As Hong Kong hosts finance, sports and arts events, some say the city is getting its groove back

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Additionally, some businesspeople are hesitant to accept the greater power Beijing officials have over the city.

They don’t think the decades-old “one country, two systems” approach to governance also gives rise to freedom, particularly since a Hong Kong national security law was passed a year ago.

The controversial law, which is also known as Article 23, targets crimes like crime, the theft of state secrets, spying, destroy, sedition, and “external interference.”

There is still hope.

Hong Kong’s once-red-hot property sector is still reeling from a protracted collapse, but its Hang Seng standard has experienced a double-digit rise since Donald Trump took office on January 20, making it the world’s best performer.

Hong Kong operates out of a worldwide brokerage. It’s a good position to do business, according to Oliver Weisberg, CEO of Blue Pool Capital, a multi-strategy investment firm based in Hong Kong.

He was speaking on Monday during an Is Hong Kong Up section. focused on access to the Greater Bay Area, care, employment opportunities, and the state’s education industry.

Goodwin Gaw, his co-panelist, claimed that the American media portrays Hong Kong as having a false image.

Hong Kong is a difficult place to keep investment conferences because it is difficult to get attendees to be focused with you, according to the chair, handling primary, and co-founder of Gaw Capital Partners, one of Asia’s largest real estate private equity firms.

Gaw praised Hong Kong’s natural environment as much as his strong ties to mainland China and its tax-haven position.

He stated in an interview with CNA that the world’s investment in China is the simplest glass. Additionally, Hong Kong is a gateway for Chinese businesses to get international capital.

Hong Kong may have never left, but ( It only needs a little cleaning and shining. ”

SOME STRIKE OTHER CRIMEOUS TONE

Despite the looming effects of price threats and industry wars originating from the Trump administration, other observers expressed more caution in their opinions of Hong Kong’s coming and current.

According to Steve Okun, CEO of APAC Advisors, new American tariffs have been “explicitly applied to both China and Hong Kong, ” with products from both regions then being subject to the same customs attention and trade restrictions.

Washington’s distinction between the two is still ambiguous. A recent example is when CK Hutchison, based in Hong Kong, sold power of two Panama Canal docks to a US-led party, according to Okun.

Businesses and investors should use this as a warning to get a tougher stance to reduce Foreign influence and power. Hong Kong’s political frailty will get worse if this pattern persists. ”

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Activists hail expanded services for the LGBTQ+ community

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Some of the LGBTQ community’s lowest-income trans persons are some of the most underappreciated, especially when it comes to getting medical care.

Some treatments like gender-affirming hormone treatment and the use of testosterone or cortisol to help a person reach the appearance of their female identity are still out of reach for many people, but not only do stigma and discrimination persist. &nbsp,

Points are about to alter. The state approved the National Health Security Office’s allocation of 145.63 million baht to deliver hormones to 200 000 trans people in late January.

Local activists praise the walk, and they claim it will be most advantageous to those who have little or no access to hormone.

The National Health Security Office’s acceptance of hormonal treatment support for low-income casual workers who are eligible for the gold cards program but have access to it, according to Nachale Boonyapisomparn, vice-president of the Foundation of Transgender Alliance for Human Rights, is crucial.

She continued,” It is necessary to develop this service in other regions or make the service more available at the primary level of care so that people who live outside the area can get this therapy.”

Anukool Pruksanusak, a lieutenant government official, claimed that the government’s assistance for marriage equality was consistent with the 200 000 person funding for hormonal therapy.

This would reduce health risks, especially for those who sought entry to hormonal therapy through informal channels. According to Mr. Anukool, the support may also promote health equity by allowing people with the means to get the service, which was formerly only available to those who could afford it.

Tlaleng Mofokeng, the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health for the UN, who traveled to Thailand in February, welcomed the initiative. &nbsp,

She said,” Originally, this was an out-of-pocket expense that prevented access.” &nbsp,

I urge the National Health Security Office to be aware of the numerous ways that trans people experience crime within the system, and to make sure that the system does not work in a way that further defies or detracts transgender people out of treatment.

Dr. Mofokeng added that Thailand still needed to place the rights of the people at the center of its care system to ensure equality, especially among the most vulnerable and discriminated, despite having made progress in its medical plan.

The objective of pharmaceutical availability, usability, accessibility, and quality is becoming even more difficult to achieve worldwide. This is especially true for those who are in vulnerable circumstances, such as LGBTIQA and female different people, including indigenous peoples, migrants and refugees, internally displaced people, ethno-religious majority communities, people with disabilities, people without rights, sex workers, people who use drugs, and LGBTIQA and female different people,” she said. &nbsp,

BOOST EDUCATION

Ms. Nachale added that through the cooperation of both the government and the civil sector, health literacy and knowledge should be promoted more among those taking the hormones.

She said this to make sure they are protected from hormones obtained through unofficial channels that might be harmful to their health. She suggested that spreading information about hormones on social media might be a good way to reach transgender teens, for instance.

According to Ms. Nachale, each person has unique hormonal needs. Some people are able to take hormones without having to undergo any gender-affirmation surgery. &nbsp,

” Hormonal therapy typically continues for those who have had surgery because they need to rely on it for a long time,” she continued.

According to Rena Janamnuaysook, program manager at IHRI Tangerine, the first transgender-focused health clinic in Asia, hormonal therapy costs, dosages, and dosages vary depending on the individual’s needs.

