India Economics Update Trade shows resilience amid virus restrictions Goods trade data for April add to evidence from elsewhere that that the new round of virus restrictions has not been as economically disruptive as the national lockdown last year. 17th May 2021 · 2 mins read
Asia Data Response Thailand GDP (Q1) Thailand’s GDP inched up in Q1, despite a renewed outbreak of the virus. But output is unlikely to hold up this quarter. We expect the economy to shrink sharply as a further surge in new COVID-19... 17th May 2021 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Singapore lockdown, improvement in Korea Singapore has announced several tough new measures to contain a sudden jump in COVID-19 infections. The restrictions will cause economic activity to drop in the near term, but the falls should be... 14th May 2021 · 5 mins read
India Economics Weekly Slowdown in vaccine rollout casts a dark cloud New virus cases in India remain extremely high, but there have at least been some encouraging signs this week that the current wave is close to peaking. However, lacklustre progress with the... 14th May 2021 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Update Philippines: rate cuts likely in H2 The central bank in the Philippines (BSP) left its main policy rate on hold at 2.00% today, and while a temporary rise in inflation means interest rates are set to remain unchanged for the next few... 12th May 2021 · 3 mins read
China Economics Update China’s census: the good, the bad and the ugly After a month-long delay, the key results from China’s once-a-decade census were published today. They weren’t as bad earlier media reports had suggested – the population continued to rise at much the... 11th May 2021 · 4 mins read
Asia Data Response Malaysia GDP (Q1) Malaysia's economy saw an export-driven rebound of 2.7% q/q in Q1, despite a partial lockdown midway through the quarter. But a resurgence in virus cases and the recent reimposition of containment... 11th May 2021 · 3 mins read
Asia Data Response Philippines GDP (Q1) The Philippines economy barely improved in Q1 and the reimposition of strict containment measures is likely to see output shrink this quarter. 11th May 2021 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Forecast cut in Thailand, spill-overs from India The outlook for Thailand’s economy has gone from bad to worse, with a sudden jump in COVID-19 cases leading to the introduction of new virus restrictions. We are cutting our forecast for Thai GDP... 7th May 2021 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Update Bank Negara Malaysia set to remain on hold The fact that Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) left its policy rate on hold at 1.75% today despite the worsening economic outlook means any further loosening is unlikely. But with the recovery set to be... 6th May 2021 · 3 mins read
Asia Data Response Indonesia GDP (Q1) Indonesia’s economy struggled to gain any momentum in the first quarter of the year and a failure to contain the virus will hold back the recovery in the quarters ahead. 5th May 2021 · 3 mins read
India Economics Update State election results fail to move the needle Results of the state elections that have been taking place over the past couple of months are unlikely to have undermined the BJP’s willingness to implement difficult economic reforms, particularly... 3rd May 2021 · 3 mins read
Asia Data Response Korea Trade (Apr.) Korean export values were well above pre-pandemic levels in April, and with semiconductor demand set to remain elevated, at least in the short term, exports are likely to stay strong. 3rd May 2021 · 2 mins read
Asia Data Response Manufacturing PMIs (Apr.) The April PMI readings suggest that manufacturing improved further in most places in Asia after a strong Q1. Global demand for electronics should continue to support the sector over the next few... 3rd May 2021 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Weak consumption holding back recovery in Korea Korea’s Q1 GDP data showed that while output surpassed its pre-pandemic level last quarter, private consumption remained depressed. With COVID-19 infections still running at around 650 a day, consumer... 30th April 2021 · 7 mins read
Emerging Markets Economic Outlook New virus waves to drag on the recovery The surge in virus cases across large parts of the emerging world and the slow pace of vaccine rollout mean that the headwinds facing the EM recovery are building. EM currencies are likely to see... 28th April 2021 · 25 mins read
