https://www.scmp.com/rss/326211/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Lijia Zhang Lijia Zhang In recent years, the Brics grouping has attracted attention as it adds members and positions itself as the voice of the Global South. At a Brics forum held in Beijing last month, officials discussed expanding trade within the grouping. Such initiatives reflect both an impulse to reduce exposure to external shocks linked to the US dollar and a long-term ambition to reshape global finance. These gatherings are as much about signalling intent as delivering substance. Brics wants to be seen as a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3353220/what-brics-lacks-unity-it-makes-flexibility?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3353220/what-brics-lacks-unity-it-makes-flexibility?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 May 2026 21:30:05 +0000 Karen Tian Karen Tian Pakistan is poised to become the latest partner in a China-centred trading network, known as the Belt and Road Initiative, to sell “panda bonds”. Islamabad seeks to raise as much as US$250 million through its first-ever sale of the bonds – yuan-denominated debt instruments sold by foreign entities in mainland China’s onshore market – as early as this week. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb confirmed on Saturday that Islamabad was preparing to access Chinese capital markets with the sale – the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3353149/panda-power-pakistan-tap-china-debt-market-first-sale-yuan-priced-notes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3353149/panda-power-pakistan-tap-china-debt-market-first-sale-yuan-priced-notes?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2026 02:00:14 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma In an extraordinary break from the diplomatic restraint typical of central banks, a dozen leaders of the world’s foremost monetary institutions issued a joint statement in January declaring their “full solidarity” with the US Federal Reserve and its embattled chair, Jerome Powell. “The independence of central banks is a cornerstone of price, financial and economic stability in the interest of the citizens that we serve,” they wrote. The move was intended to shore up the separation of monetary... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3352914/investors-have-worries-about-trumps-pick-fed-chair-should-they?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3352914/investors-have-worries-about-trumps-pick-fed-chair-should-they?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 May 2026 01:00:10 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Singapore and Thailand ranked among the world’s “least miserable” economies in an annual index compiled by a Johns Hopkins University economist, who said Southeast Asia was one of the “healthiest economic neighbourhoods” in the world. The 2025 Hanke’s Annual Misery Index (HAMI), compiled by applied economics professor Steve Hanke, measures the “economic temperature” of a country and seeks to approximate how its average citizen experiences the economy. This year’s HAMI found that several... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352182/why-singapore-thailand-are-among-worlds-happiest-economies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352182/why-singapore-thailand-are-among-worlds-happiest-economies?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 May 2026 12:58:39 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Hong Kong’s monetary authority warned of interest-rate uncertainty amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East, after leaving its base rate unchanged on Thursday in tandem with the US Federal Reserve. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) said US interest-rate movements were affected by the Middle East tensions, which had led to higher oil prices and affected US inflation. Analysts said the inflationary impact of the US-Israel war with Iran had reduced the chances of a rate cut this year. “The... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3351921/hkma-holds-base-interest-rate-4-following-fed-war-inflation-worries-persist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3351921/hkma-holds-base-interest-rate-4-following-fed-war-inflation-worries-persist?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 23:27:32 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma Daniel Gros is the director of the Institute for European Policymaking at Bocconi University. Previously, he served as an adviser to the European Parliament, collaborated with the European Commission as economic adviser to the Delors Committee, which developed plans for the euro, and worked at the International Monetary Fund. In this interview, Gros examines the structural tensions shaping EU-China economic ties, draws lessons from the euro’s experience to analyse the yuan’s... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3351329/daniel-gros-what-china-can-learn-euro-it-works-towards-global-yuan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3351329/daniel-gros-what-china-can-learn-euro-it-works-towards-global-yuan?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Apr 2026 22:00:14 +0000 Nicholas Spiro Nicholas Spiro In March 2024, the Bank of Japan raised interest rates for the first time since 2007, lifting borrowing costs out of negative territory and calling time on decades of ultra-loose monetary policy as Japan emerged from a long period of entrenched deflation. At the time, inflation had been above the central bank’s 2 per cent target for 22 months. Fast forward to today, and inflationary pressures continue to build. Although headline inflation fell to 1.3 per cent in February, this was because of the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3351088/why-japans-central-bank-caught-between-rock-and-hard-place?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3351088/why-japans-central-bank-caught-between-rock-and-hard-place?