Asia Economic Outlook Lower oil prices to support growth The recent sharp drop in global oil prices is a positive development for Emerging Asia. It will support growth in most economies and will put downward pressure on inflation, providing scope for... 14th January 2015 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update GST will add to headwinds, but won't derail Malaysia's economy The introduction of a Goods and Services Tax (GST) in April marks an important step towards strengthening Malaysia's public finances over the medium term. And while it will put upward pressure on... 7th January 2015 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Sri Lanka faces tight election contest Sri Lanka’s presidential election, scheduled for 8 th January, is shaping up to be much closer than expected, with the current president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, now facing a genuine challenge from... 24th December 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Rough end to the year for Asian markets Emerging Asia’s financial markets have not escaped the latest turmoil unscathed, but they have fared better than other EM regions. 18th December 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Limited impact from Chinese rate cut Financial markets in Emerging Asia have on the whole had a fairly quiet month despite the recent Chinese rate cut and the expansion of the Bank of Japan’s programme of quantitative easing. 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Retail spending picks up, but recovery uneven There has been a gradual recovery in retail spending in Emerging Asia during 2014. The top performing countries are Indonesia and Malaysia, where retail sales are expanding at a double digit pace. In... 26th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Data Response Malaysia GDP (Q3) Malaysia's economy slowed in the third quarter, with growth coming in at 5.6% y/y, down from a revised 6.5% the quarter before. We expect growth to slow further in the coming quarters, as the domestic... 14th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Malaysia’s policy rate to stay on hold until mid-2015 Against a backdrop of softer domestic growth and weakening exports, the Malaysian central bank (BNM) unsurprisingly kept its policy rate on hold at 3.25% today. As the accompanying statement took on a... 6th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly How much slack is left in the NIEs? There are indications that the amount of spare capacity in the Newly Industrialised Economies (NIEs: Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and Korea) is starting to be used up. As a result, while there is... 31st October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Minimal impact from the end of QE3 Asia's financial markets have so far taken the end of QE3 largely in their stride. The performance of the region's currencies and equity markets has been fairly muted over the past month, while... 31st October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack No sign of improvement Economic growth in Emerging Asia is showing no sign of improvement. Our GDP tracker is pointing to growth of around 4.5% in the third quarter, which is roughly unchanged from the previous quarter and... 28th October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Malaysia's budget keeps it on fiscal consolidation path Malaysia's 2015 budget contained no major surprises and marked another step towards fiscal consolidation following fuel subsidy cuts earlier in the month. While the net impact of the Goods and... 13th October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economic Outlook Steady, if unspectacular, growth ahead Most economies in Emerging Asia are likely to see growth accelerate gradually over the next year, helped by a combination of stronger demand from advanced economies and relatively loose monetary... 8th October 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Aussie and Kiwi dollars lead Asia’s currency sell-off Asia’s financial markets performed poorly in September, largely reflecting concerns about the outlook for US monetary policy. The New Zealand and Australian dollars were the worst performers, but... 30th September 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Which countries stand to gain most from lower oil prices? Lower oil prices should provide a boost to the economies of Emerging Asia. However, some countries are likely to benefit more than others. Indonesia and Thailand stand to gain the most, while Malaysia... 26th September 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Malaysia's fiscal consolidation to continue, drag manageable Malaysia’s government finances have traditionally stood out as a potential threat to its economic stability, but there have been notable improvements in recent years. The 2015 budget is expected to... 24th September 2014 · 1 min read