Indonesia: Bold Reforms Needed to Realize Urban Potential
October 3, 2019--Report looks at how Indonesia's cities can deliver on prosperity, inclusiveness, livability
Urbanization has the potential to be a major driver of prosperity and inclusiveness in Indonesia, but fully realizing this potential requires bold institutional reforms, according to a World Bank report launched today. Indonesian cities need improved management and more adequate financing.
This translates into expanding options for financing infrastructure and basic services, improving coordination among different levels and sectors of government and within metropolitan areas, and building capacity in local governments to better plan and implement urban development.
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Source: World Bank
Southbound flows rescuing Hong Kong equity market
October 2, 2019--China seems to be coming to the rescue as social unrest affects the city's financial market, but it's probably only for arbitrage reasons
Although 2019 has been an annus horribilis for Hong Kong, Chinese investors have actually increased their inflows toward the Hang Seng Index.
In particular, Hong Kong has experienced the longest consecutive period of net southbound inflows into the equity market from the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets (37 days until September 11). Such behavior may look strange, which explains why some analysts have been wondering whether such a move was engineered by the central government as a way to cushion the negative impact of Hong Kong's social unrest on the city's financial market.
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Source: bruegel.org
China Misses Out on Entering FTSE Russell Global Bond Index
September 26, 2019--Decision contrasts with Bloomberg Barclays, JPMorgan approvals
Some investors have cited concerns about hedging, access
China failed to win inclusion into one of the world's benchmark bond indexes, as FTSE Russell opted not to follow two competitors in adding the country's domestic debt.
China will remain on the FTSE watchlist, according to a statement Thursday that showed the firm demurred on including it in its flagship World Government Bond Index.
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Source: bloomberg.com
China's shadow banking industry roars back
September 24, 2019--Regulators have eased deleveraging efforts to help boost economic growth
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Source: FT.com
When the Night Lights Go On in Asia
September 24, 2019--It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words. The value of a picture taken from space is a new metric we can use to measure economic growth and activity.
The past decade has seen a dramatic increase in economists' use of satellite images of the earth at night. These "night lights", as they are called, help study a wide variety of topics, ranging from growth and development to poverty and inequality, particularly in places where economic data are scarce and unreliable. Night lights reveal both the remote corners of our world in new detail and how they change over time.
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Source: IMF
The tricky link between the Hong Kong dollar and capital flows
September 13, 2019--The Hong Kong economy has been hit by a series of shocks, but it should resist taking drastic measures to keep foreign capital in the city.
Hong Kong is a very special financial centre. First, it is highly dependent on Chinese financial intermediaries and corporates. Second, its currency is pegged to the US dollar through one of the tightest monetary arrangements, namely a currency board.
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Source: bruegel.org
Australian economic growth hits 10-year low
September 3, 2019--The Australian economy has recorded its weakest annual growth in a decade, official data released Wednesday showed, expanding just 1.4 percent in the year to June.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported the economy grew 0.4 percent between April and June compared with the previous quarter, a small increase driven by mining exports and government spending.
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Source: ibtimes.com
China's renminbi is headed for its biggest ever monthly drop-and economists warn other currencies will suffer
August 30, 2019--China's yuan (also called the renminbi) is headed for it's biggest monthly drop on record.
A lower-valued currency makes Chinese goods cheaper to export.
It's a battleground issue in the trade spat between the US and China.
Economists are now warning that the currency may go down even more, and the risk of contagion to emerging markets is rising. Argentina, Brazil, and Turkey's currencies could all be at risk.
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Source: businessinsider.com
India to merge state banks amid concern over economic slowdown
August 30, 2019--India plans to merge a number of state banks as the government looks for fresh ways to battle a grinding economic slowdown. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday that the government would merge 10 existing banks into four entities.
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Source: FT.com
China's Potential New Trade Weapon: Corporate Social Credits
August 27, 2019--Program will reward or punish companies for their behavior, but foreigners worry Beijing will use it to impose political orthodoxy on international firms
After five years, China is putting the finishing touches on a sweeping new system to punish and reward companies for their corporate behavior. But foreigners worry that, amid the continuing U.S.-China trade dispute, Beijing will use its new corporate "social credit" system as a weapon against international businesses.
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Source: WSJ.com
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