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 08:30:08 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The yuan is rapidly expanding as a global financing source. Just this month, Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund, Samruk-Kazyna, became the first financial institution from Central Asia to issue yuan-denominated debt – worth 3 billion yuan (US$440 million) – in China’s onshore market. Meanwhile, in a first for a euro-zone country, Portugal sold 1.99 billion yuan of eight-year debt in the offshore yuan bond market. The country’s debt agency said the securities, nicknamed dim sum bonds, aim to... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3350441/chinese-yuan-slowly-surely-cutting-us-dollar-dominance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3350441/chinese-yuan-slowly-surely-cutting-us-dollar-dominance?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Apr 2026 23:15:10 +0000 Xinyi Wu Xinyi Wu Beijing has raised the limit on banks’ overseas lending – a move that analysts say will support Chinese firms in outbound investment expansions while helping to stabilise the yuan. Regulators raised the overseas-loan leverage ratio for foreign banks in China and their joint ventures with Chinese lenders from 0.5 to 1.5 on Wednesday, according to a statement published by the central bank and the foreign exchange regulator. In a separate statement, the regulators said that the new rules would... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3350350/chinas-pboc-raises-leverage-ratios-foreign-lenders-support-outbound-investment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3350350/chinas-pboc-raises-leverage-ratios-foreign-lenders-support-outbound-investment?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 12:30:13 +0000 Francis Neoton Cheung Francis Neoton Cheung The world is undergoing a transformation of historic proportions. Geopolitical rivalry, economic restructuring and technological acceleration are converging to reshape the global order. These changes transcend the logic of any single nation, industry or moment in time, exerting profound influence on international politics, geoeconomics, industrial structures, capital flows and investment strategies. For Hong Kong, this “great change unseen in a century” is not an abstraction. It is a pressing... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349883/hong-kong-must-go-beyond-its-intermediary-role-become-global-anchor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349883/hong-kong-must-go-beyond-its-intermediary-role-become-global-anchor?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Xinyi Wu Xinyi Wu Faltering confidence in the US dollar has handed China a “golden window of opportunity” to promote the global use of its currency, according to a former head of the Chinese central bank. “The core driving force behind the current changes in the international monetary system is the United States’ own policy choices,” Zhou Xiaochuan was quoted as saying in a report published on Sunday by the New Economist, a Chinese think tank. He cited the broad application of American tariffs, the frequent use... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3349868/yuans-golden-window-open-former-pboc-governor-says-us-dollar-credibility-teeters?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3349868/yuans-golden-window-open-former-pboc-governor-says-us-dollar-credibility-teeters?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Apr 2026 06:59:34 +0000 Qiyuan Xu,Panpan Yang Qiyuan Xu,Panpan Yang Global imbalances are once again taking shape, albeit differently than how they manifested before the financial crisis of the late 2000s. Back then, the story was simple: some countries, led by China and Germany, saved too much, while the United States consumed too much. The answer, at least in theory, was also simple: surplus countries should rely more on domestic demand while deficit countries should save more; exchange rates should adjust. While that framework still matters, it no longer... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349158/how-ai-and-geopolitical-rivalry-are-breaking-economic-orthodoxy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349158/how-ai-and-geopolitical-rivalry-are-breaking-economic-orthodoxy?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 08:30:07 +0000 Marco Vicenzino Marco Vicenzino Geopolitical competition has long been understood in territorial terms. Power was measured by control over land, resources and populations. Rivalry was expressed through military confrontation, alliance formation and the defence of borders. As economic interdependence deepened in the 20th century, globalisation was seen as an arena within which states competed, but not itself the object of competition. That assumption no longer holds. Increasingly, the infrastructure of globalisation is becoming... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347953/age-us-china-rivalry-supply-chain-statecraft-counts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347953/age-us-china-rivalry-supply-chain-statecraft-counts?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Nicholas Spiro Nicholas Spiro Last week, the energy shock caused by the war in Iran showed signs of becoming a full-blown financial and economic crisis. The attacks on energy infrastructure across the Middle East, coupled with soaring prices of crucial refined petroleum products such as diesel and jet fuel, forced investors to start pricing in a prolonged disruption to supply and a contraction in demand. Even if the Strait of Hormuz reopens sooner than anticipated, the scale of the damage to energy assets in the Persian Gulf... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3347540/war-induced-interest-rate-shocks-unlikely-upset-asias-property-markets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3347540/war-induced-interest-rate-shocks-unlikely-upset-asias-property-markets?