Transgender people who receive therapy at her clinic would spend between$ 5,000 and$ 7,000 annually on medication and laboratory expenses.

According to Ms. Rena, Thailand does not have information on how many transgender people are in need of or are receiving hormonal therapy, but about 7, 000 transgender people are treated at her clinic annually.

Because we have the largest transgender clinic in Asia, she continued,” We have a very large number of patients.”

Nachale: Health literacy is a requirement.

Nachale: Health literacy is a requirement.

Mofokeng: Ensure diversity.

Mofokeng: Ensure diversity.

Rena: Treatment costs vary depending on the patient.

Rena: Treatment costs vary depending on the patient.

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US’ DEI curbs spark local fears

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US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Air Force One as he departs from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, US, March 14, 2025. (Reuters photo)
On March 14, 2025, US President Donald Trump leaves Joint Base Andrews in Maryland and boardeers Air Force One. ( Reuters image )

Indian advocates for female equality and anti-discrimination have been enraged by US President Donald Trump’s current executive order to destroy US federal laws of diversity, equity, and inclusion ( DEI), which has prompted them to need people to adhere to anti-discriminatory guidelines, especially in the workplace, as a means of advancing both business and the public interest.

The president’s executive order, which comes as he places a 90-day charitable delay on foreign aid, shocked the entire world, not the least of which is Thailand, where civic organizations are promoting the rights of the LGBTQ community.

They have expressed concern that the walk might have an impact on some of the most susceptible members of society.

According to Natthineethiti Phinyapincha, chairman of Trans Consulting Group, a diversity firm,” We view Trump’s professional attempt to destroy DEI initiatives as not merely backward but as suggestive of a larger problem: the misapplication of DEI over the past decades.” In some organizations, the principle is seen as unfair rather than a means of achieving equality in the workplace.

” DE I has faced resistance from those who view it as performative, divisive, or disconnected from core business outcomes for years. This is a chance to reevaluate, reevaluate, and reframe DEI for the future, she said.

According to Ms. Natthineethiti,” Trump’s action may lead Thai businesses, especially those in the multinational sector, to view DEI as a liability rather than a strategic asset” as many local businesses rely on surface-level strategies like awareness campaigns, short-term training, or token diversity hires.

Sulaiporn Chonwilai, a Tamtang Group advocacy officer, concurred that Mr. Trump’s executive order might serve as a blueprint for anti-DE I initiatives in some Thai organizations.

Additionally, it has the potential to influence discriminatory discourse around the world, particularly among conservative Thai policymakers who are unwilling to accept Mr. Trump’s decision to support domestic legal revision efforts.

The project manager for Tamtang Group, Chinthita Kraisrikul, expressed concern that Thailand might adopt the US’s example when ratifying international laws governing human rights.

She cited the Trump administration’s re-ratification of the Geneva Consensus Declaration, a global anti-abortion treaty with about 40 nations as signatories, in January.

The paper does not have any legal ramifications on member states. However, Ms. Chinthita said the paper suggests that members repeal their abortion laws, which have the phrase” The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the state,” which might be perceived as a counterproductive position to a family unit run by same-sex couples in contemporary society.

According to Ms. Chinthita, the US has been lobbying for other nations to sign the agreement. Thailand’s potential signing of this agreement is very high, she continued.

HEALTH WORRIES

In the meantime, Mr. Trump’s decision to halt humanitarian aid has sparked concerns among Thai activists leading the fight against HIV/AIDS, particularly in the LGBTQ community.

The decision by Mr. Trump to stop providing humanitarian aid had an impact on health services to the LGBTQ community, particularly in terms of HIV/Aids protection and awareness efforts, according to Kittinun Daramadhaj, president of the Rainbow Sky Association of Thailand.

Thanks to US funding, he said,” Many LGBTQ organizations in Thailand are able to provide HIV or STIs]sexually transmitted infections ] tests free of charge.”

With their outreach capabilities and inclusive mindset, these organizations are crucial in putting an end to Thailand’s HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Some organizations have stopped operating following the funding suspension. In the wake of this, LGBTQ people who have long experienced stigma when receiving medical care from state institutions continue to be treated differently in the healthcare system.

According to Mr. Kittinun,” Trump’s action may be viewed as an indirect attempt to end lives.”

Due to the pause of the US humanitarian fund, Jarunee Siriphan, director of the Foundation for Action on Inclusion Rights ( Fair ) and the founder of the People’s Movement to Eliminate Discrimination ( MovED), was forced to suspend her project” GO MovED” ( Government’s Movement to Eliminate Discrimination ).

A project called GO MovED aims to end discrimination against those who have HIV.

Ms. Jarunee claimed that no money was given to her project by the Thai government. Foreign donors frequently provided sponsorship, with the US being one of the largest donors, she said.

Due to the executive order, and because the project is related to DEI, we were forced to stop working on it on January 24. We are not certain whether we can resume it after the 3-month funding pause, she said.

Apcom, a Thai company whose work focuses on HIV issues, claimed that funding for the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief ( Pepfar ) had also been halted.

The organization claimed that a number of projects, including those aimed at reducing harm, harm reduction, and basic HIV services, have completely been stopped as a result of the funding freeze. The five-year global project EpiC Program, which Pepfar and USAID have funded, aims to combat the HIV epidemic.

