Asia Economics Update Malaysian central bank is playing a waiting game Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) left its policy rate unchanged at 3% today, as expected. There have been signs of a slowdown in the economy in early 2012, and low inflation gives BNM room to cut. We still... 11th May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank of Korea inflation worries to dissipate The Bank of Korea (BoK) kept its policy rate at 3.25% today, as expected. Given that inflation is in retreat and concerns for the global economy are on the rise, we think the BoK’s stance will soon... 10th May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Australia on course for a budget surplus in 2012-13 Australia’s government retained its target of returning to a small budget surplus in 2012-13 in today’s federal budget. Solid economic growth and public spending restraint should help the government... 8th May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Strong GDP growth in Indonesia, but will it last? Indonesia recorded another quarter of strong economic growth in Q1, with the economy slowing only slightly compared with the previous quarter. Even after allowing for the likelihood of weak global... 7th May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Is expropriation a risk in Asia? Recent developments in Latin America have raised concerns in some quarters that the region could be set for another wave of nationalisations. The level of protection offered to foreign investors is... 7th May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank of Thailand in no rush to change policy stance The Bank of Thailand (BoT) kept its policy rate at 3.0% today, as was widely expected. The economy looks to have grown strongly in Q1, following floods that brought a slump in GDP late last year... 2nd May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update April PMIs suggest Asia’s industrial recovery is losing steam April PMIs for Asia were generally disappointing, and in Australia in particular the index was outright alarming. The weak numbers reinforce our belief that the region’s industrial sector is set for a... 2nd May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update What is the likely impact of Malaysia’s minimum wage? The Malaysian government used Labour Day to announce the introduction of the country’s first minimum wage. The policy should help to reduce poverty, but it will also squeeze businesses’ profit margins... 1st May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update More policy loosening to come in Australia The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cut its cash rate by a larger-than-expected 50bp to 3.75% today. We continue to expect conditions outside of the resources sector to be sluggish, as the currency... 1st May 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Export improvement brings fragile recovery Emerging Asia’s economies fared better in Q1 than Q4. Both Singapore and Taiwan returned to quarterly growth, while Korea’s economy grew at a faster q/q rate. Business and consumer surveys show an... 30th April 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Where next for the Vietnamese dong? After a large devaluation early last year, the Vietnamese dong has been stable against the US dollar for the past 15 months. The fall in the trade deficit and easing inflation mean the currency is... 30th April 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Taiwan creeps out of recession Taiwan’s economy returned to growth in Q1, after two consecutive quarters of falling output at the end of last year. Nevertheless, growth remained lacklustre and given the economy’s export dependence... 30th April 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Chinese tourism bonanza for Asia The past 15 years has seen a surge in the number of mainland Chinese travelling overseas. Although Chinese tourists are becoming increasingly adventurous and travelling further afield, the vast... 30th April 2012 · 1 min read
Global Markets Outlook Search for safe havens set to resume We think tougher times lie ahead for risky assets. Enthusiasm for equities is likely to be curbed by a turn in the US profit cycle, an absence of additional unconventional monetary stimulus from the... 26th April 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Korea faces sub-trend growth this year and next Today’s GDP data from Korea show that quarterly growth picked up in Q1. Nonetheless, the economy has expanded at a sub-trend pace over the past year and growth is unlikely to pick up strongly amid... 26th April 2012 · 1 min read
Global Economic Outlook US recovery, European recession We expect world GDP to grow by around 3% both this year and next. The US economy is set to recover steadily but the euro-zone recession will deepen, causing the sovereign debt crisis to flare up again... 24th April 2012 · 1 min read