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Carol Yang Carol Yang China’s central bank named the continued stability of the country’s capital markets as a priority for 2026, a goal taking on greater significance as global markets are tested by the reverberations of the escalating US-Israel war on Iran. The People’s Bank of China designated the stability of stock, bond and foreign exchange markets as one of its “major tasks” for the year, according to a readout from a high-level meeting hosted by bank governor Pan Gongsheng on Wednesday. The bank also vowed to... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347187/chinas-central-bank-pledges-stability-capital-markets-amid-global-sell?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347187/chinas-central-bank-pledges-stability-capital-markets-amid-global-sell?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 13:30:09 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has warned the public to beware of interest rate risks after it kept its base rate unchanged, following a similar move by the US Federal Reserve, as the city’s de facto central bank said the Middle East conflict has added to the uncertainty over the pace of rate cuts this year. HKMA maintained the city’s base rate at 4 per cent on Thursday. Hours earlier, the Fed kept its target rate in the range of 3.5 per cent to 3.75 per cent, after the second meeting... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3347088/hong-kong-follows-federal-reserve-keep-base-rate-unchanged-amid-middle-east-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3347088/hong-kong-follows-federal-reserve-keep-base-rate-unchanged-amid-middle-east-war?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 23:16:04 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley If financial markets can survive the United States’ war on Iran and Russia’s war against Ukraine, does this mean that financial crashes have become a thing of the past? Or have markets just not grasped the true nature of the current threats to the financial system? The latter is almost certainly the case, as former Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein suggested when he said in a recent Financial Times interview that people had “got more complacent” about financial risks since the 2008 crisis. It is... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345580/cause-next-global-market-crash-hiding-plain-sight?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345580/cause-next-global-market-crash-hiding-plain-sight?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Mar 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Xinyi Wu Xinyi Wu Beijing has stressed that it does not intend to rely on a weaker yuan for trade gains, amid a recent rally in the currency and mounting pressure from trade partners to allow it to strengthen. “China has neither the need nor the intention to gain competitive advantages in trade through currency depreciation,” said Pan Gongsheng, governor of the central bank, at a press conference of the country’s top economic officials on Friday. The comments came ahead of a new round of trade talks between China... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3345755/china-fires-back-currency-depreciation-claims-denies-using-weak-yuan-boost-exports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3345755/china-fires-back-currency-depreciation-claims-denies-using-weak-yuan-boost-exports?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Mar 2026 12:00:09 +0000 Jianlu Bi Jianlu Bi On the eve of the Chinese New Year, the Spring Festival Gala, one of the world’s most-watched television broadcasts, delivered more than just festive entertainment. It served as a high-definition manifesto of China’s “embodied AI” supremacy. International observers, from Reuters to El Pais, watched as humanoid robots from start-ups such as Unitree performed complex martial arts, backflips and synchronised dances. As Beijing-based tech analyst Poe Zhao noted, these humanoids represent the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3344742/how-us-ceded-robotics-economy-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3344742/how-us-ceded-robotics-economy-china?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Mar 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma With China’s currency having steadily strengthened in recent months, the central bank has rolled out a pair of measures to lower foreign exchange hedging costs and support cross-border yuan financing. In a notice on Thursday, the People’s Bank of China refined the framework for domestic banks to conduct cross-border yuan interbank financing, explicitly endorsing their role in providing stable yuan liquidity to offshore markets through regulated channels. The move comes as Beijing has been... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3344894/yuan-sizzles-chinas-central-bank-deploys-double-barrelled-policy-tweak?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3344894/yuan-sizzles-chinas-central-bank-deploys-double-barrelled-policy-tweak?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 10:36:47 +0000 Shanshan Li Shanshan Li As political pressure on the US Federal Reserve intensifies in Washington, the reverberations are rippling across the globe. Gregory Peters, co-chief investment officer of fixed income at PGIM, has noted that bringing political pressure to bear on the Fed is an “own goal” – a self-inflicted shock that erodes confidence and is unlikely to deliver lower borrowing costs for the US. This reassessment – marked by quiet “sell America” trades – is beginning to surface. The damage extends far beyond... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3344106/why-fed-credibility-crisis-will-hit-emerging-markets-harder?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3344106/why-fed-credibility-crisis-will-hit-emerging-markets-harder?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Feb 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is at last showing a bit of spirit. While it might not yet be attacking the egregious economic and financial antics of US President Donald Trump, it is at least turning its attention to the fiscal foibles of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. This matters more now than has been the case in recent years, or even decades, because what Japan does in terms of its fiscal and monetary policy is beginning to have international repercussions. What political... