Thursday, April 25 2024 | ASIA TODAY INTERNATIONAL - Reporting the Business that Matters in Asia
HANOI - The State Bank of Vietnam today devalued the VND by 1%, its second currency adjustment this year, taking the official rate to 21,673/USD. The +/-1% trading band is maintained, so the new range will be 21,458-21,890.
MANILA - The Philippines Bureau of Treasury has implemented a non-restricted trading and settlement environment (NRT) for Peso-denominated coupon-bearing Government securities effective May 4.
BEIJING - The results of an investigation into some of China’s biggest SOEs has revealed that the risk of potential malpractice in the management of overseas assets “remains unacceptably strong”, according to the disciplinary watchdog, the Central Commission for Disciplinary Inspection.
The results of the investigation will likely form the foundation behind efforts to introduce stricter levels of corporate governance and more effective management of China’s overseas interests.
BEIJING - Starting from June 1, China will lift price controls on most medicines, according to an online notice posted by top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). The NDRC said “medicine prices will be decided by the market,” with only narcotics and some listed psychotropic drugs continuing to be controlled by the government “with ceiling retail prices”.
HONG KONG - The HSBC China Manufacturing PMI fell to a one year low of 48.9 in the final reading for April, down from the flash reading of 49.2 earlier. HSBC says sequential contraction deepened as new orders contracted, and that re-stocking appears limited.
SINGAPORE – Standard & Poor’s has revised its 2015-2017 average real GDP growth projection for Pakistan to 4.6% from 3.8%. It says Pakistan has made significant progress in stabilising its economic, fiscal, and external performance, and that financing conditions have also eased considerably.
JAKARTA - Indonesia’s real GDP growth has sputtered to a weaker than expected 4.7% y/y in Q1 2015, its slowest pace since September 2009, compared to 5.0% in 4Q14. BBVA Bank says the disappointing GDP out-turn exacerbates Indonesia’s already dim growth outlook, adds to Bank Indonesia’s policy dilemma, and serves a wake-up call for President Jokowi to accelerate long-promised structural reforms. www.bbvaresearch.com (ATI).
BANGKOK – The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has unexpectedly cut rates, voting 5-2 to reduce rates to 1.75%. ANZ says this means there has been an additional dove on the Board, in addition to four members who voted for a 25bps cut at the bank’s March meeting.
BEIJING - China’s leading Government think tank, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) says China’s current economic restructuring, which began in 2014 and has otherwise been referred to as the ‘new normal’, “may last for another three to five years, along with a decelerating growth rate, much longer than the previously estimated one or two years”, according to Academy deputy head, Li Yang.
HONG KONG - Standard & Poor's has revised its rating outlook on Mongolia to negative from stable- but affirmed its 'B+' long-term and 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings and its 'B+' issue rating on the country's senior unsecured notes. The 'BB-' transfer and convertibility (T&C) assessment on Mongolia is unchanged.
ADELAIDE – Hamburg Süd has added Adelaide as a port of call between Fremantle and Melbourne on its Southbound Asian services to accommodate an increasing volume of trade between Asia and South Australia.
The initiative creates the only Eastbound sailing from Adelaide direct to North Asian ports,
HONG KONG - Some department store operators in China are moving closer to the triggers for rating downgrades, according to ratings agency Standard & Poor's. It says China's economic slowdown, the Gvernment's crackdown on lavish gifting by officials, and online competition are materially weakening the sales, cash flows, and profitability of department store operators.
BEIJING - Chinese media sources, including National Business Daily, are reporting that an official plan for “Made in China 2025” will be released sometime in the next month. Robotics, automation, aviation and maritime equipment and mechanised agriculture are some of the areas the plan is expected to emphasise.
TAIPEI - Amendments to Taiwan’s Labor Standards Act approved by the Government Cabinet aim to bring local labour conditions in line with global standards while balancing the needs of employees and employers, says Premier Mao Chi-kuo.
SEOUL - Korea’s GDP grew 2.4% y/y in Q1, down from 2.7% in the previous quarter but marginally above market expectations of 2.3% growth. Notably, facilities investments saw strong growth of 5.7% y/y, up from 4.2% in the previous quarter.
TAIPEI - Foreign direct investment in Taiwan surged 48.19% on-year to US$1.24 billion in the first quarter of 2015. Of 853 new investments, the biggest were capital injections of US$76.06 million and US$47.55 million into Hsinchu County-based Stats Chippac Taiwan Semiconductor Corp. and Taipei City-headquartered CSB Battery Co. Ltd. - the former by Singapore’s Bloomeria Ltd. and the latter by Japan’s Hitachi Chemical Co. Ltd.