Asia Economics Update Thailand: growth beats expectations, but economy set to slow Thailand’s growth accelerated in the first quarter of the year, but the economy faces growing headwinds from the conflict in Iran and the surge in global energy prices. Despite recent government... 18th May 2026 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly BI meets amid rupiah weakness, Malaysia’s resilience While it is likely to be a close call, we expect Bank Indonesia to keep policy rates unchanged at its upcoming meetings despite rupiah weakness, preferring instead to rely on FX intervention to... 15th May 2026 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Stimulus in Thailand, Korean inflation under control Thailand is launching a 400bn baht (2% of GDP) stimulus to cut living costs and boost renewables, though the spending risks pushing public debt towards—and potentially through—the government’s 70% of... 8th May 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Manufacturers hit, Korean outflows, BOK and RBI meetings The March PMIs show that the energy shock appears to be hitting manufacturers in Asia, though it is more evident in higher input prices than in falling activity. Meanwhile, foreign outflows from Korea... 2nd April 2026 · 7 mins read
Asia Economics Update Energy shock in Asia: policy choices ahead High energy prices and growing concerns over energy security have already prompted significant policy responses across Asia. Some governments are looking to introduce inflation-suppressing measures... 10th March 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Update Is Asia running on empty with LNG? Asian economies vary in how dependent they are on LNG from the Gulf – for China and Japan, dependence is low, while Pakistan, Taiwan and Korea have much higher exposure. Low domestic inventories leave... 10th March 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Update The Iran shock and Asia As net energy importers, most economies in Asia are worse off and facing higher inflation as a result of the attacks on Iran. But oil prices would have to rise much further than they have so far – to... 2nd March 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Update New US tariff regime will rejig Asian electronics trade Trump’s new 15% global tariff rate reduces the tariff burden on most Asian countries, but the biggest winner is China. It still faces a higher tariff than countries elsewhere in the region, but the... 23rd February 2026 · 4 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Bank of Thailand to cut again, Asia and the AI boom We will be holding an online briefing on Wednesday to discuss the region’s long-term economic outlook out until 2050. You can register by clicking here. We expect the Bank of Thailand to cut rates at... 20th February 2026 · 6 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Singapore’s AI budget, election round-up Singapore’s 2026 budget, which was announced on Thursday, signals a modest fiscal loosening for the coming year. The budget also placed significant emphasis on positioning the economy for the AI... 13th February 2026 · 8 mins read
Asia Economics Update Thailand votes for stability, but growth to stay weak Thailand’s election result should help reduce political risk in the near term but does little to change the challenging economic outlook. The real test for the next government will be whether it can... 8th February 2026 · 3 mins read
Asia Economics Weekly Indonesia’s GDP rebound, Asian elections in focus Q4 GDP growth in Indonesia surprised on the upside at 5.4% y/y, the fastest pace since 2022 and a rare break from the strikingly narrow growth range seen over the past two years. However, given... 6th February 2026 · 5 mins read
Asia Economics Focus Thailand: economic woes to continue after election Whichever party wins Thailand’s general election on 8th February will inherit a weak economy, tight fiscal constraints, and deep-seated structural and demographic challenges. The continued shift... 2nd February 2026 · 17 mins read