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DBS economists Radhika Rao and Mo Ji forecast Singapore’s advance 2Q26 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 5.8% year-on-year and 1.5% quarter-on-quarter seasonally adjusted, slightly below 1Q26 but still resilient. They cite strong manufacturing and wholesale trade on AI-related electronics demand, robust modern services and construction, and expect non-oil domestic exports to post a fourth consecutive month of double-digit growth despite a slowdown from May.AI demand underpins growth outlook”We expect Singapore’s advance GDP growth estimate for 2Q26 to register 5.8% yoy, 1.5% qoq sa, remaining resilient compared with 6.0% yoy, 1.0% qoq sa in 1Q26.””Manufacturing accelerated, while wholesale trade performed…

Silver price retreats on Friday during the North American session, edging down by 0.54%, weighed by high US Treasury yields and a sudden shift in market sentiment, after US President Trump revealed that the ceasefire is “over.” At the time of writing, the XAG/USD trades at $59.66.XAG/USD Price Forecast: Technical OutlookSilver is downward biased, as the market structure continues to respect the series of lower highs and lower lows. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) remains bearish, below its 50-neutral level and aiming towards oversold territory. Given the reasons mentioned above and geopolitical uncertainty, the XAG/USD’s path of least resistance is…

Commerzbank’s report on Taiwan notes that stronger inflation, with core CPI at 2.5%, is likely to push the CBC towards a more hawkish stance, including a possible 12.5 bp hike in H2. Despite robust AI-driven exports and firm domestic demand, USD/TWD has risen to 32.19, though analysts expect a potential pullback once seasonal dividend outflows fade.Hawkish CBC and AI-led growth”Taiwan’s June inflation surprised on the upside, with headline CPI rising to 2.6% yoy from 2.2% in May. This was the fastest pace since January 2025 and well above the Central Bank of the Republic of China’s (CBC) informal 2% threshold.…

The upcoming week will bring a major test for the US Dollar (USD), with investors focusing on the United States Consumer Price Index (CPI), Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Kevin Warsh’s congressional testimony and a broad set of activity indicators. China’s second-quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Bank of Canada’s (BoC) interest-rate decision will also attract significant attention.The US Dollar Index (DXY) trades near 101.00, recovering from a one-week low hit earlier on Friday as investors balance softer recent labor market data against renewed geopolitical uncertainty and persistent inflation concerns. Tuesday’s US CPI report will be the central event for…

DBS economists Radhika Rao and Mo Ji expect the Bank of Korea (BoK) to raise its base rate to 2.75% from 2.50% in July, citing persistent CPI inflation above 3% and resilient growth. They highlight robust exports and investment linked to the AI (Artificial intelligence) boom and note that Korean Won weakness and portfolio outflows further justify tighter monetary policy.Korean policy tightening backed by data”The Bank of Korea is expected to raise the base rate to 2.75% from 2.50% in July.””The BoK signaled in June that it remains prepared to tighten monetary policy despite the recent decline in oil prices…

MUFG’s Lloyd Chan highlights the Indonesian rupiah’s continued vulnerability as USD/IDR moved back above 18,000 amid renewed Middle East tensions and elevated US yields. Although attractive government bond and SRBI yields have supported foreign inflows into the bond market, persistent net foreign equity outflows leave the balance of risks tilted toward further rupiah weakness.External pressures weigh on Rupiah”We remain cautious on selective regional currencies, particularly the Indonesian rupiah.””IDR led regional losses yesterday, with USDIDR rising 0.5% to move back above the 18,000 level.””Renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and elevated US yields continue to exert external pressure on the…

Gold (XAU/USD) price retreats on Friday during the North American session, pressured by US President Donald Trump’s comments allowing the resumption of US-Iran talks, but reiterating that the ceasefire is “over.” The XAU/USD pair trades at around $4,103, down 0.48%.XAU/USD falls as renewed war risks lift yields and DollarThe yellow metal seems poised to end the week down 0.51%, driven by the escalation of the conflict. The Greenback erased its earlier losses, as the US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the buck’s value against six currencies, holds firm at 100.94, unchanged.In his Truth Social account, President Trump posted, “The Islamic…

MUFG’s Lloyd Chan notes Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) kept the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) at 2.75% and expects it to stay on hold through 2026, with domestic fundamentals described as broadly supportive. Recent Malaysian Ringgit (MYR) weakness has stayed below 4.15 against the US Dollar (USD), and Chan expects USD/MYR to trade broadly within a 4.00–4.20 range near term, while maintaining a neutral stance on Malaysian government securities.Ringgit seen holding broad range”In Malaysia, BNM kept the Overnight Policy Rate unchanged at 2.75% and maintained a broadly neutral policy stance.””We expect BNM to remain on hold through the rest of 2026,…

Commerzbank analysts highlight that China’s June Consumer Price Index (CPI) slowed to 1.0% year-on-year while Producer Price Index (PPI) rose 4.1%, widening the PPI-CPI gap and squeezing downstream margins. The PBoC acknowledged “structural divergence” between high-tech strength and weak consumption. Despite this backdrop, USD/CNY and USD/CNH both fell, reflecting some currency strength even as domestic demand remains subdued.China reflation momentum softens”China’s reflationary recovery lost further traction in June, with CPI rising 1.0% yoy (Bloomberg consensus: 1.1%) vs 1.2% in both April and May. The reading marks the slowest CPI print in three months and reinforces concerns that domestic demand remains…

MUMBAI: India’s foreign exchange reserves appear to be showing early signs that targeted central bank measures to attract overseas capital might be gaining some traction, although experts believe a more accurate assessment of the programs will be possible only later – perhaps in September.The country’s stockpile of assets denominated in foreign currencies rose $7.26 billion to $674 billion in the week ended July 3, the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed.Of the total reserves, foreign currency assets increased $4.5 billion to $545.5 billion, while gold reserves increased $2.6 billion to $105.2 billion during the week.This suggests…