The President Trump’s executive order to stop Pepfar and USAID from providing foreign aid has unsettling consequences. It is crucial that we stand even closer and support one another in these uncertain times. We will overcome this challenge as well, according to Midnight Poonkasetwattana, Apcom Executive Director, by fostering trust, cooperating, and exchanging information.

Sulaiporn: Warns of the blueprint for anti-DE I policies

Sulaiporn: Warns of the blueprint for anti-DE I policies

Natthineethiti:

Natthineethiti:” Many rely on awareness campaigns.

Chinthita: Concerned about legal restrictions.

Chinthita: Concerned about legal restrictions.

Kittinun: Life is saved by American funding.

Kittinun: Life is saved by American funding.

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‘No pressure’ to probe SKYY9

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PUBLISHED: 15 Mar 2025 at 05: 28

Anutin: Keeping to regulations
Anutin: observing laws.

Anutin Charnvirakul, the interior minister, stated on Friday that he was not under any pressure to set up an inquiry panel to look into allegations involving the purchase of a contentious Social Security Office ( SSO ) building.

According to him, the board was set up at the demand of Labour Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn to investigate claims made by Rukchanok Srinork, a People’s Party MP for Bangkok, that the SSO purchased the SKYY9 Centre on Rama IX Road for a sum of 7 billion baht despite its claimed review rate of 3 billion ringgit.

” We adhere to rules. We don’t do it because we are under strain, according to Mr. Anutin, who also serves as a deputy prime minister.

Boonsong Thapchaiyut, the latest permanent secretary for labor, was the SSO’s secretary-general at the time of the purchase.

The official in charge of the investigation may hold the same rate, according to Mr. Anutin, in order for there to be a smooth investigation.

Marasri Jairangsee, the SSO’s existing secretary-general, reported on Tuesday that the SSO had made an investment in the building through the Secret Equity Trust, a program administered by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

She claimed that the building’s price was determined by two separate SEC algorithms. More than 7 billion ringgit were given by both algorithms.

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China needs a consumer revolution to hit growth goal – Asia Times

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China ’s National People’s Congress extravaganza was a fine news-bad news event for international buyers.

Great, in that Xi Jinping’s Communist Party reassured the finance world that China plans to get very micro to mend its micro problems. Poor, in that Xi’s crew really needs to deliver on its plan commitments, lest China loses yet more reliability with international investors.

On the inside, the NPC prioritized reinvigorating personal businesses, level playing fields and shrinking the part of state enterprises for growth and employment. It also vowed to move past the governmental reprisals, including on technology, that originally sent buyers for the exits.

Team Xi sent a “message to entrepreneurs, but also to local governments and regulators, that the private sector ’s important and it ’s necessary, ” says economist Neil Thomas at the Asia Society Policy Institute.

More cheerful announcement came on Friday when finance, banking, central banks and other officials announced they plan to hold a March 17 press conference to describe measures to improve consumption, a signal that sent the CSI 300 Index to its highest level so far this year.

That’s the sub. On the mega, Xi’s government has often proved more skilled at talking the talk than walking the walk on the type of architectural changes many investors crave. Very often, Xi’s reform staff has overpromised and underdelivered.

Premier Li Qiang detailed the government’s fresh policy priorities in the group ’s monthly work record. Li said the latest Enemy “underscores our commitment to meet challenges head-on and wish hard to deliver. ”

Those difficulties include Donald Trump’s escalating trade war, which is imperiling China ’s ability to export its way to 5 % GDP growth, the NPC’s stated target for 2025. So far, Trump has imposed 20 % tariffs on Chinese products; he threatened to hit a 60 % cover charge while on the campaign trail.

Adding more industrial capacity to increase exports will likely experience diminishing returns as developing nations — especially Global South nations — began throwing up their own tariffs and trade barriers on cheap Chinese goods.

“The more intense the trade war, the more aggressively Beijing will add stimulus, ” says Thomas at Asia Society. “Nonetheless, debt concerns will likely deter a stimulus ‘bazooka, ’ and direct consumer stimulus remains unlikely due to ideological opposition and implementation hurdles. ”

One new measure is an expanded US$ 41 billion trade-in program for consumers and businesses involving autos, household appliances and business equipment. China will also roll out additional subsidies for new smartphones, home renovations and healthcare costs.

Beijing plans to issue an additional 4. 4 trillion yuan in local government special-purpose bonds. The debt will finance new infrastructure, purchases of land and unsold housing, and bring government contractors up to date on overdue payments.

Officials also will issue 1. 3 trillion yuan worth of ultralong special treasury bonds to support national security projects and 500 billion yuan in special sovereign bonds to recapitalize state-owned banks.

“It’s unclear how much of a jolt this budget will provide to underlying domestic demand and reflation efforts, despite the sizable rise in the deficit, ” says Jeremy Zook, top China analyst for Fitch Ratings.

China, Li said, will “move faster ” to stimulate domestic demand, policies and measures that may be more clearly articulated at the anticipated March 17 press conference. Significantly, Li said the government plans to make domestic demand the “main engine ” of growth.

If so, that will mean tackling near-record youth unemployment, shortfalls in social benefits and welfare, extreme market volatility, a property sector in crisis and households that reflexively save much more than they spend.

Herein lies the rub, though. China must drastically pick up the pace of reform just as Trump’s tariffs begin to slam global growth prospects. Weathering the storm will require bold steps to increase competitiveness and support the nation’s fast-rising tech sector.