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3344046/why-imf-right-press-japan-its-fiscal-risks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3344046/why-imf-right-press-japan-its-fiscal-risks?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Feb 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Nicholas Spiro Nicholas Spiro The US dollar’s decline is not over yet. Having fallen 10 per cent last year, the dollar index – a gauge of the US dollar’s performance against a basket of other major currencies – is down a further 0.6 per cent this year in the face of relatively high US interest rates, a resilient economy and the dominance of American technology companies. The findings of a Bank of America survey on February 13 showed that fund managers’ exposure to the US dollar had dropped below last April’s low, when US... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3343966/us-dollar-weakness-no-game-changer-globalised-yuan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3343966/us-dollar-weakness-no-game-changer-globalised-yuan?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage Beijing’s push to internationalise the yuan is gaining a new vehicle in Africa as another major multilateral lender is set to diversify towards the Chinese currency to slash borrowing costs and reduce the risks of dollar volatility. Multilateral lender Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has confirmed that a debut panda bond issuance is “on the table for this year”, as it looks to deepen its ties with Chinese capital markets following last year’s successful triple-A Chinese rating. Banji Fehintola,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343347/africas-yuan-pivot-why-more-top-lenders-are-eyeing-chinas-bond-market?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343347/africas-yuan-pivot-why-more-top-lenders-are-eyeing-chinas-bond-market?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Feb 2026 04:00:14 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma China’s central bank set the yuan’s daily fixing rate at its strongest level since mid-2023 on Wednesday, as the Chinese currency extended gains with investors increasingly rotating out of US dollar assets amid concerns over the Federal Reserve’s independence and US debt sustainability. The People’s Bank of China set the yuan’s midpoint rate – also known as the daily fixing rate – at 6.9438 to the US dollar, which marked the strongest level in 33 months. The move followed months of steady... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3343174/china-lets-yuan-rise-strongest-level-years-de-dollarisation-trend-grows?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3343174/china-lets-yuan-rise-strongest-level-years-de-dollarisation-trend-grows?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 08:11:12 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley Compared with the turmoil threatened by US President Donald Trump’s actions in everything from geopolitics to trade, the outcome of Japan’s parliamentary lower house election, set for February 8, may seem like small beer. Yet it could presage a great upheaval in global finance. The election outcome is widely expected to strengthen the political power base of the fiscally expansionist Japanese prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, and increase borrowing when government debt almost everywhere is already... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3341741/how-one-election-japan-could-upend-bond-markets-and-global-finance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3341741/how-one-election-japan-could-upend-bond-markets-and-global-finance?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 31 Jan 2026 08:30:07 +0000 Andrew Sheng Andrew Sheng This year started with a bang – from the United States’ intervention in Venezuela and the investigation opened against US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to US President Donald Trump’s renewed claims on Greenland and the potential for US action following instability in Iran. Amid these crises, gold prices are now over US$5,500 per ounce, up over 27 per cent from the price on January 1. This comes after the price of gold jumped by 65 per cent in 2025 after soaring by 27 per cent in... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341788/us-dollar-weakens-all-glitters-gold?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341788/us-dollar-weakens-all-glitters-gold?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 31 Jan 2026 01:30:08 +0000 Chen Zhao Chen Zhao The notion that China is flooding the world with excess industrial capacity is usually based on its massive surplus in goods trade, now standing at nearly US$1.2 trillion. That number is real, but treating it as proof of systemic overcapacity is not entirely correct. Goods trade is only one slice of China’s external balance, and it is increasingly offset by large outflows such as import of services and investment income payments. Moreover, China’s total current account surplus is US$657 billion... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3341555/fears-overcapacity-ignore-chinas-full-balance-payments-picture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3341555/fears-overcapacity-ignore-chinas-full-balance-payments-picture?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Jan 2026 01:30:08 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma China’s central bank has strengthened the yuan’s daily fixing rate to break through the psychologically important level of 7 per US dollar for the first time since May 2023, as the American currency weakens amid concerns over recent US attempts to gain control of Greenland. The People’s Bank of China set the yuan’s midpoint rate – also known as the daily fixing rate – at 6.9929 to the US dollar on Friday, after weeks of keeping the benchmark just on the weaker side of the 7 mark. The move came... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3340929/china-sets-yuan-strongest-rate-years-greenland-furore-affects-us-dollar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3340929/china-sets-yuan-strongest-rate-years-greenland-furore-affects-us-dollar?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 04:00:48 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma China should leverage its massive buying power to boost imports settled in yuan and shift towards a more balanced trade structure, to accelerate the currency’s global use, according to a former central bank adviser. The proposal signals a potential opportunity for the yuan’s internationalisation, years after Beijing kicked off the process in 2009 by allowing selected exporters to be paid in the Chinese currency. “China is the world’s largest goods exporter, but the yuan’s international standing... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3340653/china-should-leverage-buying-power-boost-yuans-use-trade-former-pboc-adviser?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3340653/china-should-leverage-buying-power-boost-yuans-use-trade-former-pboc-adviser?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Jan 2026 05:36:24 +0000 Andy Xie Andy Xie China achieved its twin goals of tech advancement and macro stability in 2025. Its goals for 2026 remain the same. However, a rapidly deteriorating global security environment is likely to shift national priorities towards preparation for worst-case scenarios. Oil supplies and sea lanes are becoming insecure. The US-China trade war could reignite at any time. China will have to accelerate its goals of energy and technology self-sufficiency to enhance national resilience. Fighting for sea lane... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3340177/why-security-not-growth-likely-command-chinas-attention-2026?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3340177/why-security-not-growth-likely-command-chinas-attention-2026?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jan 2026 01:30:10 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma China’s central bank strengthened the yuan’s daily fixing for a third consecutive session to a nearly 16-month high, as the currency also held firm in offshore markets despite recent US dollar strength. On Tuesday, the People’s Bank of China set the yuan’s midpoint rate, also known as the daily fixing rate, at 7.0103 to the US dollar – the strongest showing since the end of September 2024, when the rate was set at 7.0074. That official midpoint rate, however, was still weaker than that of the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3339699/chinas-central-bank-sets-onshore-yuan-fixing-strongest-point-nearly-16-months?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3339699/chinas-central-bank-sets-onshore-yuan-fixing-strongest-point-nearly-16-months?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Jan 2026 06:00:15 +0000 Alice Li,Sylvia Ma Alice Li,Sylvia Ma China has vowed to deepen cooperation in new energy and green minerals with the nations in the Global South, saying the move is in line with their industrial goals and a step towards further advancing Beijing’s economic opening-up, according to the latest front-page commentary in the Communist Party’s official newspaper. “Amid profound changes in the global environment, [China’s commitment to further opening up] underscores our confidence and responsibility in upholding openness and win-win... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3339569/china-pledges-green-energy-push-global-south-signals-wider-market-opening?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3339569/china-pledges-green-energy-push-global-south-signals-wider-market-opening?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 07:05:24 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Silver is the new rare earth, at least when it comes to China’s export controls on strategic commodities. The Ministry of Commerce now requires companies to apply for a two-year special licence for exports of silver, as well as tungsten and antimony. That has intensified the global spotlight on the metal, whose prices already exploded in 2025, outperforming even gold. The latest move is not just about silver, but an indication that China is refining its list of strategic materials beyond rare... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3338897/amid-rivalry-us-silver-can-be-seen-chinas-new-industrial-leverage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3338897/amid-rivalry-us-silver-can-be-seen-chinas-new-industrial-leverage?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Jan 2026 23:15:08 +0000 Carol Yang Carol Yang As China grapples with persistent deflationary pressure, scholars from one of the country’s top universities have urged the government to take more forceful action to prevent the economy from becoming trapped in a Japan-style downward spiral. Beijing should adopt a binding inflation target and make reviving price growth a top priority, they argued, pointing to Japan’s “lost decades” as a cautionary tale of how deflation can become deeply entrenched if left unchecked. “Japan’s experience has... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3338472/china-must-take-action-avoid-japan-style-deflation-spiral-scholars-warn?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3338472/china-must-take-action-avoid-japan-style-deflation-spiral-scholars-warn?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 07:00:11 +0000 Ji Siqi,Xiaofei Xu Ji Siqi,Xiaofei Xu In an effort to further promote the internationalisation of China’s currency, Beijing has pledged to expand the use of its digital yuan, including by establishing a cross-border payment pilot with Singapore. The measures, announced by the People’s Bank of China on Wednesday, are tied to a broader financial support plan for China’s New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor – a trade and logistics network, launched in 2017, that links landlocked cities in western China with hundreds of global... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3337642/china-expands-digital-yuan-push-singapore-and-asean-trade-routes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3337642/china-expands-digital-yuan-push-singapore-and-asean-trade-routes?