 |
| Oil refinery of the Russian oil group Lukoil. (Source: lukoil) |
World economy
IIF: Global debt hits record $307 trillion
The Institute of International Finance (IIF) released a report on September 19 showing that global debt reached a record $307 trillion in the second quarter of 2023, although rising interest rates have limited bank credit while markets such as the US and Japan have driven the growth.
According to the report, the total value of global debt in USD terms increased by $10,000 billion in the first half of 2023 and $100,000 billion over the past decade.
The latest increase pushed the global debt-to-GDP ratio up for the second consecutive quarter to 336%. The report said slowing economic growth and slowing price increases have caused nominal GDP to grow at a slower pace than debt, leading to the increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio.
More than 80% of the latest increase came from developed countries, with the US, Japan, the UK and France contributing the largest share. On the emerging market side, large economies such as China, India and Brazil were the top contributors to the debt.
With wage and price pressures easing - albeit not as quickly as expected - the global debt-to-GDP ratio is expected to surpass 337% by the end of this year, the IIF said. (Reuters)
US economy
* On September 20, the US Federal Reserve (Fed) decided to keep its policy interest rate at the current level, but supported a rate hike by the end of 2023 and continued to maintain tight monetary policy until 2024.
After a two-day meeting, the Fed decided to keep its policy rate unchanged at 5.25% to 5.50%, while updated projections showed that 12 of the agency's 19 policymakers favored another rate hike in 2023 to ensure inflation continues to slow. The US central bank also forecast less monetary policy easing in 2024, thanks to the strength of the economy and labor market. (Reuters)
Chinese Economy
* China on September 19 called for enhanced cross-border connectivity with Russia and deeper bilateral trade and investment cooperation.
Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov held “in-depth” discussions on economic cooperation with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Beijing on September 19. During the discussions in Beijing, Wang said Sino-Russian economic and trade cooperation has become increasingly deeper and “solid” under the “strategic guidance” of the two leaders.
As tensions between Russia and Ukraine enter their second year and Moscow faces Western sanctions, China has become Russia's biggest trading partner for oil, gas and grain. (Reuters)
* The People's Bank of China (PBoC) and China's foreign exchange regulator met with international financial institutions and companies on September 18, as Beijing steps up efforts to attract foreign investment to support its economic recovery.
Representatives from foreign companies including Morgan Stanley, HSBC, Deutsche Bank and Tesla also attended the meeting, according to a statement from the PBoC. China has been seeking to attract foreign investment as its economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic has slowed due to weak overseas demand and a slump in the property market. The world's second-largest economy showed tentative signs of stabilization last month following government policy support.
A report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) of China on September 15 showed that the country's industrial output in August 2023 increased by 4.5% year-on-year, significantly higher than the 3.7% recorded in July and the highest level since April.
The result also exceeded expectations of a 3.9% increase in a Reuters poll of analysts. (Reuters)
European Economy
* Without drastic measures, the EU could become as dependent on Chinese lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells by 2030 as it was on Russian energy before the conflict in Ukraine, according to a document prepared for European Union (EU) leaders.
The document will form the basis for discussions on Europe's economic security at the EU leaders' meeting in Granada, Spain, on October 5. Concerned about China's growing economic power globally, EU leaders will discuss proposals from the European Commission (EC) to reduce the risk of Europe becoming too dependent on China and the need to diversify into Africa and Latin America. (VNA)
* On September 15, Ukrainian Energy Minister (German Galushchenko) announced that the country has the potential to become a regional gas hub in Europe. Accordingly, Ukraine can increase its gas reserves from 2 billion cubic meters to 15 billion cubic meters.
The official said that Ukraine is ready to provide foreign companies with underground gas storage facilities with a capacity of up to 15 billion cubic meters. (TTXVN)
* On September 15, Hungary announced an import ban on 24 agricultural products from Ukraine , including cereals, vegetables, some meat products and honey. The ban took effect from September 16.
Hungary decided to unilaterally ban Ukrainian food imports after the European Commission (EC) said it would not extend a ban on Ukrainian grain imports into five EU member states that share a border with Ukraine. (Reuters)
* Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Plenipotentiary Representative to the Far Eastern Federal District, Yuri Trutnev, said on September 15 that about 373 agreements with a total value of 3,818 billion rubles (about 39.4 billion USD) were signed at the Eastern International Economic Forum (EEF 2023) held in Vladivostok on September 10-13.
This year's event attracted more than 7,000 participants from 62 countries. (TASS)
* According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), in August 2023, Russia earned $17.1 billion from crude oil exports , up 11.8% and $1.8 billion higher than in July. This is the highest figure since October 2022 and the highest in recent months. Although the export volume of oil and petroleum products decreased by 150,000 barrels/day to 7.2 million barrels/day, high selling prices compensated.
