Asia

Embrace AI or be left behind, an expert said at the Asian Banking & Finance and Insurance Asia Summit today. Financial experts warned that fully banking on artificial intelligence (AI) won’t guarantee a positive return on investment but pinned that clean data, industry collaboration, and proper risk management are key to navigating volatility. During the Asian Banking & Finance and Insurance Asia Summit today, spokespersons from the industry discussed Thailand's challenging financial landscape. The event, which received over 220 attendees, was held at the Renaissance Bangkok Ratchaprasong Hotel. Warotai Kosolpisitkul, International Economic advisor, Fiscal Policy Office, Ministry of Finance, underscored the nation’s commitment to digital finance expansion. Highlighting...

Chinese president Xi Jinping’s high-profile meeting with the country’s tech leaders combined with the breakthrough development of DeepSeek is changing sentiment on the country’s beaten-down stocks, investment banks say. Bankers say Chinese tech shares now have the potential to tempt back long-term investors — a shift that would imply a significant change in mindset and money flows. “(Last year) many investors we spoke to still regarded China as a ‘trading market’ – fast money comes and goes to play the trading bounces, whereas global long-term capital remains unconvinced and little involved,” China equity analysts from Bank of America Securities said in a February 17 note. That view, however, could be shifting to “investable”, BofA analysts said. “Encouragingly, we think the f...

Asia, by 2040, is anticipated to be contributing 42% of global GDP, showing how the region is on the cusp of a new era and is on its way to expanding its global influence, according to McKinsey & Company.The global management consulting firm's analysis found that Asia could be home to 60% of the Fortune Global 500 companies and have 55% of the world’s total workforce. As Asian economies boost domestic investments, organisations are posed with the challenge of rethinking and reimagining their financial strategies to align with the economic shift. McKinsey recommends four approaches business leaders can look into to optimise capital allocation toward high-return prospects, where growth outpaces risk. Move beyond FDI reliance. Take a proactive approach to capital deployment. Rat...

Chinese president Xi Jinping held a rare meeting with some of the countries biggest technology leaders on Monday in a sign of Beijing’s growing urgency to prop up the sector amid rivalry with the US. Xi urged attendees to “show their talent” and be confident in the power of China’s model and market in a symposium attended by key names such as Huawei’s Ren Zhengfei, BYD’s Wang Chuanfu, DeepSeek’s Liang Wenfeng and even Alibaba’s once-pariah founder, Jack Ma. Meanwhile, the absence of a key Chinese tech leader from the meet — Baidu founder Robin Li — triggered a sharp fall in shares of the company that was once touted as China’s closest rival to OpenAI. Concern over Li’s absence erased $2.4 billion off Baidu’s market value in hours as the company’s stock plunged as much as 8.8% in ...

HSBC is intensifying its commitment to Asia by scaling back its investment banking operations in Western markets, a move that aligns with its long-term strategy of prioritising growth in the region. According to Reuters, the bank announced plans to wind down its mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and equity capital markets (ECM) divisions in Europe and North America, reinforcing its emphasis on serving Asian corporate clients. HSBC focuses on AsiaEarlier this month, HSBC chairman Mark Tucker (pictured) led a British business delegation to Beijing, where he spoke at the UK-China Financial Services Summit. Addressing Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, Tucker highlighted the importance of continued economic collaboration. The visit came amid HSBC’s ongoing efforts to strengthen ties wi...

The Chinese economy has started the year slowly, looking weak with deflationary pressure rising from persistently soft domestic demand. Official data showed factory-gate prices falling for a second straight year in 2024, while consumer prices only rose marginally. A combination of job insecurity, a prolonged housing downturn, debt and tariff threats from the incoming administration of US President-elect Donald Trump has hit demand, even as Beijing ramps up stimulus. The full-year consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.2%, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed, in line with the previous year’s pace and well below the official target of around 3% for last year, suggesting inflation missed annual targets for the 13th straight year. In December, the CPI crept up 0.1% y...