Asia Economics Update Philippines election to bring long run market gains The new counting system was up to the job and the presidential election in the Philippines has produced a clear winner. The new government will target fiscal consolidation and measures to lift... 12th May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Australia targets a quick return to surplus Today’s Federal Budget in Australia was a low-key affair even in the context of an imminent general election which will be a close contest. The aim of moving back to a fiscal surplus by 2012-13, some... 11th May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Indonesia’s upswing to thrive despite stimulus withdrawal Indonesia’s Q1 GDP growth accelerated to 5.7% y/y and all the key indicators point to a further pickup in coming quarters, with domestic private sector demand leading the way. Monetary tightening will... 10th May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Philippine markets likely to rally after the election There is some uncertainty over whether the new counting system is up to the job but the 10th May presidential election in the Philippines should bring a clear-cut result. The new government will... 6th May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Indonesia to delay rate hikes further Bank Indonesia (BI) left rates at 6.50% today, as expected. The upswing will stay strong but the high level of the rupiah is helping to keep inflation pressures contained. We now expect the first rate... 5th May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Australia rates to move still higher The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) lifted its cash rate to 4.50% today, as expected. Policy rates should move from neutral to being restrictive over the next 12 months, although rate hikes from now... 4th May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Asian PMIs point to continued good growth The April manufacturing PMIs for emerging Asia (ex-China) were a mixed bunch and the "V-shaped" phase of the regional economic upswing has now largely worked through. But exports and industry should... 3rd May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank of Thailand still looks set to tighten soon Thailand data published over the last few days have been strong, with exports leading the way. The political situation remains volatile but we continue to expect that an agreement to hold new... 3rd May 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update New Zealand set to hike policy rates soon The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) held its cash rate at 2.50% overnight, as expected. In its guidance on future moves, the RBNZ stated that it would tighten in “coming months”, which means either... 29th April 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Vietnam still likely to raise rates again soon The central bank of Vietnam (SBV) today announced that its key policy rate will stay unchanged at 8.0% during May. Staying on hold was expected given that the authorities in Q1 engineered a sharper... 27th April 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Fiscal frontloading lifts Korean growth Korea’s GDP accelerated in Q1 and growth is set to stay high in Q2. Inflation pressures should rise during the course of the year and the risk is that the Bank of Korea continues to move slowly and... 27th April 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Philippines monetary tightening to shift gears soon The Philippines central bank (BSP) left its key policy rate unchanged at 4.00%, as expected, but a first rate hike is now close. We expect a move at the next meeting on 3rd June once the 10th May... 22nd April 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Thai rates will still probably move up by mid-year The Bank of Thailand (BoT) left its policy rate unchanged at 1.25% today, as was universally expected. The economy warrants higher rates but the political situation needs to calm first. We are not as... 21st April 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Australia policy tightening to become restrictive in 2011 The minutes for the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) April meeting, released today, have underlined yet again that the outlook for the economy is very good. The cash rate is virtually certain to move... 20th April 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update India’s Reserve Bank still has much to do India raised its two policy interest rates by 25bp earlier today, which was in line with the consensus view but was less than our forecast of a 50bp hike. Nevertheless, we continue to believe that the... 20th April 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Pakistan’s IMF programme appears back on track Reports over the weekend suggest that Pakistan and the IMF have patched up their differences. Renewed funding under the Standby Agreement will help to sustain the economic upswing but inflation looks... 19th April 2010 · 1 min read
