Asia Economics Update New Zealand’s central bank in no rush to adjust policy The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) kept its cash rate at 2.5% today, as was widely anticipated. Post-earthquake rebuilding over the next few years will lift local price pressures and so the RBNZ... 28th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Economic growth in Vietnam to slow We have cut our growth forecast for Vietnamese GDP next year to a below-consensus 5%. The cut is due to a combination of persistently high inflation, continued monetary policy tightening, mounting... 27th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update India hikes rates for last time in the cycle While the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) decision to hike its repo rate by a further 25bp today was widely expected, what is more surprising is how explicitly it signalled that this is likely to be the... 26th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update How vulnerable is Indonesia to a global financial crisis? In the event of a global financial crisis stemming from the sovereign debt problems in Europe, there will be major concerns over Indonesia’s exposure to volatile capital flows, its vulnerability to... 25th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Interest rate cuts in the Philippines only a matter of time The central bank in the Philippines (BSP) left its policy rate on hold at 4.5% today, as expected. However, with inflation set to fall over the coming year, economic activity weak and fears... 21st October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank of Thailand to cut next year The Bank of Thailand (BoT) kept its one-day repo rate at 3.5% today, as expected. The BoT’s concerns are rightly shifting from tackling inflation to supporting growth. Most analysts predict that the... 20th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Indian inflation stays high, despite slower growth Wholesale price inflation data for India, released today, suggest the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is likely to go ahead and raise its repo rate by a further 25bp, to 8.5%, at its next rate-setting... 15th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update More policy loosening on the way in Singapore The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) loosened its policy settings today by targeting a slower pace of currency appreciation. Q3 GDP figures, also released today, show that the economy had little... 15th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Korea’s central bank to cut next year The Bank of Korea (BoK) kept its base rate at 3.25% today, as expected. The BoK’s commentary suggests it still expects to resume rate increases once concerns over the outlook for the global economy... 14th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Indonesia changes course on interest rates Bank Indonesia (BI) unexpectedly cut its reference rate by 25bp to 6.5% today. We expect difficult economic conditions in the developed economies and falling inflation in Indonesia to bring more... 12th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Asia manufacturing weakens further September PMIs for Asia released over the past couple of days remained weak. Although Asia is relatively well-placed to withstand weaker global demand, the recent PMIs reinforce our view that Asian... 5th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Australia's central bank considers rate cuts The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) held its cash rate at 4.75% today, as was widely anticipated. But given the shift in the tone of the RBA’s commentary and our recent downgrades to global growth... 5th October 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Asia growth forecasts cut amid weak global outlook Owing to our recent downward revisions to growth in the US and euro-zone in 2011-12 we have cut our forecasts for growth across emerging Asia. However, in a reflection of the region’s healthy... 23rd September 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Reserve Bank of India near the end of policy tightening The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised its repo rate by 25bp to 8.25% today, as anticipated, citing further increases in core inflation. Provided the euro-zone crisis does not escalate dramatically in... 17th September 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update New Zealand rates to remain on prolonged hold The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) left its key interest rate at 2.5% today, as anticipated, citing the deterioration in external conditions and escalation in financial market risks. The RBNZ... 16th September 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Tide starting to turn on interest rates Central banks in Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea and the Philippines all kept their main policy rates on hold today, as expected, reflecting heightened concern over the outlook for the global economy. This... 9th September 2011 · 1 min read