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Dec 2025 11:30:09 +0000 Albert Bakhtizin Albert Bakhtizin As 2025 draws to a close, it marks an important milestone in the reconfiguration of the global economic system. Every century is defined not only by changes in technological leadership and shifts in global power, but also by the restructuring of the global financial system. The 20th century was the century of the US dollar, but with the arrival of the 21st century, the contours of the global macroeconomic system have begun to change. A recent International Monetary Fund study, “Playing with... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3337132/forget-us-dollar-watch-water-and-energy-resources-instead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3337132/forget-us-dollar-watch-water-and-energy-resources-instead?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Dec 2025 01:30:08 +0000 Kyodo Kyodo The use of housing loans with terms of up to 50 years, far longer than the standard 35-year term, is spreading among younger generations in Japan amid a rise in housing prices. Young Japanese are buying the properties of their choice by reducing monthly payments, but a longer loan term raises the total repayment amount and keeps company employees paying even after they retire. The risk of interest rate fluctuations, caused by the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy shift, is another thing to worry... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3337187/rise-50-rear-mortgages-japan-new-era-young-buyers-amid-rising-housing-prices?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3337187/rise-50-rear-mortgages-japan-new-era-young-buyers-amid-rising-housing-prices?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Dec 2025 12:20:08 +0000 Reuters Reuters The Bank of Japan (BOJ) raised interest rates on Friday to levels unseen in three decades and signalled its readiness for further hikes, taking another landmark step in ending decades of huge monetary support and near-zero borrowing costs. It also removed language that growth and inflation will stagnate due to the impact of higher US tariffs, underscoring the central bank’s conviction that Japan was on course to stably hit its 2 per cent inflation target backed by wage gains, and ready for a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3337067/bank-japan-raises-rates-levels-unseen-1995?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3337067/bank-japan-raises-rates-levels-unseen-1995?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Dec 2025 08:52:54 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley People love to hate governments, and they loathe having to pay taxes. However, from now on, we’ll have to embrace more state intervention and the need for higher taxes or else legislate a more dirigiste system of directing personal savings into investment that isn’t so dependent on markets. This can be either done preemptively or in response to the next financial crisis. It goes without saying that the former course of action is surely preferable to the trauma that will be experienced in the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3336062/climate-change-health-global-problems-need-investors-step?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3336062/climate-change-health-global-problems-need-investors-step?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2025 08:30:08 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The US Federal Reserve has delivered its last rate cut of the year, a decision that was widely expected by market insiders but which nonetheless deeply divided the voting central banking members. The reduction of the benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to between 3.5 per cent and 3.75 per cent brings the federal funds rate to its lowest level in more than three years. Thanks to the US-Hong Kong dollar peg, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) accordingly cut its base interest... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3336180/hong-kong-must-find-new-growth-areas-amid-uncertain-us-monetary-policy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3336180/hong-kong-must-find-new-growth-areas-amid-uncertain-us-monetary-policy?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2025 22:45:08 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Six major lenders in Hong Kong, including three note-issuing banks – HSBC, Standard Chartered and Bank of China (Hong Kong) – have kept their prime lending and savings rates unchanged, even though the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) lowered the base rate on Thursday. Analysts said commercial banks found it difficult to reduce lending rates further because savings rates were already close to zero, meaning any cut in prime lending rates alone would erode profitability. Hong Kong banks set... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3335973/hong-kong-pares-base-rate-salve-borrowers-split-fed-signals-fewer-cuts-ahead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3335973/hong-kong-pares-base-rate-salve-borrowers-split-fed-signals-fewer-cuts-ahead?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Dec 2025 23:30:27 +0000 John Haffner,Jenny Lee,Lisa Sachs John Haffner,Jenny Lee,Lisa Sachs For decades, New York and London have defined the flow of global capital. But while markets still chase short-term returns in US equities, the next great wave of productive investment is taking shape in East Asia, led by China’s financing, manufacturing and export of the clean technologies that are remaking the global economy. That contrast has only widened. As the United States retreats from climate leadership, China has doubled down. A day after US President Donald Trump called climate change... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3334872/how-hong-kong-can-distinguish-itself-climate-finance-hub?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3334872/how-hong-kong-can-distinguish-itself-climate-finance-hub?