Asia Economics Update Asian equities rapid rise continues Equity markets in Asia continued their rise in July. Meanwhile, currencies in the region generally strengthened against the US dollar 31st July 2017 · 1 min read
Frontier Markets Wrap Frontier recovery still on track The recovery in frontier economies continued over the first half of this year. GDP growth averaged around 2.0% y/y in Q1, twice the rates seen in mid-2016. It would have been stronger still were it... 31st July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Focus ASEAN: still searching for purpose at 50 As ASEAN approaches its 50th anniversary, we see little prospect of it transforming itself into the kind of single market and production base which its supporters hope will one day enable it to rival... 31st July 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Activity Monitor EM growth likely to have nudged down a little in Q2 Our GDP Tracker suggests that EM growth picked up slightly in May, but this partly reflects a bounce from a soft April. The bigger picture is that overall EM growth looks to have nudged down a bit in... 28th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Election won’t solve Malaysia’s institutional problems There is growing speculation that Malaysia’s prime minister, Najib Razak, will take advantage of the recent strength of the economy by calling an early general election. The weak state of the... 28th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Korea GDP (Q2 Preliminary) Korea’s economy slowed a touch in Q2, but remained in decent shape. Looking ahead, we expect growth to remain fairly strong over the next year or so, helped by buoyant global demand and strong... 27th July 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Chart Pack EM consumers bouncing back EM retail sales growth picked up for a third consecutive month in May and is now running at a 12-month high. What’s more, the improvement has been widespread across different EM regions. In Russia and... 24th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Taiwan infrastructure projects to boost growth The Taiwan government’s Infrastructure Development Programme should not only provide a boost to near-term growth at a time when the economy is slowing, but should also improve prospects over the... 21st July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank Indonesia to remain in neutral for a while After a marathon policy meeting today, Bank Indonesia confirmed that it was keeping its policy rates unchanged. Quite why the decision took so long is unclear – the decision was exactly what everyone... 20th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Korea minimum wage hike should boost consumption The announcement over the weekend that South Korea will be increasing its minimum wage by 16% next year represents a victory for President Moon Jae-in, who was elected on a pledge to boost incomes and... 17th July 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Trade Monitor EM export growth to slow, but not collapse EM export growth ticked up in May, but the big picture is that the sharp acceleration caused by the rebound in global commodity prices over the past year or so is now behind us. We don’t expect EM... 14th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly KORUS renegotiation could benefit Korea The announcement earlier in the week from the US government that it is formally seeking to renegotiate the Korea-US free trade pact (KORUS) is not a big threat to the Korean economy. The negotiations... 14th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Singapore GDP (Q2 Advanced) Today’s advanced estimate of Singapore’s second quarter GDP suggests the economy strengthened in Q2. Further ahead, although strong global demand means growth should remain relatively strong, rising... 14th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly External pressures mounting in Pakistan The “devaluation” of the Pakistani rupee earlier in the week is a reminder of the country’s precarious balance of payments position. Pakistan will soon be forced to either let the currency fall much... 7th July 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economic Outlook How long will the recovery last? A pick-up in exports will lift growth in Emerging Asia to a five-year high in 2017, but mounting domestic headwinds means that this is unlikely to be sustained. We expect growth to slow in 201819... 6th July 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economic Outlook Cycles start to turn in the BRICs The growth outlook for major EMs is starting to diverge. While there are signs that a slowdown is now underway in China, cyclical rebounds lie ahead in India, Brazil and Russia. 3rd July 2017 · 1 min read
