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Initiatives aimed supporting Asia’s local currency bond market can deliver big gains but face serious hurdles, delegates to the ADB meetings warned

A drive towards consumption-driven trade and Asia-to-Asia capital investment would signal Asia’s coming of age, according to S&P’s chief Asian economist.

China has the supremely delicate task of managing its economy from a high growth model to a more moderate level, while also reining in aggressive credit expansion of recent years. Getting it wrong is not an option for the Chinese government — or the global economy

Emerging market sovereign wealth funds see long term opportunities in the west.

Swanning back into town after a leisurely Easter break in Europe, I thought I'd be able to catch up with some local friends — you remember, the fools who are still wage-slaves — who would surely be twiddling their thumbs in the run-up to the long weekend here.

The Reserve Bank of India is banning banks from helping companies convert their rupee obligations into offshore debt — a move that is expected to put immense pressure on Indian corporates already struggling to refinance loans. It will be hard going but the measures are a step forward in cleaning up the country’s lending system.

Having been labelled ‘toppy’ in some quarters last week after a quick-fire 15 year sovereign sukuk, there is no sign of a retreat this week from Dubai or its neighbour Abu Dhabi. Investors have set aside nerves once again and scampered to fill their shopping carts with Majid Al Futtaim and Taqa 10 year bonds. Then again, there are plenty of reasons to brush off toppiness for now and say Dubai ain’t all bad.

Investors blame the banks, banks blame the issuers, and everybody hopes the regulator will step in to save the day. But if companies are to stop hiring the entire street for Hong Kong IPOs, the incentives for bankers need to change.

Housing associations have been actively funding using the private placement market this year. But as the issuers’ main investor base for their sterling notes dwindles the borrowers should look to diversify into euro private placements.

The ECB is ready to look at quantitative easing. No time like five years too late, the Anglo-Saxon world might justifiably comment. But actually, for much of the eurozone, it’s still much too early. The ECB, tasked from this year with oversight of Europe’s banks, surely knows this, but that hasn’t stopped it using QE talk to frighten the markets into keeping long-end rates low.

At Barclays' AGM on Thursday, chairman David Walker was the fall guy. He had to defend pay at the bank, describing 2013’s compensation decision as “among the hardest that we have had to take”, and making it clear that this was thanks to the media.

I’m a man well versed in luxury so I wasn’t at all surprised when a hand-written invitation to the Beijing Auto Show arrived from my godson Torsten. "Do come," it said, "I’m unveiling the new Rolls."