South Asia in April 2026: the most important developments in economy
South and Southeast Asia's economies in April 2026 were dominated by the energy shock from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the war involving Iran. Oil rose past $100 at points, and the region saw fuel price rises, airline cuts and the biggest Asian bond outflows in four years. Thailand urged people to work from home, cut its growth outlook, saw foreign investors leave, and considered raising its debt ceiling to 75 percent. Singapore's central bank tightened policy on April 14. Bangladesh cut working hours and faced power cuts and telecom shutdowns. Indonesia let airlines raise fares by up to 13 percent, and Fitch moved the Philippines' outlook to negative. Sri Lanka began April with mixed markets and 24-hour water cuts in parts of Colombo, received an assurance of fuel supply from China, and reached a staff-level deal with the IMF on $700 million in funding.
Governments moved to secure supplies. Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines turned to Russian oil, and Indonesia said Russia would supply 150 million barrels. Japan announced a $10 billion package to help ASEAN countries obtain oil. Australia and Singapore agreed a legally binding deal on liquefied natural gas and diesel. Indonesia's finance minister floated a levy on ships using the Strait of Malacca and then backed off, and Singapore said trade through the strait must remain free. Thailand pressed ahead with its $31 billion Land Bridge plan.
Infrastructure and trade deals continued. Vietnam broke ground on its first high-speed railway, linking Hanoi and Ha Long Bay, and its leader To Lam visited China, which offered railway loans and technology. Vietnam planned $2 billion for a container port in Da Nang, and FTSE Russell confirmed its emerging market status. The United States and the Philippines planned an economic security zone of 1,619 hectares in Luzon. Malaysia placed new restrictions on electric cars aimed at Chinese makers. An Indonesian commuter train crash killed 14 people, and Bangladesh's first nuclear power plant, built by Russia, began fuel loading.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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