Asia

It’s time to revive plans for an Asian Monetary Fund
8Jan mmBy Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia

It’s time to revive plans for an Asian Monetary Fund

In 2025, with the United States’ tariff policy targeting trade deficits with many of its Asian trading partners, headlines focused on how trade flows would be diverted out of Asia. Yet, we should pay more attention to how investors’ jitters could also destabilize Asia’s financial systems, sending aftershocks through regional markets. Couple that with soaring global debt and an unsustainable AI-fueled stock market bubble, it’s not a question of if, but when, the global economy reaches a breaking point. Emerging Asia is uniquely susceptible to global headwinds. Without a strong domestic consumption base, many countries are highly integrated into global value chains and rely heavily on exports to boost their economies. Asia has also attracted significant amounts of foreign inves...
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China, Pakistan vow closer ties in trade, finance, security: Xinhua
7Jan mmBy Brian ThompsonNo Comments
Asia, China

China, Pakistan vow closer ties in trade, finance, security: Xinhua

China and Pakistan have agreed to ⁠deepen cooperation in industry, agriculture and mining, and ‌expand ‌collaboration in trade and ‌investment, information technology and cybersecurity, according to a joint statement released by Chinese state media. The two countries also ‌pledged ‍to strengthen ‍cooperation in the financial and banking ‌sectors and to support each other on regional and international multilateral financial platforms, Xinhua news ‍agency reported. They called for more "visible ‍and ⁠verifiable" ⁠actions to dismantle and eliminate all terrorist organisations entrenched in Afghanistan, the statement said.
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European factory activity ends 2025 in deeper contraction but Asia shines on improved demand
2Jan mmBy Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia, World

European factory activity ends 2025 in deeper contraction but Asia shines on improved demand

Euro zone manufacturing activity shrank further in December but Asia's factory powerhouses closed 2025 on a firmer footing backed by a rebound in export orders and growing demand for artificial intelligence, private surveys showed.Factory activity in the common currency bloc slid into deeper contraction last month as production decreased for the first time in 10 months on further declines in new orders. The HCOB Eurozone Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global, fell to 48.8 in December from 49.6 in November. It was the lowest reading in nine months and below the 50 level that separates growth from contraction for the second straight month.Surveys highlighted a broad-based decline in activity in the 20-nation euro zone.Germany, the bloc's largest e...
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Meta to Buy Chinese-Founded AI Startup Seen as ‘Next DeepSeek’
31Dec mmBy Michael SmithNo Comments
Asia, China, World

Meta to Buy Chinese-Founded AI Startup Seen as ‘Next DeepSeek’

US tech giant Meta has announced plans to takeover Manus, a Chinese-founded artificial intelligence startup hailed earlier this year as “the next DeepSeek”. The news on Monday (US time) comes as Meta ramps up moves to integrate advanced AI across its platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook and more. Financial terms of its transaction with Manus were not revealed, but a source with direct knowledge of the matter said the deal values the Singapore-based firm at between $2 billion and $3 billion. Meta has said Manus will cut ties with China after it has been acquired, according to Nikkei. So, China’s response to the takeover may be interesting, given Beijing’s desire to bolster its tech and artificial intelligence capacity. Manus did not immediately reply to a request for ...
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<strong>Indonesia’s MSMEs Collapse Under China’s Dumping Tactics</strong>
24Dec mmBy Michael SmithNo Comments
Asia, China

Indonesia’s MSMEs Collapse Under China’s Dumping Tactics

China’s relentless dumping of cheap goods into Indonesia is eroding the country’s MSMEs, dismantling local supply chains, and exposing deep vulnerabilities in Indonesia’s industrial ecosystem. Latest trade data shows China now accounts for more than one-third of Indonesia’s imports, underscoring the scale of this structural imbalance. Across Indonesia’s archipelago, from Surabaya’s bustling markets to Jakarta’s digital storefronts, a quiet but devastating transformation is underway. Micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) which employ 90–95% of Indonesia’s workforceare abandoning production and shifting to reselling Chinese imports. This is not globalization in its benign form; it is a structural displacement driven by China’s industrial dominance and Indonesia’s inabili...
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The Changing Nature of China’s Engagement in the Maldives
24Dec mmBy Brian ThompsonNo Comments
Asia, China

