Asia Economic Outlook Policy easing to begin soon We expect economic growth in most countries in Asia to slow in the second half of 2024, as tighter fiscal policy, high interest rates and weaker global growth all weigh on demand. Inflation is back to... 20th June 2024 · 28 mins read
Asia Economics Focus Korea: growth to slow, inflation to fall, rates to be cut Korea’s economy rebounded strongly last quarter but there are already signs it is losing momentum, and we expect growth to struggle over the coming year. Export growth is likely to ease a little, but... 18th June 2024 · 10 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Malaysia subsidy cuts, BoK minutes, Pakistan budget Headline inflation in Malaysia has been among the lowest in Asia but that is soon set to change now that the government is pushing ahead with long-planned subsidy cuts aimed at improving the public... 14th June 2024 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly BoT to cut rates, inflation falling in Korea, Modi 3.0 A weak economy, low inflation and a strengthening currency mean the conditions are in place for the Bank of Thailand to begin loosening monetary policy at its meeting on Wednesday. Meanwhile... 7th June 2024 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Focus Why is wage growth in Korea so weak? The recent weakness of wage growth in Korea seems at odds with the country’s low unemployment rate. But a closer look at the data suggests that the unemployment rate is overstating the health of the... 4th June 2024 · 9 mins read
Asia Economics Update Manufacturing PMIs & Korea Trade (May) The Manufacturing PMIs for Emerging Asia remained weak in May but have been a poor guide to the hard data on activity over the past year anyway. However, the PMIs have been a decent guide to price... 3rd June 2024 · 2 mins read
Asia Chart Pack Emerging Asia Chart Pack (May 2024) Headline inflation across most of Emerging Asia is now either below or only slightly above central bank targets. Nevertheless, policymakers have struck a slightly more hawkish tone recently due to... 30th May 2024 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank of Korea to cut interest rates in October The Bank of Korea left its policy rate on hold today (at 3.5%) and appeared to indicate that interest rates would not be cut until it was confident that inflation would fall back to target. Given our... 23rd May 2024 · 3 mins read
Asia Rapid Response Korea Policy Rate (May 2024) The decision by the Bank of Korea to leave the policy rate unchanged (at 3.5%) today came as no surprise, of more interest will be the tone of the central bank’s statement and Governor Rhee’s press... 23rd May 2024 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly BI on hold, new leaders, Biden tariffs The recent recovery in the rupiah means Bank Indonesia is unlikely to follow up April’s surprise hike with another interest rate increase when it meets on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Korea could prove to be... 17th May 2024 · 8 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Korea: a weak start to the second quarter In response to the stronger-than-expected first quarter GDP figures, Bank of Korea Governor Rhee this week hinted that the central bank would revise up its GDP growth forecast (from 2.1%) for this... 3rd May 2024 · 8 mins read
Asia Economics Update Korea: inflation to return to target by mid-year Korea is one of the few countries in the region where inflation is still above target. However, with economic growth set to slow and the government stepping up efforts to bring food prices down, we... 2nd May 2024 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Update Manufacturing PMIs & Korea Trade (April) The PMIs from Emerging Asia remained weak in April. We think manufacturing activity across most of Asia will remain subdued in the near term but output in Taiwan and Korea is likely to hold up better... 2nd May 2024 · 2 mins read
Asia Rapid Response Korea GDP (Q1, 2024) GDP growth in Korea rose sharply in Q1 but we don't expect this strength to last. Weak global growth is set to weigh on exports in the near term while tight monetary and fiscal policy will curtail... 25th April 2024 · 2 mins read
Energy Update Japan’s LNG demand to sink; Korea’s to fall more slowly A resurgent nuclear power sector in Japan and a continuously growing one in South Korea coupled with an expansion in renewable power capacities will ensure both countries’ LNG demand will fall... 23rd April 2024 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Update Another tough year ahead for Korean consumers A weak labour market and high interest rates will continue to weigh heavily on Korea’s consumer sector this year. The poor prospects for consumer spending is one of the main reasons we think overall... 22nd April 2024 · 2 mins read
