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
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 Economic Outlook Solid growth, easing cycles drawing to a close The economic outlook across much of Asia has improved recently, prompting modest upward revisions to our 2026 GDP growth forecasts. Strong demand for AI-related products will continue to lift exports... 15th December 2025 · 25 mins read
Asia Economics Update Asia Manufacturing PMIs, Korea Trade (November) The November PMI readings for most countries in Asia remained consistent with soft manufacturing activity. However, the PMIs haven’t been a great guide to the hard activity data for some economies... 1st December 2025 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly BoK minutes, Malaysia Q3 GDP, Korean defence boost The Bank of Korea’s latest minutes show the central bank has become more upbeat on the near-term growth outlook and more concerned about rising property prices in Seoul. This reinforces our view that... 14th November 2025 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Update Are cheap imports from China lowering Asian inflation? We aren’t convinced that cheaper imports from China had much to do with the recent sharp fall in inflation in the rest of Asia. While we expect inflation to remain soft next year, that reflects our... 11th November 2025 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Vietnam’s export boom The Malaysian ringgit has extended its gains against the US dollar and is now Asia’s best-performing currency this year, supported by stronger-than-expected data and a central bank keen to hold rates... 7th November 2025 · 4 mins read
Asia Rapid Response Malaysia: Monetary Policy Meeting (November 2025) 6th November 2025 · 2 mins read
Asia Chart Pack Asia Chart Pack (October 2025) Our Asia Chart Pack has been updated with the latest data and our analysis of recent developments. With growth likely to soften in the coming months and inflation subdued, further interest rate cuts... 31st October 2025 · 0 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Key takeaways from Trump’s visit, new Korea forecasts US President Donald Trump’s visit to Asia this week led to the signing of several trade deals that should, at the margin, lend modest support to regional economic growth. This may, in turn, strengthen... 31st October 2025 · 8 mins read
Asia Rapid Response Malaysia GDP (Q3, adv estimate) Malaysia’s economy accelerated in the third quarter but we expect growth to soften in the coming quarters which, alongside low inflation, should add to the case for further monetary easing this year. 17th October 2025 · 2 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Thai deflation risks GDP growth in Vietnam held firm at 8.2% y/y in Q3, underpinned by resilient exports despite the 20% US tariffs introduced in August. The strength of the export sector likely reflects increased re... 10th October 2025 · 6 mins read
Asia Economic Outlook Soft growth ahead, region to weather tariff threat Asia’s economies look set for further weak growth over the rest of this year and to the end of 2026, as tighter fiscal policy and softer exports outweigh resilient consumption, which is being... 25th September 2025 · 25 mins read