Markets

In 2007, the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) bloc adopted the goal of creating an integrated economic region—termed the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC)—by December 2015. However, concerns have been expressed that the regional integration project’s 2015 deadline will...

The ongoing disputes between the Philippines and China in the South China Sea are about to reach a critical point. In January 2013 the Philippines activated procedures under Article 287 and Annex VII of the 1982 UN Convention on the...

Only one party contesting this week’s Japanese election is advocating agricultural reform and it is not the LDP. Only one party contesting this week’s Japanese election is advocating agricultural reform and it is not the LDP.The party in question is...

In February 2014, Chinese President Xi Jinping was appointed Chair of the Central Cybersecurity and Informatization Leading Group, an agency which coordinates China’s cybersecurity and ‘informatisation’ policies. The move reflected deep dissatisfaction within the leadership of the pace of innovation...

1) Indonesia’s recently elected President Jokowi is facing his first major popular challenge2) Turkey raised the daily dollar auction amount from $20 mln to $40 mln3) There are signs of some growing concern over currency weakness in Mexico  4) Brazil...

The old growth engines of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan are decelerating. The new ones are predicated on deeper economic ties with China.Recently, the governing Kuomintang suffered a landslide defeat in local elections in Taiwan, China; the worst electoral setback...

In 2001, the term BRIC was coined by Jim O'Neill, formerly with Goldman Sachs, who had used the acronym in his thesis on emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China. With inclusion of South Africa in 2010, BRICS was...

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe dissolved the lower house of the Diet on 21 November and called a snap general election on 14 December. At the same time, Abe announced that he would postpone the second hike of the consumption...

Economic performance in post-Suharto Indonesia has been inferior to that achieved during the previous three decades, with economic growth slower and income inequality increasing. With the recent election of a new president, now is a good time to focus on...

Japan is ageing; shrinking population will cause serious problems for the country throughout the 21st century. Although the fertility rate has recovered to 1.39, this is still very low by international standards. Current official projections estimate that Japan’s present population...

The South China Sea is not the central strategic element in the overall US–China relationship. It was clearly not a centrepiece of the November 2014 Obama–Xi summit in Beijing. Climate change, North Korea, Iran, Taiwan, trade, intellectual property theft and...

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking new ways to enhance India’s global diplomacy. Modi is pursuing two paths largely overlooked by analysts of India’s foreign policy: to connect with the Indian diaspora and to encourage links with subnational governments...

Falling commodity prices and better US economic data are the biggest macro drivers for EM, overriding just about all idiosyncratic variables – perhaps with the exception of the weaker yen for Korea. We note that aside from the huge fall...

Developments in the week ahead will be understood within the context of last week's developments.  The most important of these are the strength of the US jobs report and cuts in growth and inflation forecasts by the European Central Bank...

The US dollar changed little against most of the major currencies but is taking another step up against the yen.  The failure of the Democrat Party of Japan to mount a serious challenge to Abe, despite the quite divided public...