Asia

2Aug By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, China, Market

How Chinese loans trapped Pakistan’s economy

After cash-strapped Pakistan secured a new $7 billion (€6.5 billion) bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in July, Islamabad has started talks with Beijing on reprofiling billions in Chinese debt as it seeks to enact economic reforms. On the table are proposals to delay at least $16 billion in energy sector debt to China, along with extending the term of a $4 billion cash loan facility due to depleting foreign exchange reserves. Last week, Pakistani Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb was in Beijing to present proposals on extending the maturity of debt for nine power plants built by Chinese companies under the multibillion-dollar Pakistan China Economic Corridor (CPEC). On Friday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told a feder...
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Japan’s stock market plunges due to worries about the US economy.
2Aug By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia

Japan’s stock market plunges due to worries about the US economy.

Japanese stocks have taken a dramatic plunge after Wall Street shares tumbled over concerns about the US economy and a stronger yen. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed down 5.81 percent on Friday, or 2,216.63 points, at 35,909.70 – the second-biggest points drop in history, and the largest fall in percentage terms since March 2020 at the start of the pandemic. The broader Topix index lost 6.14 percent, or 166.09 points, to 2,537.60 “The chain of stock market declines did not stop,” IwaiCosmo Securities said following US and European index falls. Most Tokyo shares faced selloffs from early trade on Friday, having ended sharply lower the previous day, it added. On Wall Street, all three major indices finished decisively lower as weak manufacturing data led to worries about...
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2Aug By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, China, Market

China’s Service Sector Is an Underutilized Driver of Economic Growth

China’s economic development over the last several decades has been remarkable amid rapid growth. We project growth will remain resilient at around 5 percent in 2024, despite the continued property sector adjustment. At the same time, China has relied too much on investment as opposed to consumption. Diminishing productivity and an aging population risk restricting growth, which we expect to slow significantly in coming years, to around 3.3 percent in 2029. Addressing these challenges requires a comprehensive and balanced policy approach. Given these circumstances, the country’s service sector is an underexploited driver of growth—which was also recognized at the Third Plenum. Reallocating resources to services has helped boost productivity over the past two decades. And i...
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31Jul By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, Market

Why protest by ethnic Baloch has put Pakistan’s key port of Gwadar on edge

Islamabad, Pakistan — Tensions are high in Pakistan’s port city of Gwadar in the southwestern Balochistan province where an ethnic Baloch group has been protesting for days, following the arrests of some of their members and deadly clashes with security forces. Gwadar is Pakistan’s only deep-sea port on the Arabian Sea, and is a key route of the $60bn China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The latest tensions in the port city began on Friday after the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) gave a call to demonstrate against alleged human rights violations, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings of people in Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest and poorest province. Home to approximately 15 million of Pakistan’s estimated 240 million people, according to...
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31Jul By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, China, Market

China’s PMI data softened slightly in July

Manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMIs both edged slightly lower in July dragged down by weak domestic demand Manufacturing PMI remained in contraction China's July official manufacturing PMI slowed slightly to 49.4, down from 49.5 in June. This marked the third consecutive month the PMI has been below 50 - the threshold between expansion and contraction - and also marked a 5-month low.  By subcategory, we saw some mixed performances but generally, the more important subcategories trended a little weaker. The biggest decline was in production, which fell from 50.6 to 50.1. New orders also fell further into contraction from 49.5 to 49.3, as domestic demand remains sluggish. In contrast, we saw slightly smaller contractions in new export orders (48.5) and imports (47.0)...
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No reconsideration of the policy on Chinese FDI: Goyal
31Jul By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, World

No reconsideration of the policy on Chinese FDI: Goyal

The government is not looking at a review of the cautious policy regarding foreign direct investment (FDI) from China though the Economic Survey had backed a a more open approach to capital inflows from the neighbour to meet the manufacturing ambitions of the country. “There is no rethinking at present to support Chinese investments in the country,” commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said here on Tuesday, in the first categorical statement on this from a senior government functionary. He said the Economic Survey was a report that always flags new ideas, though it is “not at all binding on the government.” The survey last week had suggested that welcoming FDI from China will help India better meet its ambition of having a greater share in the global va...
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Together, China and Australia can accelerate Asean’s energy transformation.
31Jul By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia

Together, China and Australia can accelerate Asean’s energy transformation.

The Australia-China relationship has stabilised after years of geopolitical and trade turbulence. This lays the groundwork for further cooperation, including through joint initiatives in Asia. A significant opportunity lies in Southeast Asia’s push towards an electrified future. Almost all countries in the region have committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions, and electrifying the end-user sectors, including transport, is a crucial strategy in this effort. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency’s road map to keep the global temperature rise under 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2050, Southeast Asia is set for a rapid electrification, with more than half of its energy consumption coming from electricity by 2050, up from 22 per cent in 2018. This shif...
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China offers Pakistan $300 million in Panda bonds in an effort to alleviate its economic woes.
27Jul By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, China

China offers Pakistan $300 million in Panda bonds in an effort to alleviate its economic woes.

Panda Bonds are onshore renminbi-denominated bonds issued in the People’s Republic of China by non-Chinese entities and serve as a capital-raising platform for foreign countries or companies targeting Chinese investors. With an aim to improve the financial stability of a cash-strapped country which is grappling with several other challenges such as high inflation and declining forex reserves, Pakistan has sought cooperation from Chinese institutional investors to launch Panda Bonds to raise between $250 million and $300 million initially. Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb discussed the plan with the Governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) Pan Gongsheng during a meeting in Beijing, covering a wide range of economic issues on Friday. Panda Bonds are ...
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What role does toilet paper have in the Indian economy?
26Jul By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, World

What role does toilet paper have in the Indian economy?

The discussion on India's economy took a toilet break. Among the numerous mentions in the Economic Survey 2023-2024 of tax, trade deficit, fiscal prudence -- terms that some might find difficult to metabolise -- there was a very unusual mention of toilet paper. It tries to send a green message to the West, which might not be a smooth wipe. The Economic Survey 2023-24 presented by Nirmala Sitharamanmentioned toilet paper to underscore its rampant use in Western countries and its significant environmental implications. In the chapter dealing with climate change, the annual document also highlighted how substitute hygiene practices followed in Asian countries have been ignored by the West and how they can provide valuable insights into more sustainable use of resources. The que...
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25Jul By Online DeskNo Comments
Asia, China, Market

Xi tackles slow growth as economy ‘hits the brakes’

China's economy stumbled in the second quarter, official data shows, just as the country's top leaders gathered for a key meeting to address its sluggish growth. It grew 4.7% in the three months to June, falling short of expectations after a stronger start in the first three months of 2024. The government's annual growth target is around 5%. "China’s economy hit the brakes in the June quarter," said Heron Lim at Moody's Analytics, adding that analysts are hoping for solutions from the meeting under way in Beijing, also called the Third Plenum. The world's second-largest economy is facing a prolonged property crisis, steep local government debt, weak consumption and high unemployment. Past outcomes of the Plenum have changed the course of history in China - in 1978, then l...
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