Asia Economics Weekly

What would a Trump victory mean for Asia?

It remains to be seen if Donald Trump would follow through on some of his more protectionist policies if he is elected president of the United States. If he did, then the repercussions for some parts...

7th October 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economic Outlook

Loose monetary and fiscal policy to support growth

While Emerging Asia continues to face headwinds, loose fiscal and monetary policy in most economies should continue to support demand over the next couple of years, and we expect regional growth to...

4th October 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Data Response

Manufacturing PMIs (Sep.)

The PMIs for Emerging Asia in September were mostly encouraging, suggesting that manufacturing conditions in the region are slowly gaining a firmer footing. However, the struggles of Korea’s...

3rd October 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Weekly

New president of the Philippines risks undoing recent gains

When Rodrigo Duterte became president of the Philippines on 30 th June, we warned that although the fundamentals were in place for the economy to grow strongly, his election had made the outlook much...

30th September 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Weekly

ASEAN still struggling for purpose

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), which has just concluded its annual meeting in Laos, has little chance of becoming the kind of single market and production base which could one...

9th September 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Update

Malaysia’s rate hold to continue

Following its move to cut rates in response to rising downside risks to growth at its last meeting in July, Malaysia’s central bank (BNM) today left its policy rate unchanged at 3.0%. With growth...

7th September 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Weekly

How big a threat is Zika to Singapore?

The outbreak of the Zika virus in Singapore has dominated local headlines, but while it is an important public health issue the economic impact will be limited.

2nd September 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Data Response

Manufacturing PMIs (Aug.)

The August PMIs for Emerging Asia suggest manufacturing conditions in the region remain lacklustre. Focusing on the two economies where the PMIs most closely track the hard data, there are signs of...

1st September 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Weekly

The dangers of decoupling

Economic growth across Emerging Asia accelerated last quarter, as strong domestic demand compensated for weak exports. But while this “decoupling” has enabled Emerging Asia to shrug-off the weakness...

26th August 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Weekly

Export struggles to continue

The recent improvement in export performance across Emerging Asia owes more to the fading effects of the collapse in commodity prices on export values than a recovery in underlying demand. We expect...

19th August 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Data Response

Malaysia GDP (Q2)

Malaysia’s economy slowed further in the second quarter of 2016. With the prices of its main commodity exports set to remain low and the room for policy stimulus limited, a strong rebound is not on...

12th August 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Weekly

Referendum won’t solve Thailand’s problems

Thailand’s upcoming referendum on a new constitution is unlikely to provide a lasting solution to the country’s political problems, and there is a real risk that tensions could once again flare up...

5th August 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Focus

Is the worst over for Indonesia and Malaysia?

Economic growth in Malaysia and Indonesia has slowed markedly over the past couple of years. While we think the worst is now over for the region’s two main commodity producers, a strong rebound is...

2nd August 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Data Response

Manufacturing PMIs (Jul.)

Manufacturing conditions in Emerging Asia remained lacklustre in July. In the two economies where the PMIs most closely track the hard data, there are some signs of improvement in Taiwan’s...

1st August 2016 · 1 min read

Asia Economics Update

Malaysia jumps on easing bandwagon

Malaysia's central bank (BNM) today unexpectedly lowered its policy rate by 25bp to 3.0%, adding to the list of Asian central banks that have cut rates this year. But with growth still on track to...

13th July 2016 · 1 min read