Bus operator SBS Transit, national carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA) and port operator PSA are among 19 key entities in the transport sector that will be subject to greater regulatory scrutiny under a law that came into force on April 1, the Straits Times reported. The Transport Sector (Critical Firms) Act gives the Government more control over key Singapore companies in the air, land and sea transport sectors to guard against adverse influences and major interruptions in essential transport services.

China has taken steps to restrict local companies from investing in the U.S. in a move that could give Beijing more leverage for potential trade negotiations with the Trump administration, Bloomberg News reported. Several branches of China’s top economic planning agency, the National Development and Reform Commission, have been instructed in recent weeks to hold off on registration and approval for firms that are looking to invest in the US, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing sensitive issues.

South Korea’s exports grew at a stronger-than-expected pace in March, showing signs of resilience as concerns about U.S. tariffs cast uncertainty over the outlook for trade, the Wall Street Journal reported. President Trump has set an April 2 deadline to unveil so-called reciprocal duties, which aim to equalize U.S. tariffs with those charged by other countries. That comes on top of plans Trump announced last week to impose a separate 25% tariff on cars and auto parts. As one of the top exporters of cars to the U.S., South Korea faces a major drag if the auto levy goes into effect.

Australia's central bank on Tuesday left its cash rate steady as widely expected but took a small step towards further easing in a policy meeting dominated by risks of a global trade war, Reuters reported. Wrapping up its April policy meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) held interest rates steady at 4.1%, having just cut them by a quarter point in February for the first time in over four years. "Monetary policy is well placed to respond to international developments if they were to have material implications for Australian activity and inflation," the board said in a statement.

Australian retail sales rose modestly for a second straight month in February as a long-awaited cut in interest rates combined with slower inflation to boost consumer sentiment and spending power, Reuters reported. However, the recovery in consumer spending is still tepid, suggesting consumers remain cautious and would not be a bar to more policy easing. The Australian dollar was steady at $0.6241 and three-year bond futures were little changed at 96.31.

China is willing to buy more Indian products to balance trade, Beijing’s Ambassador Xu Feihong said just ahead of a US tariff announcement expected to hit the south Asian neighbors, Bloomberg News reported. “We are willing to work with the Indian side to strengthen practical cooperation in trade and other areas, and to import more Indian products that are well-suited to the Chinese market,” the ambassador to India was quoted as saying by China’s state-run Global Times, in a story posted Monday.

The rising trend of Malaysians declaring bankruptcy voluntarily is becoming a growing concern, signaling that many are struggling with severe financial difficulties, the New Straits Times reported. In recent years, more people have opted to declare themselves bankrupt through a Debtor's Petition, a legal process filed in court to protect themselves from excessive creditor claims. Insolvency Department director-general Datuk M Bakri Abd Majid revealed that self-declared bankruptcy cases surged by 200 per cent, with 330 cases recorded in 2024, compared to 181 in 2023 and 116 in 2022.

Bombay high court said the developer cannot use the insolvency law as a tool to escape the consequences of failure to execute a slum rehabilitation scheme fully and can be removed by the SRA—Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA), the Times of India reported. Builder’s appointment can be terminated despite a resolution plan (RP) in place under Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) proceedings, the HC said, except it cannot be done to recover “prior debts’’.