China Economics Update The PBOC disappoints again Despite calling on banks to nudge down borrowing costs, the PBOC stopped short of requiring that they lower the Loan Prime Rate (LPR) benchmarks this month. For now, policymakers are mostly relying on... 20th April 2022 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Update Bank Indonesia to tighten gradually Bank Indonesia left its main policy rate unchanged at 3.5% at its meeting today, and the relatively benign outlook for inflation means the tightening cycle is likely to be very gradual. 19th April 2022 · 3 mins read
Japan Chart Pack Reopening could be a damp squib With all domestic restrictions gone and the booster rollout further severing the link between cases and deaths, the conditions for a reopening bounce are in place. Moreover, consumers have ample room... 19th April 2022 · 10 mins read
China Data Response China GDP (Q1), Activity & Spending (Mar.) Official GDP growth beat expectations last quarter but it still slowed in q/q terms. In practice, the figures probably understate the slowdown. And growth looks set to be even weaker in Q2 given the... 18th April 2022 · 3 mins read
China Economics Update RRR cut alone will do little to boost credit growth The People’s Bank (PBOC) has just announced a cut to the reserve requirement ratio (RRR). This will help nudge down bank lending rates. But in order to make much difference to credit growth it needs... 15th April 2022 · 4 mins read
China Economics Update PBOC shows surprising restraint amid downturn The People’s Bank (PBOC) forwent the opportunity to lower its policy rates today. That’s somewhat surprising given the sharp economic downturn and recent calls from China’s leadership for monetary... 15th April 2022 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly What next for Pakistan and Sri Lanka? Recent tumultuous events in Pakistan and Sri Lanka should eventually pave the way for IMF deals in both countries, which over time may lead to the return of economic stability. However, this is by no... 14th April 2022 · 5 mins read
Emerging Markets Economics Update Emerging Markets Capital Flows Monitor The war in Ukraine and the start of the US Fed’s hiking cycle have exposed macro imbalances in some frontier economies, but do not appear to have had a significant impact on capital flows into many of... 14th April 2022 · 2 mins read
India Economics Weekly Inflation surge sets stage for June rate hike We’ve been arguing for several months that both the consensus and the RBI have been underestimating the upside threats to inflation. Consumer price data for March released this week have reinforced... 14th April 2022 · 4 mins read
China Economics Weekly Logistics under pressure but virus situation improving China’s economy is still reeling from the impact of COVID-19 restrictions. Although the hit remains most severe in services, disruption to trucking has added pressure to industrial supply chains in... 14th April 2022 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Update BoK resumes tightening cycle, more hikes to come. Today’s decision by the Bank of Korea (BoK) to hike its policy rate by 25bp to 1.50% is unlikely to mark the end of its tightening cycle given the strength of inflationary pressures. We expect at... 14th April 2022 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Coal, cautious consumers, the BoJ starts to relax Japan’s ban on Russian coal is unlikely to lift domestic energy prices much given that coal import prices closely track the Newcastle spot price which have fallen sharply over the past month. A bigger... 14th April 2022 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Update MAS tightening and strong economy will support SGD The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) tightened monetary policy again at its meeting today. With growth set to remain strong and core inflation likely to stay elevated, we expect the MAS to... 14th April 2022 · 3 mins read
India Economics Update Trade deficit to resume widening before long The narrowing in India’s goods trade deficit in March was due in large part to a sharp drop in gold imports. Even if gold imports remain low, we still expect the trade and current account deficits to... 13th April 2022 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Update Five questions (and answers) on Pakistan’s crisis We held a Drop-In on the political and economic problems facing Pakistan earlier today (see an on-demand recording here). This Update answers some of the most common questions that we received. 13th April 2022 · 5 mins read
Commodities Update China commodity imports pointing to weaker demand The latest trade data out of China suggest that recent restrictions imposed to contain the surge in new cases of COVID-19 are hitting commodity demand hard. And we think it will remain weak in the... 13th April 2022 · 2 mins read