As Morgan Stanley economist Robin Xing notes, China ’s “policy focus is to accelerate AI adoption and autonomous driving, while making gradual progress in restructuring housing and [local government financing vehicle ] debt. ”

Yet, it remains to be seen how quickly AI might boost total factor productivity and overall competitiveness. Until then, Xi can hope his 1. 4 billion people snap to attention and start spending despite the persistent lack of social safety nets to boost household confidence.

“The daily problems facing China ’s citizenry have become severe enough that the government was forced to acknowledge them before the NPC, ” says economist Jeremy Mark at the Atlantic Council. It’s “no small admission for a communist party whose propagandists normally offer a steady diet of hubris. ”

Mack says that Li’s reference to “weak public expectations” in his work report and the decision to spotlight the importance of consumption, “were a bow to public opinion in a country where the public normally has no way of expressing itself. ”

However, Mack adds, “Xi clearly remains deeply committed to his core economic policies — a point underlined on the eve of the NPC with the publication of a speech he delivered in December. While also acknowledging ‘consumption shortcomings, ’ he made clear that the highest priority must remain more world-class enterprises and leading technologies. ”

Xi’s speech, Mack adds, “also insisted that the government’s response to China ’s economic problems had already ‘boosted the property market, stock market, market expectations, and social confidence, ’ suggesting that China ’s paramount leader is skeptical about opening the taps too much for those struggling to make ends meet. ”

This buttresses the argument that Xi is prioritizing structural upgrades over tossing money at China ’s problems.

Carlos Casanova, senior Asia economist at Union Bancaire Privee, says that achieving the 5 % growth target for 2025 presents significant challenges. Beijing acknowledges that the previous year’s target was met thanks to outsized stimulus policy actions agreed by the Politburo on September 26.

“Absent this policy pivot, growth would have been slower, ” Casanova says. “Moreover, exports accounted for one-third of GDP growth in 2024, following a rebound ahead of expected US tariffs in the fourth quarter. Without similar drivers, the government will need to focus on enhancing domestic demand to address the growth gap. ”

To Casanova’s mind, the announcements made during the NPC “did n’t provide enough visibility on this front. ” Nor did Xi and Li offer a credible path out of the deflationary rut into which China threatens to fall.

Despite Beijing’s fiscal support efforts, says Capital Economics analyst Julian Evans-Pritchard, “the degree of easing is more modest than it might appear. ”

As such, he adds, “we remain skeptical that it will be sufficient to prevent growth from slowing this year, especially given the headwinds on the external front and the lack of a more pronounced shift in government spending towards support consumption. ”

The hope, though, is that Xi’s party steps up efforts to make good on the pledges he made last November. That’s when he told a ballroom full of top CEOs that China is again open for business – and ready to work with the US. “China is willing to be a partner and friend of the United States, ” Xi told an audience that included Apple CEO Tim Cook and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

“If we regard each other as the biggest rival, the most significant geopolitical challenge and an ever-pressing threat, it will inevitably lead to wrong policies, wrong actions and wrong results, ” Xi said. He added that “no matter how the global landscape evolves, the historical trend of peaceful coexistence between China and the United States will not change. ”

Two months later in Davos, Li said “choosing investment in the Chinese market is not a risk, but an opportunity. ” Li stressed that “investing in China will bring huge returns and a better future ” and described the CEOs on hand as “participants, witnesses and beneficiaries of China ’s reform and opening up. ”

China, Li added, “stands ready to seriously look into and solve the difficulties and problems encountered by foreign enterprises ” operating in the country. “We will take active steps to address reasonable concerns of the global business community, ” Li said.

In the years since the market chaos of 2015, China opened equity markets ever wider to overseas investors, steadily increasing quotas for foreign funds. Beijing did the same with government bonds, which have since been added to benchmarks like FTSE-Russell.

Yet access to exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen often outpaces reforms needed to prepare China Inc for global prime time. Those include increasing transparency, boosting corporate governance building reliable surveillance mechanisms like trusted, not co-opted, credit rating companies.
 
To be sure, China has often succeeded by using its own playbook. Back in 1997-98, when developing Asia crashed, China opted against devaluing the yuan. Several times since the late 1990s, traders and analysts have predicted a credit-and-debt-fueled crash. Speculators pounced. Each time, China confounded the naysayers.

Whether China can beat the odds again depends on Xi’s ability to earn investors ’ trust. As the Chinese stock rout that erased over$ 1 trillion in valuation reminded in recent years, there are certain laws of gravity that still apply to economies transitioning from state-driven and export-led growth to services, innovation and domestic consumption.
 
It’s great that Xi and Li say they’re doubling down on moves to build a more stable economic system. But investors will require more than talk to bet big on China ’s trajectory in 2025.

Follow William Pesek on X at @WilliamPesek

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Investment boost questioned

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PUBLISHED: 14 Mar 2025 at 05: 57

NEWSPAPER SECTION: News

People's Party MP Rukchanok Srinork joins social security subscribers at the Social Security Office on Tuesday to hear its decision to introduce a new calculation method that will increase pensions for most members starting in January. (Photo: Pornprom Satrabhaya)
Women’s Party MP Rukchanok Srinork joins social protection clients at the Social Security Office on Tuesday to discover its decision to create a new analysis technique that will improve pensions for most members starting in January. ( Photo: Pornprom Satrabhaya )

The Social Security Fund ( SSF ) is looking to raise its off-market investments sharply from 10 billion baht to 130 billion baht, according to Rukchanok Srinork, a People’s Party MP for Bangkok.

