of a key speech by U.S.
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday and are awaiting
details of the European Central Bank’s response to the region’s
debt crisis.
Emerging European currencies fell, with Hungary’s forint
dropping half a percent to a one-month low against the euro
after the Hungarian central bank cut interest rates by
25 basis points on Tuesday, the first easing in more than two
years.
The zloty also dropped 0.7 percent to a one-month
low after Poland’s central bank head said on Tuesday that the
bank may start cutting rates sooner than previously expected.
(Reporting by Carolyn Cohn. Editing by Jeremy Gaunt.)
© Thomson Reuters 2012 All rights reserved
