Asia

WITH the Covid-19 outbreak, South-east Asia's gross domestic product growth is expected to slow sharply to just 1 per cent in 2020, before rebounding to 4.7 per cent in 2021, according to an Asian Development Bank report on April 3. This is down from 2019's full-year growth rate of 4.4 per cent. The report, Asian Development Outlook 2020, forecasts that for developing Asia as a whole, growth will slow to 2.2 per cent in 2020, before rebounding to 6.2 per cent in 2021. All Asean economies will see a growth slowdown because of Covid-19 and a consequent global slump, especially given their strong trade and investment ties with a slowing China, said the report. Thailand is expected to perform the worst with a 4.8 per cent contraction, "continuing a steady slide in recent years"."Growth in the ...

BANGKOK - Millions of jobs could be lost in South-east Asia as economies grind to a halt amid efforts to contain the coronavirus pandemic, wreaking havoc particularly in countries with weak social protection systems. A report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Escap) says regional governments should - and still have ample policy space - to both save jobs as well as support minimum living standards for households. In the policy paper on the Asia Pacific region issued last week (March 26), Escap noted that while exact data on the impact of the pandemic on employment remained unavailable, "the impact is likely to be substantial as services and labour-intensive manufacturing comprise over 80 per cent of the region's informal sector and small and medi...

* Vietnam marks worst day since March 30    * Malaysia's worst session in over four weeks Southeast Asia markets closed lower ledby Vietnam stocks on Tuesday, rattled by a historic crash inU.S. oil prices that laid bare the disruption caused by thecoronavirus pandemic.     The plunge, which pressured global markets, was a result ofa storage squeeze which turned holders of U.S. crude contractsexpiring later on Tuesday to forced sellers. This amid a lack ofdemand for oil as countries around the world observe lockdownsto curb the spread of the coronavirus.    "The impact of negative oil means different things fordifferent Asian economies - but if you have to generalize, itisn't great news," Robert Carnell, regional head of research,Asia-Pacific at ING, wrote in a note.    Such a big negative ...

Facebook Inc is preparing to apply for regulatory approval in Indonesia to launch mobile payments in partnership with three local digital fintech firms, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The plan, if approved, could be among the first such services under the unified payment service Facebook Pay it, which the social media platform unveiled in November. It allows users across its various platforms including WhatsApp and Instagram to make payments without exiting the app. The move comes amid early partnership talks between the social network and ride-hailing and payments firm Gojek. Four sources said Facebook wants to capitalize on the Indonesian market and is preparing for regulatory approval in the country. The three e-wallet operators are Indonesian ride hailing firm Gojek’s Go...