Malaysia’s 10-Year Bonds Advance as Fiscal Deficit Narrows

The yield on Malaysia’s 10-year sovereign bonds fell from the highest level this week after the nation reported the smallest fiscal deficit since 2007.

The budget shortfall narrowed to 3.9 percent of gross domestic product last year from 4.5 percent in 2012, according to the central bank’s quarterly bulletin that cited finance ministry data. The current-account surplus widened to 16.2 billion ringgit ($4.9 billion) in the last three months of 2013, the most in four quarters, according to a government report yesterday. Foreign reserves were at $133.1 billion as of Jan. 30, compared with $101 billion in Indonesia.