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Dec 2025 01:30:09 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley Stock prices are nervously high, bond and real estate prices are under downward pressure, cryptocurrency assets have sustained falls and global debt is at record levels. One common factor behind these coinciding and worrying trends is that much of the world is living on excess credit. Payment is now due. Another is how markets have bloated as financial systems fail to properly channel savings into good investments. This all suggests the coming correction in financial markets will be more... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3335270/inflated-asset-prices-show-markets-dont-always-know-best?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3335270/inflated-asset-prices-show-markets-dont-always-know-best?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Dec 2025 08:30:09 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma Central bank governor Pan Gongsheng has stressed the importance of China maintaining a sound monetary system that remains resilient to external shocks and systemic risks, signalling a focus on stability ahead of a key policy meeting. Pan said monetary policy must balance internal and external pressures, “primarily taking into account domestic economic and financial conditions”, while also factoring in the “spillover effects” from other economies, in an editorial for the Communist Party’s... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3335191/chinas-central-bank-vows-strong-breakwaters-shield-external-shocks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3335191/chinas-central-bank-vows-strong-breakwaters-shield-external-shocks?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Dec 2025 12:00:09 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma China’s central bank has set the yuan’s daily reference rate against the US dollar at the strongest level in more than a year, with analysts expecting room for appreciation should a December rate cut by the US Federal Reserve weaken the dollar. The People’s Bank of China set the yuan’s midpoint rate, also known as the daily fixing rate, at 7.0796 to the US dollar on Wednesday – the strongest showing since October 2024. The decision followed a 0.34 per cent rally in the offshore yuan on Tuesday,... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3334178/china-sets-strongest-yuan-fix-over-year-fed-cut-bets-rise?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3334178/china-sets-strongest-yuan-fix-over-year-fed-cut-bets-rise?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Nov 2025 05:10:10 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg An options market gauge showing the cost to hedge against declines or advances in the yuan has turned neutral for the first time in more than 14 years. So-called one-year risk reversals for the offshore yuan-dollar currency pair have fallen below zero to the lowest since July 2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The level indicates that traders are now paying about the same amount to hedge against yuan strength as they are against its weakness. The turnaround has taken place as China’s... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3334055/yuans-long-term-hedge-costs-equalise-first-time-2011?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3334055/yuans-long-term-hedge-costs-equalise-first-time-2011?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 25 Nov 2025 06:35:54 +0000 Albert Bakhtizin Albert Bakhtizin This month, the Russian Academy of Sciences completed a study assessing the comprehensive strength of 193 countries across economic, technological, demographic, military, infrastructural and other dimensions. This annual assessment of national power is conducted using advanced methods of multivariate statistical analysis. The latest results, calculated for 2025 and 2026, show the global balance of power has finally shifted from the United States towards China. Also, several regional power cores... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3333151/power-balance-tips-china-world-needs-fairer-financial-system?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3333151/power-balance-tips-china-world-needs-fairer-financial-system?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Nov 2025 12:30:09 +0000 Luna Sun Luna Sun The Japanese yen slid to a nine-month low against the US dollar, breaching a closely watched threshold of 155 amid domestic policy uncertainties, fading expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut in December, and amplified China-Japan tensions over Taiwan. The yen’s exchange rate briefly weakened beyond 155.3 to the dollar on Tuesday before improving slightly, while broader markets also came under pressure. Stocks slumped, bonds were sold off, and long-term yields jumped to multi-decade highs,... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3333268/japan-yen-slips-past-155-us-dollar-fiscal-doubts-china-spat-sap-investor-confidence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3333268/japan-yen-slips-past-155-us-dollar-fiscal-doubts-china-spat-sap-investor-confidence?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 18 Nov 2025 09:43:39 +0000 Carol Yang Carol Yang China’s central bank vowed to maintain an accommodative monetary policy stance and improve policy transmission to support the “steady” economy in its latest quarterly report, which analysts said signalled a reduced urgency for rate cuts. The People’s Bank of China will implement a “moderately loose” monetary policy and ensure “reasonable and ample” liquidity to serve the real economy, according to the report released on Tuesday. Despite facing domestic and external challenges, the Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3332493/chinas-central-bank-projects-confidence-are-rate-cuts-back-burner?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3332493/chinas-central-bank-projects-confidence-are-rate-cuts-back-burner?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Nov 2025 10:00:57 +0000