Ms Rukchanok said she was very concerned about such a significant investment following the controversial Social Security Office ( SSO ) purchase of the SKYY9 Centre, a building on Rama IX Road that has set off transparency alarms. The SSO manages the SSF.

She said the 6.9 billion ringgit spent on acquiring the tower was part of the 9.4 billion bass originally approved for funding the SSO’s earlier off-market purchases. It was reported the remaining 3 billion ringgit was allocated for international purchase.

The MP alleged the SSO does have overpaid for the tower, given its analysis rate of only 3 billion baht. This has prompted Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra to get a fact-finding probe into the order.

Ms Rukchanok said she did not oppose off-market purchases, but she wished the SSO had set an appropriate standard for controlling purchase risks, which can offer good returns.

” Without appropriate risk management standards drawn away, there could be no guarantee that a task like the SKYY9 creating order won’t happen again”, she said. The SSO secretary-general, Marasri Jairangsee, on Tuesday, said the SSO invested in buying the tower via the Private Equity Trust, an funding vehicle under the Trust for Transactions in the Capital Market Act, regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. She said two separate algorithms certified by the SEC estimated the price of the tower.

She said the value was estimated at 7.3 billion baht based on the money approach solution, but if the price approach is used, the building’s value is estimated at 8 billion baht. However, she said the SSO invested 6.9 billion baht to buy the building.

Responding to the SSO secretary-general’s statement, Ms Rukchanok said she would formally request a copy of documents explaining the building’s appraisal price calculation from the SSO today. She also raised more questions yesterday about the SKYY9 building purchase, including why the SSO, with no expertise in property management, opted to buy a single, large building instead of investing in a property fund.

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How a US rate cut would ripple and wash through Asia – Asia Times

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February’s US prices record has given the Federal Reserve the room it needs to cut rates—and it may soon taking that action. With year-on-year inflation slowing to 2.8 %, down from 3 % in January, and monthly price growth decelerating, the Fed is under increasing pressure to act. &nbsp,

If it does, the results will resound across international markets, including Asia, where shifting financial situations will alter economies, currencies, and investments. A possible charge cut from the world’s most powerful central banks had so mark a turning level. &nbsp,

For more than a year, Eastern markets have contended with a strong money, forcing central banks to tighten policy to help their economies and curb inflation. If the Fed moves, that stress may comfortable.

Politicians in India, Indonesia and South Korea—previously hesitant to reduce rates—could have room to release economic conditions to help growth.

A weaker money is one of the most immediate outcomes. As price differentials small, the greenback’s dominance may probably diminish, lifting Asian currencies. The renminbi, which has been under stress due to policy difference with the Fed, may develop.

The Chinese rmb, facing challenges from Beijing’s economic change, does stabilize. This shift may offer relief to import-heavy markets and increase trade balances.

For capital markets, the repercussions are important. A Fed hinge may revive investor hunger for emerging markets, leading to new inflows into Asiatic stocks. India and Southeast Asia, with their strong progress stories, stand to benefit, while Hong Kong—long weighed down by outflows—could see a return in attitude. &nbsp,

Lower saving fees will help businesses, especially those in engineering and consumer businesses, which have struggled under high interest rates.

However, there are complexities. A Fed move to ease policy will not resolve all of Asia’s challenges. China, the region’s largest economy, continues to grapple with weak domestic demand and real estate troubles. While a softer dollar may ease liquidity concerns, sustained recovery will depend on Beijing’s policy choices.

Trade risks remain high. The potential rate cuts come as the US shifts toward a more protectionist stance. Trump’s renewed tariff threats on China introduce fresh uncertainty. Even if monetary easing boosts demand, tighter trade conditions could offset those benefits by disrupting supply chains and raising costs.

Commodities markets will react swiftly. A weaker dollar often fuels rallies in oil and industrial metals—key imports for Asia’s manufacturing economies.

While this could raise input costs, it may also indicate stronger demand, benefiting resource-rich nations like Indonesia and Australia. China, the world’s largest commodities consumer, will be closely watching these shifts.

For corporate borrowers, financing conditions will improve. Many Asian firms carry dollar-denominated debt, and a weaker US currency, combined with lower global borrowing costs, would ease repayment burdens. &nbsp,

This could, I believe, unlock delayed investment and support expansion, particularly in real estate and infrastructure sectors.

Bond markets will adjust quickly. As US Treasury yields decline, Asian fixed-income markets will look more attractive. Investors searching for yield will turn to local bonds, potentially lowering borrowing costs for governments and corporations across the region.

The banking sector in Asia is also likely also see changes. A lower interest rate environment in the US would encourage capital flows into emerging markets, reducing pressure on Asian lenders.

Lower borrowing costs may prompt increased credit growth, particularly in economies with robust banking sectors like Singapore and South Korea. But financial institutions must remain cautious about excessive risk-taking in a low-rate environment.

The impact on consumers will be mixed. While lower interest rates could stimulate economic activity, they may also fuel asset bubbles in real estate and equities. Countries like China and South Korea, where housing affordability is already a concern, will need to manage the risk of excessive price surges. &nbsp,

In addition, higher household purchasing power due to stronger currencies could provide a boost to domestic consumption, benefiting retailers and consumer-driven industries.

