Asia Economics Update Key challenges await Vietnam’s new leadership Vietnam’s new top leadership team, which has just been unveiled, takes the reins at a key moment for the economy. Although short-term prospects remain good, further reforms are needed for the economy... 28th January 2016 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Malaysia puts fiscal discipline ahead of growth Malaysia’s government cut its spending plans for 2016 today in response to recent declines in global oil prices. While Malaysia’s commitment to fiscal discipline is encouraging, it will come at the... 28th January 2016 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Philippines GDP (Q4) Growth in the Philippines picked up again in the fourth quarter and looks set to gain more momentum in 2016. The domestic economy is in very good health but, perhaps surprisingly given the current... 28th January 2016 · 1 min read
RBI Watch Policy rates unlikely to fall any further The consensus is expecting further, albeit limited, monetary easing in India over the coming months, but we continue to think that the rate-cutting cycle has come to an end. The Reserve Bank of India... 27th January 2016 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Weak inflation means rates will remain low for longer Inflation across Emerging Asia remains very low, with consumer prices rising by less than 2% y/y in seven of the 14 countries we track. Two of those, Thailand and Singapore, are in deflation, while... 27th January 2016 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Korea GDP (Q4 Preliminary) It always looked inevitable that Korea’s economy would lose some momentum in the final quarter of 2015, after the strong rebound in Q3. However, we expect growth to pick up again in the coming... 26th January 2016 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Focus EM debt: recapping the risks The dangers posed by a rapid build-up in EM debt have come back into the spotlight in recent weeks. In this Focus we revisit the lessons from history. Three points stand out – with potentially ominous... 22nd January 2016 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Asia well-placed to ride out financial market storms Global markets have had a rocky start to the year with equities, emerging market currencies and oil bearing the brunt of the declines. The stock market falls are unlikely to have much of an impact on... 22nd January 2016 · 1 min read
India Chart Pack Sensex slumps to pre-Modi levels The past month has seen India's benchmark Sensex stock index drop to its lowest level since the inauguration of Prime Minister Modi in May 2014. The latest slump is linked to the global equity sell... 22nd January 2016 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Some respite for Korea’s export sector in 2016 A cyclical recovery in China’s economy and free trade agreements that came into force in late 2015 should provide a boost to Korean exports this year. But with Chinese companies making more of the... 22nd January 2016 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Rate cuts in Malaysia unlikely despite SRR cut The decision by Malaysia’s central bank (BNM) today to cuts its statutory reserve requirement (SRR) ratio is not a signal that interest rates cuts are on the way. Worries about currency weakness and... 21st January 2016 · 1 min read
India Economics Update Bad start to 2016 India has not been spared the sell-off in EM financial markets since the start of the year. The rupee is now at its weakest rate against the US dollar since the currency crisis of September 2013... 21st January 2016 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update Talk of an EM currency war looks overdone A retreat to widespread competitive currency devaluations in emerging markets would certainly be a cause for concern but, despite recent claims to the contrary, there is so far little evidence to... 20th January 2016 · 1 min read
India Economics Update Lower privatisation targets would boost credibility With only two months of this fiscal year remaining, the finance ministry’s aim of raising nearly INR700bn in revenues through the privatisation of various state-owned companies looks impossible to... 20th January 2016 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Chart Pack EM growth stable despite market slump Sentiment towards emerging markets has worsened since the start of the year amid mounting worries about the outlook in a number of key economies. Nevertheless, the latest data provide no evidence of a... 19th January 2016 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update What would a China hard landing mean for EMs? We don’t expect China to suffer a hard landing, but if it were to happen it would result in widespread currency weakness and slower growth in large parts of the emerging world. Emerging Asian... 18th January 2016 · 1 min read
