Asia Chart Pack Sri Lanka faces tight election contest Sri Lanka’s presidential election, scheduled for 8 th January, is shaping up to be much closer than expected, with the current president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, now facing a genuine challenge from... 24th December 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Rough end to the year for Asian markets Emerging Asia’s financial markets have not escaped the latest turmoil unscathed, but they have fared better than other EM regions. 18th December 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Indonesia CPI (Nov.) Consumer price inflation in Indonesia rose sharply in November on the back of the recent hike in subsidised fuel prices. Inflation is likely to rise again in December and then remain elevated until... 1st December 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Limited impact from Chinese rate cut Financial markets in Emerging Asia have on the whole had a fairly quiet month despite the recent Chinese rate cut and the expansion of the Bank of Japan’s programme of quantitative easing. 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Retail spending picks up, but recovery uneven There has been a gradual recovery in retail spending in Emerging Asia during 2014. The top performing countries are Indonesia and Malaysia, where retail sales are expanding at a double digit pace. In... 26th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Where next for interest rates in Indonesia? Today’s 25 basis point rate hike by Bank Indonesia (BI) is a direct response to yesterday’s government decision to hike subsidised fuel prices. While we wouldn’t rule out the possibility of another... 18th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Rate hikes in Indonesia unlikely despite subsidy cuts Today’s move by Indonesia’s new president to hike fuel prices is an encouraging first step on the road to reform. Although inflation is now likely to rise sharply, any spike should prove temporary... 17th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank Indonesia to keep rates on hold well into 2015 Bank Indonesia (BI) left interest rates on hold again today despite the ongoing weakness of the economy. A large current account deficit and an uncertain outlook for inflation mean rates are likely to... 13th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Indonesia GDP (Q3) Today’s GDP data for the third quarter showed that another fall in exports and a further slowdown in investment growth were the main factors behind Indonesia's economy expanding at its slowest pace in... 5th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update PMIs weaken in most of Asia The October PMIs for Emerging Asia offered no signs that the region's disappointing manufacturing recovery is gaining any momentum. The most encouraging aspect of today's surveys was that they pointed... 3rd November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly How much slack is left in the NIEs? There are indications that the amount of spare capacity in the Newly Industrialised Economies (NIEs: Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and Korea) is starting to be used up. As a result, while there is... 31st October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Minimal impact from the end of QE3 Asia's financial markets have so far taken the end of QE3 largely in their stride. The performance of the region's currencies and equity markets has been fairly muted over the past month, while... 31st October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack No sign of improvement Economic growth in Emerging Asia is showing no sign of improvement. Our GDP tracker is pointing to growth of around 4.5% in the third quarter, which is roughly unchanged from the previous quarter and... 28th October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Why fuel subsidy reform matters for India and Indonesia Indian consumer price inflation fell to its slowest pace on record in September. With the latest data also pointing to continued weakness in the industrial sector, we remain of the view that interest... 20th October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Indonesia’s new president has his work cut out Joko Widodo, the outgoing mayor of Jakarta, who takes over as Indonesia’s president on Monday, is seen by some as the man to turn the country’s fortunes around. But while he has attracted plenty of... 17th October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economic Outlook Steady, if unspectacular, growth ahead Most economies in Emerging Asia are likely to see growth accelerate gradually over the next year, helped by a combination of stronger demand from advanced economies and relatively loose monetary... 8th October 2014 · 1 min read