SINGAPORE, June 10 — Emerging-market stocks and currencies fell for a second day as a rally inspired by bets the U.S. will delay raising interest rates withered amid renewed concern the global economy is slowing.

South Korea’s won led the decline after the central bank unexpectedly cut interest rates yesterday, and said the downside risks to local growth have increased. 

The International Monetary Fund also urged Thailand to ease policy, while the World Bank lowered its 2016 forecast for global expansion.

Oil retreated below US$52 (RM210) a barrel, weighing on the best weekly gain in commodities since late April. 

Philippine stocks rose 1 per cent after falling 2.4 per cent in the final minutes of trading in the previous session.

After the weakest U.S. jobs data in almost six years prompted futures traders to eliminate any odds for a June rate increase by the Federal Open Market Committee, attention is now focusing on next week’s meeting. 

The European Central Bank this week also topped up its ammunition of negative interest rates by embarking on a new program of purchasing corporate bonds ahead of a June 23 referendum that will decide if the U.K. remains in the EU.

“The rally be could be near an end I suspect, so long as the FOMC doesn’t turn too dovish next week,” said Khoon Goh, a senior foreign-exchange strategist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. 

“The weakness this morning is likely due to profit-taking and position adjustment ahead of the weekend. We have had quite a rally in emerging-markets since the weak U.S. payrolls.”

World Bank

The won fell 0.5 per cent to 1,161.65 per dollar as of 11:24 a.m. in Seoul, as the MSCI Emerging Markets Currency Index dropped 0.1 per cent. The gauge is still up 1.5 per cent this week, the best performance in two months. Malaysia’s ringgit and the Indonesian rupiah both declined 0.4 per cent today.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index of stocks retreated 0.3 per cent, paring the week’s advance to 2.2 per cent. Shares in the telecommunications and utilities sectors led the decline on Friday. Brent crude fell 0.1 per cent to US$51.91, but was still trading at levels last seen in October. 

The Bloomberg Commodity Index was down 0.2 per cent, trimming its gain from June 3 to 3 per cent.

The World Bank cut its global growth forecast to 2.4 per cent, from the 2.9 per cent prediction made in January. 

Downside risks have become more pronounced since the start of the year, with a range of challenges looming including deteriorating conditions in commodity-exporting economies, rising private-sector debt in large emerging markets and heightened policy and geopolitical uncertainties, according to the Washington-based development bank.

The Philippines reported on Friday that exports contracted for a 13^th straight month in April, mirroring declines in other Asian markets such as Indonesia and South Korea. 

Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju Yeol said yesterday that while the record-low benchmark rate is getting close to its lower limit, it doesn’t mean there won’t be any more cuts. — Bloomberg