Asia Economics Weekly Indonesia back in the spotlight, hawkish central banks MSCI is expected to announce on Tuesday whether Indonesia will retain its emerging market status, with recent reforms and press reports suggesting that a downgrade to frontier market status is... 19th June 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Outlook for Asian currencies hinges on US-Iran deal Asian currencies have rebounded on hopes of a US–Iran deal and lower oil prices. Stronger currencies would reduce the need for aggressive rate hikes by Asian central banks. 12th June 2026 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Inflation high but stabilising (mostly), turmoil in Indonesia May’s inflation data across Asia were mixed but broadly encouraging. While inflation remains well above pre-war levels in most economies, it generally stabilised last month. We expect most central... 5th June 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly BoK’s tightening cycle to be gradual, Taiwan boom continues Although the Bank of Korea struck a hawkish tone yesterday, today’s weak activity data and the challenging outlook for domestic demand suggest that any tightening cycle is likely to be gradual... 29th May 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Bank Indonesia hikes, who will be next? Bank Indonesia delivered an unexpected 50bps rate hike earlier, driven primarily by concerns over rupiah weakness. We now see a further 50bps of tightening by end-2026. Attention now turns to meetings... 22nd May 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly BI meets amid rupiah weakness, Malaysia’s resilience While it is likely to be a close call, we expect Bank Indonesia to keep policy rates unchanged at its upcoming meetings despite rupiah weakness, preferring instead to rely on FX intervention to... 15th May 2026 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Stimulus in Thailand, Korean inflation under control Thailand is launching a 400bn baht (2% of GDP) stimulus to cut living costs and boost renewables, though the spending risks pushing public debt towards—and potentially through—the government’s 70% of... 8th May 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Will Korean consumers continue to shrug off energy spike? March retail sales in Korea rose strongly in both m/m and y/y terms, suggesting households have largely shrugged off the Middle East crisis, with inflation kept in check despite higher global energy... 1st May 2026 · 8 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Who will hike rates next? Korea’s chip boom The Philippines raised interest rates this week due to rising inflation concerns, and we think Pakistan could follow at its upcoming meeting on Monday given inflation is already above target and... 24th April 2026 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Jakarta & Manila unlikely to follow Singapore in tightening The Monetary Authority of Singapore tightened its policy stance this week, but we doubt that central banks in Indonesia and the Philippines will follow suit next week – both are likely to keep rates... 17th April 2026 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Asia inflation: mostly benign, Philippines the outlier Inflation across most of Asia remains well contained, as subsidies and administrative price controls help cushion the impact of higher energy prices. The Philippines stands out as a key exception... 10th April 2026 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Manufacturers hit, Korean outflows, BOK and RBI meetings The March PMIs show that the energy shock appears to be hitting manufacturers in Asia, though it is more evident in higher input prices than in falling activity. Meanwhile, foreign outflows from Korea... 2nd April 2026 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Challenging inheritance for new Bank of Korea governor Incoming Bank of Korea Governor Shin Hyun-song brings formidable credentials and his appointment will reassure investors unsettled by high debt levels in Korea and the jump in property prices in Seoul... 27th March 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Energy shockwaves: Asia first in the line of fire We have revised our forecasts to incorporate higher energy prices, assuming Brent averages close to US$100 per barrel in Q2 before easing to around US$80 by year-end. Given Asia’s heavy reliance on... 20th March 2026 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Asia: how will central banks respond to high energy prices? Pakistan and Sri Lanka are the two central banks in Asia most likely to raise rates if energy prices remain elevated for a prolonged period. In contrast, Taiwan and Korea will be in little hurry to... 13th March 2026 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly A stagflationary shock for Asia Higher oil prices from the Middle East conflict would act as a terms-of-trade shock for Asia’s largely energy-importing economies, squeezing households and firms and slowing growth. Inflation would... 6th March 2026 · 5 mins read
