Japan Economics Weekly Immigration door opens a little further The new types of work visas Japan’s government plans to introduce in April will probably result in an even greater inflow of foreign workers over the coming years. That’s a step in the right direction... 2nd November 2018 · 1 min read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly Inflation trouble The slowdown in underlying inflation in the third quarter didn’t come as a shock to the RBA. But the bigger picture is that market forces are still keeping inflation subdued. And with early signs that... 2nd November 2018 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Central bank independence at stake Rising tension between the government and the RBI has dominated headlines this week, and also caused jitters in local markets. This comes as little surprise - after all, at the heart of the matter is... 2nd November 2018 · 1 min read
Australia & New Zealand Data Response Retail Sales (Sep./Q3) The subdued rise in real retail sales in the third quarter means that consumer spending growth probably slowed. While falling petrol prices should provide some relief to households soon, we think that... 2nd November 2018 · 1 min read
India Economics Update Government risks undermining RBI credibility The Indian government is treading on dangerous ground with a number of moves that could put the independence of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) at risk. A loss of credibility for the central bank... 31st October 2018 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Update Downbeat BoJ unlikely to tighten anytime soon The Bank of Japan seems to be getting a little more worried about the impact of prolonged easing on financial stability. However, the looming sales tax hike and the downgrade to the BoJ’s inflation... 31st October 2018 · 1 min read
China Data Response Official PMIs (Oct.) Downbeat official PMI readings for October suggest that while policy support is having some effect on construction activity, it has yet to fully offset broader downward pressure on the rest of the... 31st October 2018 · 1 min read
Australia & New Zealand Data Response Consumer Prices (Q3) The drop in inflation in the third quarter back below the 2-3% target rate won’t frighten the RBA too much, but it does look more like a scary Halloween trick than a treat. We believe the RBA will... 31st October 2018 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Industrial Production (Sep.) The slump in industrial production in September means that Q3 GDP may have fallen by more than we had anticipated. But the recent weakness probably reflects the impact of natural disasters and a... 31st October 2018 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Retail Sales (Sep.) The drop in retail sales in September suggests that consumer spending fell yet again in Q3. That’s one reason why we expect GDP to contract in Q3. 29th October 2018 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Regional banks in the spotlight, Abe in China We still think that the solution to the continued fall in regional banks’ capital ratios is a reduction in the number of lenders rather than an increase in the BoJ’s 10-year yield target. Japan’s... 26th October 2018 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Jump in bank lending growth has further to run Data released this week show that bank lending to the private sector grew at its fastest rate since 2014 in September, and there are good reasons to think that the sustained pick-up since the start of... 26th October 2018 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Korea GDP (Q3) Korea’s economy struggled for momentum in Q3, and we think that this is set to continue – mounting external and domestic headwinds suggest growth is likely to ease back over the coming quarters. 25th October 2018 · 1 min read
