Japan is scheduled to release a raft of data on Friday, highlighting a busy day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.
On tap are May numbers for inflation, household spending, unemployment, industrial production, retail sales, vehicle production, housing starts and construction orders. June results for the Nomura Manufacturing PMI also are due.
Inflation is expected to fall 0.4 percent on year after dropping 0.7 percent in April. Household spending is tipped to rise 1.3 percent on year after adding 1.5 percent in the previous month. The unemployment rate is called at 4.0 percent, down from 4.1 percent a month earlier.
Industrial production is expected to add 0.2 percent on month but fall 2.4 percent on year after gaining 0.9 percent on month and shedding 3.4 percent on year in April.
Retail sales are expected to add 0.7 percent on month and be flat on year after rising 0.6 percent on month and easing 0.1 percent on year in the previous month. Housing starts are expected to rise 6.1 percent on year after gaining 5.8 percent a month earlier. The manufacturing PMI saw a score of 51.5 in May.
New Zealand will provide May figures for building permits, with analysts expecting a decline of 3.9 percent on month following the 18.5 percent surge in April.
Australia will release May data for private sector credit, with forecasts suggesting an increase of 0.3 percent on month and 2.9 percent on year following the 0.3 percent monthly gain and the 3.1 percent annual expansion in the previous month.
South Korea will release industrial production data for May, with forecasts suggesting a gain of 1.2 percent on month and a decline of 1.5 percent on year. That follows the 0.8 percent monthly gain and the 1.7 percent annual increase in April.
Malaysia will provide producer price numbers for May; in April, PPI was down 0.5 percent on month and 4.9 percent on year.
Singapore will release producer price figures for May; in April, PPI was down 2.3 percent on month and 8.1 percent on year.
Thailand will announce trade data for May; in April, imports were worth $18.87 billion and exports were at $17.25 billion for a trade deficit of $1.62 billion. Also due is May's current account balance; in April, it registered a shortfall of $3.36 billion.
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May 22, 2026 14:46 ET Minutes of the latest Fed policy session was the highlight of the week along with survey data on the U.S. housing market. In Europe, survey data signaled the trends in the euro area private sector. Further, consumer price inflation data from the U.K. was in focus. In Asia, various economic indicators from China drew attention to the health of the economy.