Business Insider assessed that increased oil revenue could boost the Russian economy. ( Business Insider/TASS)
* Faced with the prolonged difficulties of the German economy, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has lowered its growth forecast for the country next year.
According to the latest economic outlook report of the OCED, Europe's leading economy is forecast to grow at 0.9% next year , lower than the 1.2% in the organization's June 2023 forecast and only on par with the expected growth of the Russian economy. (TTXVN)
 |
| In the first 8 months of 2023, Korea's instant noodle exports increased by 20.6% year-on-year, reaching 607.7 million USD. (Source: BHX) |
Japanese and Korean Economy
* As of June 2023, Japanese households had $14.3 trillion in financial assets , up 4.6% from a year earlier, as a rally in the stock market prompted people to increase their holdings of stocks in a country that is traditionally more cash-oriented.
According to preliminary data released by the Bank of Japan (BoJ) on September 20, the recovery of the stock market in the second quarter increased the amount of money held by securities investment companies (equity holdings) by 26% to 268,000 billion yen and that of investment trusts by 15.9% to 100,000 billion yen. These are all the highest levels ever. (Nikkei Asia)
* According to data released by Japan's Ministry of Finance on September 20, the country recorded a trade deficit of 930.48 billion yen (6.3 billion USD) in August 2023, as exports continued to decline amid falling foreign demand and China's imposition of trade restrictions.
Data showed that Japan's exports in August 2023 reached 7.99 trillion yen (54 billion USD), down 0.8% compared to the same period last year, marking the second consecutive month of decline, despite high auto exports to the US. Meanwhile, imports also fell 17.8% to 8.92 trillion yen (60.3 billion USD). (TTXVN)
* In the report "Asian Economic Outlook 2023" released on September 20, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) maintained its forecast for South Korea's economic growth in 2023 at 1.3%, the same as in July 2023. Accordingly, this growth rate is lower than the 1.5% forecast of the OECD and the Korea Development Institute (KDI), and the 1.4% forecast of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the government and the Bank of Korea (BoK).
In its report, ADB also maintained Korea's economic growth outlook for 2024 at 2.2%. According to ADB, inflation in 2023 is 3.3% while inflation next year will fall to 2.2%, lower than the previous forecast (2.5%). (Yonhap/VNA)
* According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs of South Korea, from January 2023 to the end of the second week of September 2023, instant noodle exports from the "Land of Kimchi" increased by 23.5% over the same period last year, reaching a value of 657.3 million USD.
In the first 8 months of 2023, Korea's instant noodle exports increased by 20.6% year-on-year to 607.7 million USD.
South Korean government data shows that the country's global instant noodle sales have been rising steadily since 2015, reaching a record high of $765.43 million in 2022. Compared to other countries in the same year, South Korea was the world's second-largest instant noodle exporter, trailing only China. (Yonhap)
ASEAN Economy and Emerging Economies
* The Jakarta City Government, Indonesia is stepping up its implementation of the Affordable Food Movement (GPM) to help address rising rice prices.
In September, the Jakarta administration distributed low-cost food packages worth Rp 126,000 each to 183 locations including child support centers (RPTRA), Cipinang Rice Market and some government manufacturing enterprises. (TTXVN)
* The Bangkok Post newspaper on September 20 quoted a number of anonymous sources as saying that the Thai government plans to borrow about 2,400 billion baht (nearly 67 billion USD) for fiscal year 2024 (starting from October 1, 2023), an increase of about 9% compared to fiscal year 2023.
Of this, about 700 billion baht (nearly 20 billion USD) will be new loans used to address the budget deficit and about 1,700 billion baht (more than 47 billion USD) will be used to refinance and restructure existing debts.
According to the source, about half of the total amount of 67 billion USD will be raised through the sale of government bonds, while the rest will come from the sale of treasury bills, savings bonds, convertible bonds and promissory notes. (TTXVN)
* Singapore's non-oil domestic exports (NODX) fell 20.1% in August 2023, with both the electronics and non-electronics sectors falling. This was the 11th consecutive month of decline in the exports of the "lion island nation's" staple products .
The August decline followed sharp declines of 20.3% in July and 15.7% in June, and was worse than the 15.8% forecast in a Reuters poll.
Compared to the same period last year, Singapore's total trade fell 15.2% in August, following a 20.9% decline in July. Both exports and imports fell 14.7% and 15.6%, respectively. (TTXVN)
Source
![[Photo] Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chairs Government Conference with localities on economic growth](https://vstatic.vietnam.vn/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2025/2/21/f34583484f2643a2a2b72168a0d64baa)
Comment (0)