The Changing Nature of China’s Engagement in the Maldives

Debt restructuring, grants and donations, commercial contracts, and deepening trade and financial linkages are allowing China to enhance its presence in the Maldives and create economic dependencies. On 30 November, the Maldivian government accelerated the Rasmalé project, a large-scale land reclamation initiative that will subsequently receive Chinese support for infrastructure development. This move underscores a broader shift in China’s economic presence in the Maldives under the presidency of Mohamed Muizzu. China’s modus operandi in the Maldives can be categorised into four broader trends: prioritising debt restructuring over new loans; focus on grants and donations; securing commercial contracts; and deepening economic and financial linkages. These engagement...
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How PM Modi is fast-tracking reforms to shield economy from US tariffs
22Dec mmBy Michael SmithNo Comments
Asia, World

How PM Modi is fast-tracking reforms to shield economy from US tariffs

PM Modi's push for far-reaching policy reforms comes as his government accelerates trade talks with several partners, including the European Union, to offset US President Donald Trump's 50% tariff blow. The winter session of the Parliament witnessed the Narendra Modi government passing a number of key bills – some of them meant for far-reaching policy reforms, making it one of its most active final parliamentary sessions in recent years. Ten new Bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha, of which eight were passed by both Houses and two sent for further scrutiny by a Standing Committee. The key bills included the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin): Viksit Bharat – G RAM G Bill 2025, the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Tra...
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China keeps benchmark lending rates steady for a seventh straight month despite weak economic data
21Dec mmBy Brian ThompsonNo Comments
Asia, China

China keeps benchmark lending rates steady for a seventh straight month despite weak economic data

China’s central bank kept its loan prime rates steady on Monday, even as the world’s second largest economy has seen weak economic data and an extended slump in its property sector. The People’s Bank of China kept its 1-year and 5-year loan prime rates unchanged at 3% and 3.5% respectively, holding them for a seventh straight meeting, in line with a Reuters survey. The 1-year rate acts as a benchmark for new loans, while the 5-year helps peg mortgage rates. The PBOC’s decision comes amid downbeat economic data from China in November, including lower-than-expected retail sales and industrial output. Retail sales rose 1.3% last month from a year earlier, sharply missing Reuters’ median forecast for a 2.8% growth, and slowing from 2.9% rise in the prior month. Industrial p...
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Why China’s young are flocking to government jobs in record numbers
19Dec mmBy Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia, China

Why China’s young are flocking to government jobs in record numbers

ates seeking jobs at private enterprises is declining, dropping to 12.5% last year from 25.1% in 2020, the survey showed. Rising uncertainty in the jobs market, layoffs and slowing wage growth in the private sector have pushed many youngsters to seek the “security, predictable benefits and social prestige of public service,” said Mingjiang Li, associate professor at S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. China’s education ministry has sought to bolster employment at privately owned enterprises, offering tax rebates, social insurance reliefs and subsidies to encourage hiring young graduates. But the incentives have been low. The Shanghai municipal government, for instance, offers just 1,500 yuan in one-time subsidy per new hire. Government hiring slowsAppl...
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Economists raise Singapore’s 2025 growth forecast to 4.1%: MAS survey
17Dec mmBy Michael SmithNo Comments
Asia, Singapore

Economists raise Singapore’s 2025 growth forecast to 4.1%: MAS survey

The projection is similar to the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s (MTI) economic growth forecast of about 4 per cent  for 2025, and slightly lower than the 4.4 per cent growth recorded last year. Private sector economists have raised their growth forecast for the Singapore economy this year to 4.1 per cent, significantly higher than their previous estimate of 2.4 per cent made in September. The projection, released by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in its latest survey of professional forecasters on Wednesday (Dec 17), is similar to the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s (MTI) forecast of around 4 per cent, and slightly lower than the 4.4 per cent growth recorded last year. A total of 20 economists and analysts responded to the survey, MAS said. The Singapore econ...
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