Asia’s policymakers will have to navigate this shifting landscape carefully. While many economies stand to benefit from the Fed’s potential rate cuts, regional central banks must decide how aggressively to adjust their own policies. Some may choose to maintain higher rates to ensure financial stability, while others could seize the opportunity to stimulate growth.

Ultimately, if the Fed cuts rates, Asia’s economic landscape will shift. The era of aggressive tightening is, I suspect, nearing its end, and a new phase of capital flows and risk positioning is beginning. &nbsp,

The Fed’s next move isn’t guaranteed, but the signs are there. Inflation is cooling, economic momentum is slowing, and policymakers are under pressure to act. The moment the Fed pulls the trigger, Asia will, or at least should, have to respond.

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Ministry to assist inquiry

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Phiphat: Wants a transparent probe
Phiphat: Wants a clear probe

The Ministry of Labour has said it is ready to cooperate with an inquiry panel set up to investigate allegations the Social Security Office ( SSO ) spent an excessive 7 billion baht to purchase the SKYY9 Centre on Rama IX Road when its claimed appraisal price was 3 billion baht.

Labour Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said on Wednesday he is ready to cooperate to maintain clarity in the research.

” The order of SKYY9 is ready to get scrutinised. The SSO conducted a research on the order and commissioned independent businesses to calculate the cost and consider whether the order is for investing in”, Mr Phiphat said.

The secretary added that a deputy permanent director for the Labour Ministry, the SSO’s present secretary-general, and the SSO’s assistant secretary-general was appointed to the seven-member investigation section.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said she instructed Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul to shape an investigation panel to investigate the SSO’s order of the SKYY9 Centre.

Mr Anutin explained that while the SSO is under the Labour Ministry, he even serves as a deputy prime minister who oversees the Labour Ministry.

He said Mr Phiphat has even asked him to investigate the issue.

He added the alleged excessive saving occurred when the latest permanent secretary for employment formerly served as the secretary-general of the SSO.

Mr Anutin even said that when the permanent secretary for employment is being investigated, the standard who leads the exploration may carry the same level to ensure a smooth sensor.

The latest permanent secretary for workers, Boonsong Thapchaiyut, who served as the SSO’s secretary-general at the time of the order, on Wednesday refused to comment on the topic.

When asked if the order aligned with the laws, he merely nodded in recognition.

Deputy Commerce Minister Suchart Chomklin on Wednesday dismissed claims by Rukchanok Srinork, a People’s Party MP for Bangkok, that he was involved in the SSO paying unnecessarily to obtain the SKYY9 Centre.

In a message on Facebook on Wednesday, Mr Suchart said that her condemnation amounted to libel. ” Don’t distort the truth by using dirty politicians”, wrote Mr Suchart, who formerly served as a labour minister at the time of the order between 2022-2023.

On Monday, Ms Rukchanok raised concerns about the SSO’s order of the SKYY9 Centre on Rama IX Road, saying the tower was for an estimated 3 billion ringgit, but the SSO bought it for more than twice that amount.

Another Women’s Party MP, Sahassawat Kumkong, said this tower was purchased through a confidence, and about 70 % of the trust was spent on its order.

He said the workers minister at the time was also found to have transferred a close aide to a council directly in charge of expenditure, including purchasing the tower.

Ms Rukchanok claimed on Wednesday that the SSO bought the firm that owned the tower. She said the company was found to have a bill of more than 2 billion ringgit.

The SSO’s current secretary-general, Marasri Jairangsee, on Tuesday said the SSO invested in buying the building via the Private Equity Trust, an investment vehicle under the Trust for Transactions in the Capital Market Act, regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission ( SEC ). She said two separate algorithms certified by the SEC estimated the price of the tower.

She said the value was estimated at 7.3 billion baht based on the money approach solution, but if the price approach is used, the building’s value is estimated at 8 billion baht. However, she said the SSO invested just 6.9 billion baht to purchase the building.

The SKYY9 Centre on Rama IX Road was one of many houses left empty and abandoned following the 1997″ Tom Yam Kung” financial problems.

Due to the property company’s non-performing product, possession of the tower changed hands many times before it was acquired by Bangkok Commercial Asset Management Plc.

The firm later resold it to a group of companies operating department shops for around 1 billion ringgit. The tower was eventually renovated and renamed I. C. E. Tower.

In 2020, it was sold to Cas Capital ( Thailand ), renovated again, and rebranded as Cas Centre.

After the repairs, its predicted price rose to about 2.2 billion ringgit, while the property on which it stands was valued at 1.5 billion ringgit at the time.

The tower was sold once more in 2022 to a group of private firms. The SSO after set up a personal capital faith to spend about 9.4 billion baht in secret companies that are not listed on the stock market.

Of the 9.4 billion baht, about 3 billion baht was allocated for overseas investment, while the remaining 6.9 billion baht was used to purchase the building.

It was later found that a company named AGRE 101 had sold the building to the SSO’s private equity trust. Currently, about 45 % of SKYY9’s space has been rented out. Of this, 25 % is already occupied by tenants, while the remaining 20 % is expected to be occupied within the year.

According to the DDproperty website, the rental fee at SKYY9 was 600 baht per square metre as of March 10.

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Ministry of Labour to assist Social Security Office inquiry

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The Ministry of Labour has said it is ready to cooperate with an inquiry panel set up to investigate allegations the Social Security Office ( SSO ) spent an excessive 7 billion baht to purchase the SKYY9 Centre on Rama IX Road when its claimed appraisal price was 3 billion baht.

