Asia Economics Update Asia Manufacturing PMIs, Korea Trade (January) The January manufacturing PMI readings for Asian economies remain consistent with generally steady growth in manufacturing. However, the PMIs have recently been a poor guide to the hard activity data... 2nd February 2026 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Update MAS to stay on hold despite hawkish tilt Singapore’s central bank kept monetary policy settings unchanged today but adopted a slightly more hawkish tone. While risks to the policy outlook are now skewed modestly towards tighter policy later... 29th January 2026 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Update MSCI threat adds to Indonesia’s woes The slump in Indonesia’s stock market today in the wake of a threat by MSCI to downgrade the country to “frontier market” status is the latest in a long list of issues that investors are grappling... 28th January 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Update Korea – domestic weakness to offset export strength We expect Korea to record another year of subdued growth in 2026, as relatively strong exports are likely to be offset by soft domestic demand. Trump’s latest threat to impose 25% tariffs poses a... 27th January 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Update Indonesia’s policymaking concerns back in the spotlight The credibility of policymaking in Indonesia has been dealt a fresh blow at the start of 2026. It will take time for the more pernicious effects of populist and interventionist policies under... 20th January 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Update Vietnam Party Congress: balancing stability and reform Vietnam’s Party Congress, beginning Monday, comes at a critical juncture. Following a period of political turbulence, To Lam looks set to be confirmed as both general secretary and state president... 15th January 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Update Hawkish BoK rules out near-term interest rate cuts The Bank of Korea today left interest rates unchanged as expected, but the central bank’s accompanying statement and the commentary from Governor Rhee were much more hawkish than anticipated. This... 15th January 2026 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Update Will Taiwan deploy its “chips weapon”? Taiwan last year briefly flirted with imposing restrictions on its exports of semiconductors as part of an effort to assert its foreign policy interests. But there are strong reasons for officials to... 14th January 2026 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Update Malaysia: Anwar failing to make progress on reform Anwar Ibrahim is now just over three years into his first term as prime minister of Malaysia. The restoration of political stability under his premiership is welcome, and he also deserves credit for... 13th January 2026 · 4 mins read
India Economics Update A shift in India’s geopolitical alignment In our update of our Global Fracturing map for 2026, we now classify India as unaligned, rather than leaning towards the US, following the cooling of the relationship with the Trump administration... 7th January 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Update Vietnam: Surging trade surplus with the US carries risks Vietnam’s economy is booming on the back of strong exports, most notably to the US, as it benefits from shifts in global supply chains. However, the export surge is widening Vietnam’s trade surplus... 6th January 2026 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Update A look ahead to the key political events in Asia in 2026 In a busy electoral calendar, several Asian countries will go to the polls this year, with potentially significant implications for economic reform in India and macroeconomic stability in Bangladesh... 5th January 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Update Asia PMIs, Korea Trade (Dec) & Singapore GDP (Q4) The December Manufacturing PMI readings for most Asian economies remain consistent with generally soft manufacturing activity. However, the PMIs have recently been a poor guide to the hard activity... 2nd January 2026 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Update Malaysia: is the strong ringgit a threat to exports? The Malaysian ringgit has appreciated steadily against the US dollar this year and is set to be Asia’s best-performing currency in 2025. While the appreciation has raised competitiveness concerns... 30th December 2025 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Update Korea’s equity rally: what comes next? Korea’s equity market has delivered an exceptional rally this year, driven by the restoration of political stability, long-overdue corporate governance reforms and strong exposure to the global AI... 22nd December 2025 · 3 mins read
India Economics Update GDP rebasing could push India above Japan On our current forecasts, India is on course to overtake Japan as the world’s fourth-largest economy in 2027. But there is a decent chance that the upcoming rebasing of India’s national accounts data... 10th December 2025 · 3 mins read
