-- The United Arab Emirates' non-oil private sector expanded at a slightly slower pace in April as rising costs and supply disruptions triggered by the ongoing Middle East conflict continue to compress margins and push up selling prices.
The S&P Global UAE PMI fell for a second straight month to 52.1 from 52.9 previously, S&P Global said Tuesday. The reading indicated the softest improvement in operating conditions since February 2021.
United Overseas Insurance's (SGX:U13) insurance revenue dropped to SG$24.9 million in the first quarter of the year from SG$27.3 million a year earlier, according to a Monday filing with the Singapore Exchange.Shares of the insurance services provider were down under 1% in late Tuesday morning trading.Total comprehensive income also fell to SG$5.1 million from SG$12.6 million, while non-underwriting income slipped year on year to SG$100,000 from SG$3.7 million.Meanwhile, net insurance service and financial results came in at SG$4.4 million, compared with SG$4.1 million in Q1 2025.
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has decided to increase the official cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.35%, according to a Tuesday statement by the central bank.The bank said inflation picked up materially in the second half of 2025, with information since the beginning of 2026 confirming that some of the increase reflected greater capacity pressures.The RBA noted that the Middle East conflict has resulted in sharply higher fuel and related commodity prices already adding to inflation, with early signs that many firms experiencing cost pressures are looking to increase prices of goods and services.The RBA's baseline forecast, which assumes the conflict is resolved soon and fuel prices decline, sees underlying inflation peaking higher than expected in February before declining as demand growth slows and capacity pressures ease in response to higher interest rates, the statement added.Financial conditions have tightened this year, with money market interest rates, government bond yields, and the exchange rate all rising, although credit remains readily available to both households and businesses, the bank said.The RBA said a longer or more severe conflict could put further upward pressure on global energy prices, pushing up near-term inflation and potentially embedding higher prices into longer-term inflation expectations, while higher prices and prolonged uncertainty may also weigh on growth in Australia's major trading partners and domestically.Higher fuel prices are adding to inflation, with indications of likely second-round effects on prices for goods and services more broadly, on top of the high inflation recorded around the start of 2026, reflecting capacity pressures, according to the statement.In light of these considerations, the board assessed that inflation is likely to remain above target for some time with risks tilted to the upside, making a rate increase appropriate, with eight members voting to raise the cash rate and one member voting to leave it unchanged at 4.1%, the RBA said.
Thailand's manufacturing sector continued to expand in April, although at a slower rate, as rising costs and weakened momentum on demand weighed on activity, according to data released Tuesday by S&P Global.The S&P Global Thailand Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 52.7 in April from 54.1 in March, marking its joint-lowest level since July last year, but remaining above the 50 threshold for a twelfth straight month.New orders and output both increased, though growth softened, with firms citing a squeeze on purchasing power that dampened demand and led to the slowest expansion in sales in eight months.Backlogs of work rose at a faster pace, while employment was broadly unchanged following slight declines in the previous two months.Purchasing activity continued to increase, but supplier delivery times lengthened to the greatest extent in over three years, reflecting supply chain disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict.Cost pressures intensified, with input prices rising at the fastest rate in more than three-and-a-half years, driven by higher oil, fuel and raw material costs.Business confidence picked up in April after falling to a more than four-and-a-half-year low in March, but remained weak due to concerns over rising prices and demand risks, S&P said.