Malaysia's central bank left its interest rate unchanged for the fifth straight meeting, on Thursday. The Monetary Policy Committee of Bank Negara Malaysia maintained its Overnight Policy Rate at 2.75 percent. The previous change in the policy was a quarter-point reduction in July, which was the...
The Philippine economy expanded at the slowest pace in five years in the first quarter amid declining investment, weaker household spending and exports. Gross domestic product grew 2.8 percent on a yearly basis in the first quarter, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Thursday. This followed a 3.0 percent expansion seen in the fourth quarter and marked the weakest expansion since the first q
Australia's trade balance registered its first deficit since late 2017 amid a sharp increase in imports, data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed on Thursday. The trade deficit totalled A$1.84 billion in March compared to a surplus of A$5.03 billion in February. This was the first...
The monetary base in Japan was down 11.3 percent on year in April, the Bank of Japan said on Thursday - coming in at 570.787 trillion yen. That missed expectations for a decline of 10.5 percent following the 10.6 percent drop in March. Banknotes in circulation were down 1.8 percent, while coins...
Australia will on Thursday release March figures for imports, exports and trade balance, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. In February, imports were down 3.2 percent on month and exports rose 4.9 percent for a trade surplus of A$5.686 billion. The Bank of Japan will release...
Hong Kong's retail sales growth moderated in March after accelerating in the previous month. The value of retail sales grew 12.8 percent year-on-year in March, slower than the 19.3 percent surge in February, which was the strongest growth since June 2023. Moreover, this was the fastest growth since June 2023, when sales grew 19.5 percent.
India's services activity expanded at the fastest pace in five months as output and new orders rose at quicker rates. The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI climbed to 58.8 in April from March's 14-month low of 57.5. The sales growth was boosted by competitive pricing, e-commerce, and particularly strong customer demand for relocation and logistics services.
China's service sector registered faster growth in April, driven by stronger increases in new business despite declining foreign orders, survey results published by S&P Global revealed Wednesday. The headline RatingDog China services Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 52.6 in April from 52.1 in the previous month.
The unemployment rate in New Zealand came in at a seasonally adjusted 5.3 percent in the first quarter of 2026, Statistics New Zealand said on Wednesday. That was beneath forecasts for 5.4 percent, which would have been unchanged from the previous three months. The employment change was 0.2 percent...
New Zealand will on Wednesday release Q1 numbers for unemployment, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. In the three months prior, the jobless rate was 5.4 percent and the participation rate was 70.5 percent. South Korea will provide April numbers for consumer prices, with...
The non-oil private sector economy in the UAE expanded at the weakest pace in more than five years amid inflationary pressures and supply chain constraints caused by the Middle East war. The purchasing managers' index for the non-oil private sector economy dropped to 52.1 in April from 52.9 in March. Nonetheless, a score above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.
The Reserve Bank of Australia raised its key interest rate by a quarter basis point for the third straight meeting as inflation is expected to remain above the target as the war in the Middle East pushed up fuel prices. The RBA policy board, led by Governor Michele Bullock, decided to lift the cash rate target by 25 basis points to 4.35 percent in a split vote on Tuesday, in line with economists
Indonesia's economy grew at the fastest pace in more than three years in the first quarter as government stimulus measures supported the nation amid the adverse effects of the war in the Middle East. Gross domestic product logged an annual growth of 5.61 percent in the first quarter, surpassing the 5.39 percent expansion registered in the fourth quarter, Statistics Indonesia said Tuesday.
Hong Kong's economy expanded at a faster pace in the first quarter. Gross domestic product advanced 5.9 percent year-over-year in the first quarter, faster than the 4.0 percent growth in the fourth quarter. The expenditure breakdown showed that private consumption expenditure grew 5.0 percent from last year, and government consumption was 2.9 percent higher.
The Philippines' consumer price inflation accelerated further in April to the highest level in just over three years. The consumer price index surged 7.2 percent on a yearly basis in April, faster than March's increase of 4.1 percent. The annual price growth in food and non-alcoholic beverages accelerated to 6.0 percent from 2.9 percent.
May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.