Asia Economics Weekly Trump’s “America first” policy poses threat to Philippines China and Mexico were the main focus of Donald Trump’s protectionist threats on the campaign trail. But the Philippines also stands out as vulnerable to any moves by the US towards isolationism. In... 3rd February 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Focus Can manufacturing revive growth in Indonesia? A strong manufacturing sector would go some way to reviving the economic fortunes of Indonesia. However, the challenges are formidable, and unless more progress is made on liberalising the labour... 2nd February 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Manufacturing PMIs (Jan.) Emerging Asia’s PMIs for January suggest the region’s manufacturing sectors started 2017 on a lacklustre note. Focusing on the two economies where the PMIs most closely track the hard data, Taiwan’s... 2nd February 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Activity Monitor Signs of life in Brazil and Russia Our GDP Tracker suggests that the EM GDP growth has continued to accelerate in recent months and is now running at its fastest pace in two years. While the recovery is still being driven by China... 31st January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Asian financial markets make good start to 2017 Asian currencies have rebounded against the US dollar over the past month, with the Korean won leading the way. For the most part, the recent gains reflect a weak dollar, which has fallen in value... 31st January 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update EM dollar debt – a primer The recent strength of the US dollar has prompted several questions from clients about dollar debt burdens in emerging economies. In this Update, we outline the key points and provide a comprehensive... 27th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Thailand’s current account surplus is a sign of weakness Large current account surpluses are sometimes a sign of economic strength. In the case of Thailand, however, where the surplus is over 10% of GDP, it is a symptom of a deeply depressed economy. 27th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Philippines GDP (Q4) The Philippines recorded another quarter of solid growth in Q4 and should continue to grow reasonably strongly over the forecast period. The uncertain political situation at home and Donald Trump’s... 26th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Taiwan GDP (Q4 Advanced) Taiwan’s economy rebounded strongly in the final quarter of last year, but with weak global demand set to drag on exports and limited scope for more policy support, the recovery is likely to run out... 25th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Korea GDP (Q4 Preliminary) Korea’s economy ended 2016 on a soft note, and we expect growth will slow further in the quarters ahead against a backdrop of mounting external and domestic headwinds. 24th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update How big a blow is the demise of the TPP to Asia? The demise of the TPP represents a major blow to some countries in Emerging Asia, most notably Vietnam. The benefits of any China-led regional trade deal are likely to be much smaller. 24th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly What will a Trump presidency mean for Asia? There remains a great deal of uncertainty over what a Trump presidency will mean for the US economy, let alone Asia. This Weekly looks at the key channels through which a Trump presidency will affect... 20th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Bank Indonesia to keep interest rates unchanged this year Bank Indonesia (BI) left its policy rate on hold at 4.75% today, and with inflation set to rise later in the year and the currency likely to come under renewed downward pressure as the Fed continues... 19th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Malaysian rates to stay on hold in 2017 Today’s decision by Malaysia’s central bank (BNM) to keep interest rates on hold at 3.0% came as no surprise. With the economy now recovering and the ringgit vulnerable to turns in investor sentiment... 19th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Vietnam complacent over credit risks Policymakers in Vietnam are becoming increasingly complacent of the risks posed by the rapid build-up in debt, as reflected by the government’s recent announcement that it was targeting credit growth... 17th January 2017 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Poor infrastructure to remain a drag on growth Poor infrastructure remains a major constraint on economic growth prospects across large parts of Emerging Asia. A couple of countries, namely the Philippines and Thailand, are likely to see a big... 13th January 2017 · 1 min read
