Asian Insider, April 16: Negative growth for Asean-5, Asia’s newest billionaires, Abe’s wife under fire

Hi all,

In today's bulletin: IMF's Asia growth forecasts, a landslide victory in South Korean polls, Sheng Siong owners' rising fortunes, Cathay's dire outlook, air-con may spread coronavirus, and more.

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The International Monetary Fund has lowered its growth forecast for Asean's five leading countries - Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand - to negative 1.3 per cent this year, as the coronavirus pandemic brings nations' economies to a standstill amid widespread lockdowns to curb the spread of the deadly disease.

Thailand will likely see -6.7 per cent growth amid a major downturn in tourism, according to Mr Changyong Rhee, director of IMF's Asia and Pacific Department. Other export- and tourism-driven economies such as those in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam will also be significantly hit.

Asia as a whole is expected to suffer zero growth for the first time in 60 years - worse than the 4.7 per cent average growth rate throughout the 2007-2008 global financial crisis and 1.3 per cent increase during the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s, the IMF said.

In Singapore, private home sales dropped 32 per cent in March compared with the previous month as launches and viewings were disrupted by safe distancing measures. China, however, saw a slight surge in residential home prices last month - 0.13 per cent higher than that in February - amid pent-up demand after the country's severe lockdown restrictions were eased.

South Korea's ruling party won a landslide victory in yesterday's general election, after the coronavirus pandemic turned the political tide in President Moon Jae-in's favour. His left-leaning Democratic party secured its first absolute majority in 12 years, on a turnout of 66.2 per cent, the highest at a parliamentary election in nearly three decades.

Mr Moon's government was in doubt only a few months ago, threatened by scandals over power abuse, sluggish economic growth and criticism over his dovish approach towards North Korea. But his administration's quick and effective handling of the Covid-19 outbreak - seen as a referendum on his performance - has proved a major boon for him.

Is there no end to this blame game? China's foreign ministry stressed that the World Health Organisation has said there is no evidence that the coronavirus was made in a laboratory, after US President Donald Trump revealed that his government was investigating whether it came from a lab in Wuhan and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged Beijing to "come clean" on what it knows.

The source of the coronavirus is yet unknown. The United States' top general, Mark Milley, said this week that US intelligence indicated that the virus was likely to have occurred naturally, as opposed to being created in a lab, but there is no certainty either way.

In February, a team of 27 scientists published a statement in the Lancet medical journal condemning conspiracy theories surrounding the origins of the virus. They said scientists around the world "overwhelmingly conclude that this coronavirus originated in wildlife".

The owners of Singapore-listed supermarket chain Sheng Siong Group have joined the ranks of Asia's newest billionaires after the company's shares rose to a record this week, rallying more than 30 per cent since a low in mid-March.

The combined fortune of Sheng Siong boss Lim Hock Chee and his family has surged to US$1.1 billion (S$1.57 billion), based on their 57 per cent stake in the business, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. It's a far cry from Mr Lim's humble beginnings as a pork seller at a rented stall, helping to alleviate a supply glut at his father's pig farm.

As if there aren't enough contentious issues adding strain to already-frayed ties between the US and China, the US State Department said in a report yesterday that Beijing may have secretly conducted low-level underground nuclear test explosions despite being part of a global pact banning such blasts. The activities were observed at China's Lop Nur nuclear test site throughout 2019, according to the report.

Meanwhile, in the South China Sea - another potential flashpoint between the two world powers - a Chinese government survey ship embroiled in a standoff with Vietnamese vessels was seen moving south near Malaysia, shipping data showed. The news comes amid accusations that China is using the coronavirus pandemic to assert its presence in the region, where the US challenges Beijing's sweeping maritime claims.

ABE'S WIFE SLAMMED FOR SHRINE VISIT: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's wife has come under fire on social media for visiting a shrine with about 50 people last month, adding to her husband's woes over the country's coronavirus crisis. Mr Abe has recently also been criticised for appearing tone deaf to the severity of the crisis in his own social media posts, sharing a video of himself lounging on a sofa with his dog.

CATHAY'S PASSENGER TRAFFIC JUST 1% OF USUAL: Hong Kong's flagship carrier Cathay Pacific expects passenger numbers to stay below 1,000 a day this month, compared with its usual 100,000. And it's impossible to predict when demand will improve, as the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic is intensifying, the airline said.

CHINESE STUDY SUGGESTS AIR-CON HELPS SPREAD CORONAVIRUS: A study published on China's Centres for Disease Control and Prevention website has suggested that air-conditioning may help spread the coronavirus. The research looked at 10 Covid-19 cases from three families in Guangzhou who dined at a restaurant at the same time, and found that the air-conditioning may have propelled droplet transmission across three tables, infecting other diners.

That's it for today. Thank you for reading. Stay home if you can, mask up when you're out, and we'll be back with more good stories tomorrow.

Magdalene