South Asia Regional Brief
March 24, 2014--STORY HIGHLIGHTS
The percentage of people living on less than $1.25 a day fell in South Asia from 61% to 31% between 1981 and 2010. Still, 42% of the world’s poor live in South Asia-more than any other region in the world.
Growth in South Asia rose to an estimated 4.6 percent in 2013 from 4.2 percent in 2012 on a market price-calendar year basis. Growth was, however, well below its pre-crisis pace.
The World Bank Group (WBG) is a significant development partner in South Asia, with a portfolio of 190 IDA/IBRD projects, totaling approximately $37.1 billion in net commitments.
South Asia has experienced a long period of robust economic growth, averaging 6% a year over the past 20 years. This strong growth has translated into declining poverty and impressive improvements in human development. The percentage of people living on less than $1.25 a day fell in South Asia from 61% to 31% between 1981 and 2010. The proportion of poor is lower now in South Asia than any time since 1981. Still, 42% of the world’s poor live in South Asia-more than any other region in the world. The region is home to half a billion poor and its development is key to meeting global poverty and prosperity goals.
view more
Source: World Bank
Disentangling India's Investment Slowdown
March 24, 2014--Summary: This paper documents the recent slowdown in investment in India and explores its underlying causes. The sharp investment deceleration has sparked an intense debate about the role of interest rates, as well as business confidence and economic policy uncertainty.
Our results suggest that while explaining aggregate investment activity better than nominal interest rates, real interest rates account for only one quarter of the explained investment downturn.
view the IMF Working paper-Disentangling India's Investment Slowdown
Source: IMF
China Expands Bank Financing With Preferred Stock Trial
March 21, 2014--China issued rules for a trial program allowing companies to sell preferred stock, expanding financing options for the nation's banks as they seek to address tougher capital requirements.
Companies can issue the shares if they are included in the Shanghai Stock Exchange 50 A-Share Index, the China Securities Regulatory Commission said in a statement on its verified microblog account yesterday. Publicly traded companies can also issue preferred stock to pay for acquisitions and buy back shares, the CSRC said.
view more
Source: Bloomberg
Renminbi marks new trading regime with fall to 11-month low
March 17, 2014--China's central bank underlined its intention to give the market a bigger role in determining the value of its currency when it announced a doubling of the renminbi's trading band on Saturday.
But investors stung by its recent clampdown on speculators will be cautious in testing its tolerance of greater volatility.
view more
Source: FT.com
Indonesia Economic Quarterly, March 2014: Investment in Flux
March 17, 2014--Highlights-The fourth quarter of 2013 brought welcome signs that Indonesia's economy is rebalancing in response to previous monetary policy and exchange rate adjustments, which is positive for macroeconomic stability.
The overall economic growth rate was broadly unchanged, at 5.7 percent year-on-year, but the composition of growth tilted more towards net exports while fixed investment remained subdued.
Indonesia's current account deficit shrank notably in Q4 2013, reflecting these changes, and also helped by a stabilization in the terms of trade and a temporary increase in mineral exports ahead of the January ban. This has supported Indonesian financial markets and the Rupiah, which has rallied about 7 percent so far in 2014.
view the World Bank report-Indonesia Economic Quarterly, March 2014: Investment in Flux
Source: World Bank
China's Li Keqiang warns investors to prepare for wave of bankruptcies
World's second largest economy is facing 'serious challenges' and many companies with high debts are being forced to the wall
March 15, 2014--China is braced for a wave of industrial bankruptcies as its slowing economy forces companies with sky-high debts to the wall, the country's premier has said.
Premier Li Keqiang told lenders to China's private sector factories they should expect debt defaults as the world's second largest economy encounters "serious challenges" in the year ahead.
view more
Source: The Guardian
Local bourse eases rules on ETFs
March 14, 2014--The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is easing the rules on exchange traded funds (ETF) to encourage more issuances of the new investment instrument.
Among the "major enhancements" to the ETF rules are the removal of the underwriting condition and the paid-up capital requirement for an authorized participant who is not a market-maker, PSE president and chief executive Hans B. Sicat said in a briefing on Thursday.
view more
Source: Interaksyon.com
IMF-Malaysia: Selected Issues
March 14, 2014--A MEDIUM-TERM FISCAL STRATEGY
1
Malaysia has embarked upon an ambitious consolidateion strategy: the authorities aim to reduce the
federal fiscal deficit from about 4.0 percent of GDP in 2013 to about 3 percent in 2015, and about zero
by 2020.
Under staff's baseline projections, this medium-term fiscal consolidation would lower the federal debt-to-GDP ratio to about 40 percent by 202
0, consistent with staff's recommended medium-term debt target. Several measures have been announced in recent months, including gradual subsidy rationalization starting in September 2013 and the introduction of a Goods and Services Tax (GST) in April 2015. Implementation of these measures will play a key role in faciitating near-term fiscal adjustment.
view report
Source: IMF
Goldman Sachs unveils central public sector ETF today
March 13, 2014--The Government will now have another route to divest its holdings in 10 public sector enterprises with the launch of the CPSE ETF (Central Public Sector Enterprises Exchange Traded Fund) by Goldman Sachs AMC, here on Friday.
On May 2, 2013, as part of the disinvestment programme, the Government had approved the setting up of a CPSE ETF comprising equity shares of CPSEs, to be launched as a CPSE ETF mutual fund scheme.
view more
Source: The Hindu Business Line
MSCI's China Index Proposal Seen Luring $4 Billion to A Shares
March 13, 2014--MSCI Inc.'s proposal to include China's mainland-traded shares in its emerging-market indexes may lure $4.4 billion in funds, with China Merchants Bank Co. (3968) and Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. among the top beneficiaries.
The estimate of inflows into China's so-called A shares by analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. compares with the $52 billion of approved quotas through China's Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors program. China Merchants Bank, AgBank and Ping,An Insurance Group Co. (2318) would probably receive the most inflows under MSCI's proposal, Societe Generale SA wrote in a report dated yesterday.
view more
Source: Bloomberg
If you are looking for a particuliar article and can not find it, please feel free to contact us for assistace.