Labour Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said on Wednesday he is ready to cooperate to maintain clarity in the research.

” The order of SKYY9 is ready to get scrutinised. The SSO conducted a research on the order and commissioned independent businesses to calculate the amount and consider whether the order is for investing in”, Mr Phiphat said.

Phiphat: Wants a visible sensor

Phiphat: Wants a visible sensor

The secretary added that a deputy permanent director for the Labour Ministry, the SSO’s present secretary-general, and the SSO’s assistant secretary-general was appointed to the seven-member investigation section.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said she instructed Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul to type an investigation panel to investigate the SSO’s order of the SKYY9 Centre.

Mr Anutin explained that while the SSO is under the Labour Ministry, he even serves as a deputy prime minister who oversees the Labour Ministry.

He said Mr Phiphat has even asked him to investigate the issue.

He added the alleged excessive saving occurred when the present permanent secretary for employment formerly served as the secretary-general of the SSO.

Mr Anutin even said that when the permanent secretary for employment is being investigated, the standard who leads the exploration may carry the same level to ensure a smooth sensor.

The latest permanent secretary for workers, Boonsong Thapchaiyut, who served as the SSO’s secretary-general at the time of the order, on Wednesday refused to comment on the topic.

When asked if the order aligned with the laws, he merely nodded in recognition.

Deputy Commerce Minister Suchart Chomklin on Wednesday dismissed claims by Rukchanok Srinork, a People’s Party MP for Bangkok, that he was involved in the SSO paying unnecessarily to obtain the SKYY9 Centre.

In a message on Facebook on Wednesday, Mr Suchart said that her condemnation amounted to libel. ” Don’t distort the truth by using dirty politicians”, wrote Mr Suchart, who formerly served as a labour minister at the time of the order between 2022-2023.

On Monday, Ms Rukchanok raised concerns about the SSO’s order of the SKYY9 Centre on Rama IX Road, saying the tower was for an estimated 3 billion ringgit, but the SSO bought it for more than twice that amount.

Another Women’s Party MP, Sahassawat Kumkong, said this tower was purchased through a confidence, and about 70 % of the trust was spent on its order.

He said the workers minister at the time was also found to have transferred a close aide to a council directly in charge of expenditure, including purchasing the tower.

Ms Rukchanok claimed on Wednesday that the SSO bought the business that owned the tower. She said the company was found to have a bill of more than 2 billion ringgit.

The SSO’s current secretary-general, Marasri Jairangsee, on Tuesday said the SSO invested in buying the building via the Private Equity Trust, an investment vehicle under the Trust for Transactions in the Capital Market Act, regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission ( SEC ). She said two separate algorithms certified by the SEC estimated the price of the tower.

She said the value was estimated at 7.3 billion baht based on the money approach solution, but if the price approach is used, the building’s value is estimated at 8 billion baht. However, she said the SSO invested just 6.9 billion baht to purchase the building.

The SKYY9 Centre on Rama IX Road was one of many houses left untouched and abandoned following the 1997″ Tom Yam Kung” financial problems.

Due to the property company’s non-performing product, possession of the tower changed hands many times before it was acquired by Bangkok Commercial Asset Management Plc.

The organization later resold it to a group of companies operating department shops for around 1 billion ringgit. The tower was immediately renovated and renamed I. C. E. Tower.

In 2020, it was sold to Cas Capital ( Thailand ), renovated again, and rebranded as Cas Centre.

After the repairs, its predicted price rose to about 2.2 billion ringgit, while the property on which it stands was valued at 1.5 billion ringgit at the time.

The tower was sold once more in 2022 to a group of private firms. The SSO after set up a personal capital trust to spend about 9.4 billion ringgit in secret companies that are not listed on the stock market.

Of the 9.4 billion baht, about 3 billion baht was allocated for overseas investment, while the remaining 6.9 billion baht was used to purchase the building.

It was later found that a company named AGRE 101 had sold the building to the SSO’s private equity trust. Currently, about 45 % of SKYY9’s space has been rented out. Of this, 25 % is already occupied by tenants, while the remaining 20 % is expected to be occupied within the year.

According to the DDproperty website, the rental fee at SKYY9 was 600 baht per square metre as of March 10.

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The dark parallels between 1920s USA and today’s political climate – Asia Times

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In: Asia

As promised, the second Trump administration has quickly rolled out a slew of policies and executive orders that the president says are all aimed at” Making America Great Again”. This takes on various forms, including Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency immediately laying off thousands of workers at various federal agencies, and President Donald Trump pausing all cash for Ukraine.

Trump says that, among people, there are three teams that are making America not-great: refugees, people with disabilities, and people who are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion plans.

These management work began at a time when some Americans expressed an entire rising sense of dissatisfaction with the state of the country and politicians. Only 19 % of Americans said in December 2024 that they think the country is heading in the right direction.

This view is striking not only because it is so gloomy, but because it strongly resembles how Americans felt during a pivotal generation 100 centuries ago, when people’s frustration with the state of the country led to a series of unfair, cruel plans by the federal government.

It’s a time of British story that I think offers something of a picture of the current political situation in the U. S.

The Roaring ‘ 20s?

In the 1920s, the market was good, the US had won World War I and a bad epidemic ended.

