Australia's largest business lender, National Australia Bank, on Monday said it expects to incur credit impairment charges of ‌A$706 million ($503 million) in the first half, as the Iran war roils the ‌global economy and financial markets, Reuters reported. The bank said it was now predicting more bad debts to occur as the ​likelihood of an Australian "downside economic scenario" was rising due to the Middle East conflict. NAB shares were down as much as 3.8% on Monday as the S&P/ASX200 was off 0.24% in early trading. The ASX200 financials index was 0.67% lower, dragged down by NAB.

Companies in Australia and New Zealand are beginning to signal the financial strain from the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, as higher fuel prices stoke inflation, dent business and consumer confidence, and weigh on corporate earnings, Reuters reported. Australia's largest business lender, National Australia Bank, warned on Monday of a first-half credit impairment hit, while Qube Holdings and Worley flagged earnings impacts from the ​ongoing market volatility.

A compact process proposed in India to speed up insolvency resolution can be initiated only by financial creditors having a combined share of at least 51% in debt, according to the draft regulations floated by the bankruptcy regulator, the Economic Times of India reported. The defaulting firm in such cases must respond within 30 days to lenders’ notice seeking proceedings under the Creditor-initiated Insolvency Resolution Process (CIIRP). Faster insolvency process proposed with creditor-led resolution framework.

India plans to set up a special bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) with trained manpower to handle cross-border insolvency cases once the new bankruptcy rules are notified, to fast-track proceedings, the Economic Times of India reported. The cross-border framework, approved last month as part of amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), will be based on a model UN law with modifications to suit the Indian context.

Strong investments in rail lines and other infrastructure offset weak consumer spending and a shrinking trade surplus as the Chinese economy continued to grow in the first three months of the year, the New York Times reported. China’s National Bureau of Statistics announced on Thursday that the country’s gross domestic product grew 1.3 percent from the last three months of 2025. If that pace continues through the year, the Chinese economy will expand at an annual rate of about 5.3 percent.

Japan said it would provide about $10 billion in financial support to help Southeast Asian nations cope with soaring oil prices that threaten production of petroleum-derived products in the region, the New York Times reported. Japan’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, announced the initiative on Wednesday at a regional forum that included Japan and major Southeast Asian economies such as Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia. The pledge comes as much of Asia is being buffeted by disruptions in oil supplies stemming from the war in the Middle East.

An electric vehicle sales company based in the city of Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, has filed for bankruptcy protection with Tokyo District Court under the civil rehabilitation law, Nippon.com reported. The application, filed Tuesday, was accepted immediately, EV Motors Japan Co. said the same day. Liabilities left by EVMJ totaled 5.7 billion yen.

The founder of China Evergrande ‌Group, the world's most indebted property developer, pleaded guilty ‌to charges including misuse of funds, fundraising fraud and illegally taking public ​deposits, a court in China's southern city of Shenzhen said, Reuters reported. The company has defaulted since 2021 on most of its $300 billion in liabilities as well as billions of dollars of wealth ‌management product payments, in ⁠troubles emblematic of China's property sector woes that have long dragged on economic growth.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has directed initiation of insolvency proceedings against Videocon's former chairman and MD Venugopal Dhoot for defaulting on loans of Rs 6,158 crore, as a personal guarantor of two group companies, the Times of India reported. Admitting a plea from State Bank of India (SBI), NCLT said Venugopal Dhoot has "committed defaults in repayment of loan amount" granted by the financial creditor.

Australia's corporates are starting to count the cost of the war in the Middle East, with profit warnings from two top companies and a crash in business sentiment pointing to ‌pain from rising prices, raising the risk of stagflation, Reuters reported. The country's top airline Qantas Airways and second largest lender ‌Westpac Banking Corp flagged their earnings could be hurt by soaring fuel prices and the impact on customers, as feared by the country's central bank.