Markets

The future of the EU–China trade relationship — one of the largest in the world — will be substantially impacted by a debate over whether China should be granted ‘market economy status’ (MES) this year. Under the terms of China’s...

In the face of the 2011 triple disaster, the residents of Fukushima banded together to manage the crisis. The word kizuna has become widely used to describe the people-to-people bonds underpinning the remarkable endurance displayed by the residents of Fukushima....

Early Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan will announce revisions to Q4 GDP.  A downward revision to business spending risks will shave the initial estimate from a contraction of 1.4% at an annualized rate to 1.5%.  Regardless, the key takeaway is that...

Risk sentiment ended last week on a strong note, and that should carry over into this week.  The global liquidity backdrop remains positive for EM, with the ECB widely expected to add more stimulus on Thursday.  In a similar vein,...

The India–ASEAN relationship received a shot in the arm with the conclusion of the 8th Delhi Dialogue on 17–19 February 2016. Since 1991, India has been aggressively pursuing increased trade and strategic relations with Southeast Asian Countries as a part...

1) China’s central bank announced a 0.5% cut in the required reserve ratio, 2) Moody's cut the outlook on China's Aa3 rating to negative from stable, 3) Argentina and the main holdouts agreed to a debt restructuring deal, 4) Brazilian...

The stillness is most overwhelming. The rubble has been cleared away. The grass has grown back. However, along much of the coastal strip devastated by the tsunami that struck Japan on 11 March 2011, a silence remains. The stillness is...

Australia’s future submarine program is the largest and most complex defence procurement in the nation’s history. While technical issues to establish the ‘best’ submarine remain important, strategic, political and economic factors are key to Australia’s decision. The deal could have...

Those behind the attacks in Jakarta on 14 January desperately hoped to emulate the 13 November attacks in Paris. This time they fell far short. The attackers, contrary to initial impressions, were entirely locally organised and failed at almost every...

What is the issue?  The UK has long had a strained relationship with the EU and has never been comfortable with the ever-increasing drive for greater integration and harmonization of rules and regulations coming from Brussels.  As the EU has...

EM ended last week on a soft note, due to a variety of both external and internal factors.  Firm US data continue to support our call for resumed Fed tightening, and this gave the dollar a bit of a bid. ...

1) PBOC appears to have confirmed a somewhat easier monetary stance, 2) Malaysian Prime Minister Najib is consolidating his grip on power, 3) Hungarian central bank Vice Governor Nagy hinted at more rate cuts, 4) Press reports suggest South African...

Another Japanese minister bites the dust with Akira Amari’s resignation from the Shinzo Abe cabinet on 28 January. Yet this time, there may be more repercussions than usual for the government. Ironically, Amari was previously chairman of the ruling Liberal...

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s signature ‘Make in India’ initiative — which aims to transform India into a global manufacturing hub — specially mentions the importance of special economic zones (SEZs) in attracting foreign investors. However, despite the strong pitch,...

Singapore has regularly reported considerable surpluses in its annual fiscal budget. Budget surpluses have been an essential part of the country’s growth strategy (Asher et al. 2015) as they are perceived to provide a signal of sound public sector financial...