But some Americans did not see it that way.

They entered the 1920s with a growing feeling of anxiety and a sense that they had been robbed of everything. Winning World War I had come at a bad price. More than 116, 000 British soldiers died and double that number came home wounded.

As the war came to a close, the US – and the universe – was in the midst of the flu pandemic that eventually claimed tens of millions of life, including about 675, 000 in the U. S.

Another Americans were concerned about the possible rise of communism in the US, as well as the introduction of some immigrants. This led fanatics to create and implement hate-based plans at the federal and state level that targeted nonwhite refugees and handicapped individuals.

Among the most important benefits of that social time was the 1924 Johnson-Reed Act, a stringent immigration policy that, among other shifts, prohibited emigration from Asia.

Another important activity was the Supreme Court’s 1927 Buck v. Bell determination, which affirmed that the state of Virginia had the right to clean cognitively and developmentally handicapped individuals.

Discrimination against excluded parties

The Johnson-Reed Act prompted a significant change in American immigration plan, based on the fear of something that former President Theodore Roosevelt and another called “race suicide“.

The rules introduced firm limits keeping people out of the nation who were not from Northern and Western Europe. The emigration limits that it established may continue to be enforced into the 1960s.

The US politicians who lobbied for this laws were successful because they supported their efforts by presenting evidence that showed apparently medical proof that almost all people in the world were medically superior to a group they called the Nordic Race– meaning people from Northern Europe– and their British descendants, who formed a group they called the” National Race”.

By restricting emigration from all other parties, these politicians believed they were counterbalancing a crushing period where conflict and crisis had killed off what they saw as the government’s best people.

Various groups preyed on Americans ‘ pain about the conflict and crisis and directed it against minority parties.

From Maine to California, a revived Ku Klux Klan attracted millions of followers with its idea that white folks were superior to all others, and that Black people should be imprisoned. At the same time, a group of scientists, doctors and psychologists found enormous success in persuading the public that there were scientific reasons why hatred and discrimination needed to be incorporated into American government.

Their proof was something called eugenics, a pseudoscience which argued that humans had to use advanced technology and medicine to get people with good traits to reproduce while stopping those with bad traits from having the opportunity to do so.

Harry Laughlin, a eugenicist based at a research laboratory in Cold Spring Harbor, New York, was one of this movement’s most vocal representatives.

Laughlin worked for several different eugenics research organizations, and this helped him become successful at creating propaganda supporting eugenics that influenced public policy. He then gained a spot as an expert eugenics adviser to Congress in the early 1920s. With his position, Laughlin then provided the pseudoscientific data that gave the supporters of Johnson-Reed the claims they needed to justify passing the measure.

A push for sterilization

In Laughlin’s influential 1922 book Eugenic Sterilization in the United States, he detailed a road map for passing a law that would allow governments to sterilize disabled people.

After so much death during World War I and the influenza pandemic, Laughlin found fertile ground for making a case that the U. S. needed to stop people who might be considered “feeble-minded” from passing down inferior traits.

In the mid-1920s, Laughlin and his allies pressed a court case against a teenage woman whom the state of Virginia had deemed an imbecile and incarcerated at a massive Virginia institution for the feeble-minded. This woman, Carrie Buck, was incarcerated after she gave birth to a child in 1924 who was conceived as a result of rape. If Buck, who was 18 years old at the time, had any hope of being released, the officials who ran the institution demanded she be sterilized first.

Two women sit next to each other and look at the camera in a black-and-white photo.
Carrie Buck, left, pictured with her mother, Emma, was the first woman involuntarily sterilized under Virginia law in the 1920s. Photo: M. E. Grenander Special Collections and Archives, University at Albany

All across the country, states had begun legalizing forced sterilization. Now, this case of Buck v. Bell made its way to the U. S. Supreme Court. In 1927, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. issued the court’s ruling, which had only one dissent. In it, he wrote that” three generations of imbeciles is enough” and extended the scope of a previous ruling, which allowed the government to compel people to get vaccinated, to include forced sterilization of disabled people.

Buck was forcibly sterilized in October 1927, shortly after the court’s ruling.

While it is unquestionable that sterilization and other discriminatory policies found common cause with Adolf Hitler’s rising Nazi movement – which used the eugenic ideas of sterilization and mass extermination– they persisted, largely unchallenged, in the US.

Some people, including myself, argue that the spirit of these discriminatory policies still exists in the US today.

A familiar story

Following stalemated wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in the 2000s and the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the American economy has been growing.

But, sensing a grave decline, some white Americans have turned their sights on people with disabilities, immigrants, transgender and nonbinary people and people of color as the source of their problems.

Trump regularly encourages this kind of thinking. In January 2025, after an air collision that occurred over the Potomac River and killed 67 people, he blamed it on disabled Federal Aviation Administration employees – implying that they did not possess the intelligence to do their jobs.

Trump falsely said that the January 1, 2025, New Orleans terror attack was caused by illegal immigration– even though a Texas-born man drove a car into a crowd of people, killing 14.

At a policy level, Trump’s administration has made significant changes to the immigration system, including taking steps to remove legal protections for 350, 000 Venezuelan immigrants in the US. And he has launched an unprecedented challenge to birthright citizenship.

There are limits to what history can say about the current situation. But these similarities with the early 1920s suggest that, contrary to many claims about the unprecedented nature of the current times, the country has been here before.

Alex Green is a lecturer in public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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