The Brief: Asia's economy, 6 November 2026

Economies

HCMC approves VND49.3 trillion bond plan for infrastructure: Ho Chi Minh City's municipal People's Council has authorised new bond issuances and domestic borrowing to fund urban development projects through 2030.

Thailand targets 5-7% European tourism revenue jump: Thailand's Tourism Authority (TAT) aims for 5-7% higher revenue from European visitors in 2027, rebalancing its inbound travel strategy with targeted marketing at World Travel Market.

Pacific Resilience Fund Nears US$200 Million Amid COP31 Finance Push: The Pacific Resilience Facility, established by the Pacific Islands Forum, has accumulated US$190 million from member states and international partners ahead of the COP31 climate summit.

Tropical Forest Fund US$117 Billion Short After First Year: The US$125 billion Tropical Forest Forever Facility, designed to compensate nations for conservation, has secured US$7.8 billion in pledges, including from Indonesia and Norway.

India, Britain to Surpass Japan's GDP by 2027: The International Monetary Fund projects India and Britain will surpass Japan's nominal gross domestic product next year, marking a significant shift in global economic rankings.

ASEAN+3's CMIM Currency Swap Network Stands at US$240 Billion: The Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralisation (CMIM) provides US$240 billion in liquidity support, managed by the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office for member economies facing financial stress.

Vietnam's Per Capita GDP Surpasses Indonesia, IMF Projects: The International Monetary Fund forecasts Vietnam's average economic output per person to reach US$5,259 this year, moving ahead of Indonesia's US$5,153.

Philippines' Economic Momentum Stalls, BSP Raises Key Rate: The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas lifted its benchmark rate by 50 basis points to 5.5% in October, as 2026 inflation returned to 7.2% and economic growth forecasts dropped to 3.7%.

Markets

DBS values Grab's core businesses above current share price: The research house estimates Grab's Singapore and Malaysia operations alone are worth US$3.07 per share, 6 per cent higher than its market price on Monday.

Deutsche Bank turns bullish on US tech after $2 trillion market value drop: The bank reversed a recent downgrade, citing an attractive buying opportunity after US technology stocks lagged the S&P 500 by over 16 percentage points.

ECB President Lagarde to Depart Early in February 2027: Christine Lagarde will leave her post as European Central Bank President several months ahead of her term's October 2027 expiry, with the institution announcing her departure for February 2027.

Banking & Fintech

PBOC Expands Digital Yuan to Hong Kong Banks for 24/7 Payments: China's central bank is extending its e-CNY network to offshore institutions, enabling overseas banks to process round-the-clock digital payments via an upgraded CBETS platform without IT overhauls.

Singapore Banks Decline Ahead of Q3 Results; OCBC Leads Losses: Shares in OCBC, DBS, and UOB fell on November 2, with OCBC dropping 3.7% after its insurance unit Great Eastern reported a 72% profit decline, weighing on the Straits Times Index.

Visa Opens Six Singapore Hubs for AI, Next-Gen Payments: The new Solution Centre in Paya Lebar Green will house over 1,500 employees developing applications for agentic commerce, digital money, and quantum computing in financial services.

DBS Survey: 88% of Large Firms Pilot Tokenised Money: A DBS survey found 88% of 422 global firms are piloting or using tokenised money, with stablecoins leading adoption for payments and liquidity management.

Adyen, Visa launch Payment Passkey for UK online transactions: The new system allows consumers to authenticate purchases using device biometrics, aiming to simplify digital checkout and enhance fraud protection.

Industries

Singapore strengthens haze law, targets corporate supply chains: New amendments empower authorities to mandate expert assessments for suspected firms and restrict their commercial links, following the city-state's worst air quality since 2015.

Krungthai Card, Shopee Thailand target premium e-commerce with expanded offers: The collaboration provides KTC credit and cash card members with discounts on selected high-value brands and Apple products until December 2026.

Ayala Land revenue up 8% on stronger recurring income: The Philippine developer reported P109.2 billion in total revenues for the first nine months of 2026, driven by a strategic focus on its leasing and hospitality portfolio.

Cohere to Deploy AI Models for Singapore Defence Agency CSIT: The partnership will see Cohere’s enterprise AI models and North platform used for secure knowledge retrieval and automated analysis in national security operations, following a successful pilot.

Advantech forecasts 2027 growth on AI, semiconductor equipment demand: The Taiwanese industrial computing firm reports strong order books across North America, China, Europe, and Taiwan, though Southeast Asian demand remains soft.

Vietnam FDI surges 74% to $54.85 billion, highest since 2009: Foreign direct investment in Vietnam reached US$54.85 billion by October 31, driven by new projects and existing expansions. Manufacturing led inflows, with Singapore as the top new capital source.

Malampaya Phase 4 delivers gas to Luzon grid: The Malampaya Project's latest phase began supplying natural gas to the Philippines' main power grid on 5 November 2026, adding 222 billion cubic feet of reserves.

Panasonic Industry commits JPY92 billion to AI component output: The Panasonic Group subsidiary will expand production and research for advanced circuit board materials and specialised capacitors, driven by rising generative AI demand.

Tokyo's data centre build costs highest globally, Singapore 4th: Consultancy Turner & Townsend found building a data centre in Tokyo costs US$18.28/W, while Singapore ranks fourth globally at US$15.39/W.

Parkway Life REIT DPU Climbs 13.4% to S$0.131: The Singapore-listed healthcare real estate trust also disclosed an agreement to acquire three French nursing homes for €38.8 million, with completion anticipated by December 2026.

ITAT clears woman of ₹8.66 crore tax demand, Rithwik Projects: The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal in Hyderabad ruled the cash transactions, discovered during a 2018 search, belonged to Rithwik Projects Pvt Ltd.

India Office Leasing Reaches 21.9 Million Sq Ft in Q3: Cushman & Wakefield reported net absorption of 14.1 million sq ft, with rentals appreciating across key corridors despite new Grade A supply.

Memory price surge to cut 2026 mobile SoC shipments by nearly 20%: AI infrastructure demand drives up component costs, dampening sales for smartphones and notebooks, with memory prices forecast to climb through 2027.

Wealth

Hong Kong Families Seek Cross-Border Wealth Advice: At the Hubbis Wealth Planning & Structuring Forum in Hong Kong on 28 October 2026, experts discussed the growing demand for integrated wealth management services.