Southeast Asia haze returns as peatland fires fan global warming fears

In this photo taken on Oct. 10, 2023, a man looks at a forest fire as it approaches houses in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra in Indonesia. Al Zulkifli | AFP | Getty Images With El Nino in full force, officials are bracing for the worst transboundary haze in southern Southeast Asia since before the pandemic … Read more

Central banks in Asia could soon diverge from the Federal Reserve: Nomura

A food stall in Gwangjang Market in Seoul as South Korea’s central bank is seen to be among the first in the region to cut its benchmark interest rate. Francois Lochon | Gamma-rapho | Getty Images Central banks in Asia could start cutting rates earlier than the Federal Reserve, economists at Nomura predicted. A dovish … Read more

The G-20 summit kicks off Tuesday. Here’s what to expect.

World leaders are kicking off a meeting Tuesday on the holiday island of Bali, Indonesia as the global economy grapples with a looming recession, central banks’ jumbo rate hikes and historically high inflation. The annual meeting of leaders from the world’s major economies, known as the Group of 20 nations, is also taking place as … Read more

Metaverse could pump $1.4 trillion a year into Asia’s GDP: Deloitte

The impact of the metaverse to GDP in Asia could be between $0.8 and 1.4 trillion per year by 2035, said a new Deloitte report. Weiquan Lin | Moment | Getty Images Meta‘s huge bet on the metaverse may have put the company in dire straits, but a new Deloitte report suggests that virtual realities … Read more

Indonesia says economy is more resilient to absorb inflation shocks

Indonesia is taking steps to make its economy more resilient so it can withstand global shocks like inflation, especially from the United States, said Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati. As the world’s largest economy, what the U.S. does has strong implications worldwide, including Indonesia, said the minister. To fight inflation, the U.S. has hiked interest … Read more