Artificial intelligence lacks the human judgement skills needed to set interest rates, the head of the Monetary Authority of Singapore said on Monday, Reuters reported. But AI could make it easier for criminals to launch cyber attacks, said Chia Der Jiun, managing director of Singapore's central bank. He said AI was being used in some economic models and in areas such as fraud detection, but stressed it was not at a stage where it could "supplant human judgement". "There is a great deal of judgement involved in understanding and having a view as to the forward path of inflation...

The Reserve Bank of Australia left interest rates unchanged Tuesday, and stuck with the message that it isn’t ruling anything out as it seeks to bring inflation under control, the Wall Street Journal reported. The RBA held the official cash rate at 4.35%, where it has remained since November. The outcome was widely anticipated by economists. “The path of interest rates that will best ensure that inflation returns to target in a reasonable timeframe remains uncertain and the Board is not ruling anything in or out,” the RBA said at the end of a two-day policy meeting.

Australian budget airline Bonza has canceled all flights through May 14 as lessors seek to seize its planes, Bloomberg News reported. The embattled carrier grounded its fleet on April 29 after the lessors issued termination notices. Hall Chadwick, which has been appointed as administrators to the airline, said Tuesday it has been in discussions with the lessors to see whether the grounded planes could become operational in the short term, but to no avail.

Thailand’s new Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira urged the central bank to support government policies, signaling pressure may continue on the Bank of Thailand to cut interest rates, Bloomberg News reported. “It’s our duty and responsibility for me and BOT (Bank of Thailand) to work together to push both engines - monetary and fiscal policies in the same direction,” Pichai told reporters on Tuesday in his first remarks as finance chief.

Cerberus Capital Management LP plans to expand its private credit portfolio in India as local non-bank finance lenders shift their focus from corporate lending to consumer credit, Bloomberg News reported. There is a “significant opportunity set for private credit lenders, both local and international, to pick up a portion of this space,” Indranil Ghosh, managing director and head of pan-Asia special situations, said in an interview. India is fast emerging as a big market for private credit activity, as global firms deploy billions, lured by the fastest-growing major economy.

A Chinese program providing state guarantees to developer bonds will be put to the test this week, when payments come due from one of the most indebted builders, Bloomberg News reported. The sum owed by Country Garden Holdings Co. is relatively small — 65.95 million yuan ($9.1 million) for two interest payments. Both notes are guaranteed by China Bond Insurance Co., a state-owned credit-support provider at the heart of a program introduced by authorities in August 2022 to help private developers avoid liquidity crunches.

One of China’s most-watched developers has told some investors that it readied cash for an upcoming yuan bond payment, a move that may boost a firm that’s faced concern about its liquidity amid a broader property debt crisis. State-backed builder China Vanke Co. told some investors recently that it has readied cash to repay its 1.45 billion yuan ($201 million) note due May 25, according to people familiar with the matter.

IndusInd International Holdings (IIHL) has set its sights on a new Rs 4.2 lakh crore target that it plans to fulfil by 2030, the Economic Times of India reported. Under the new plan, IIHL is looking to set up a banking, financial services, and insurance portfolio worth $50 billion (Rs 4.2 lakh crore) by 2030. This is including its investment in IndusInd Bank, apart from the new businesses under Reliance Capital, which IIHL won in insolvency proceedings.

Japan’s labor shortage remains a serious issue with 51% of companies reporting that they did not have enough employees, according to survey results released last week, the Japan Times reported. As the labor market continues to shrink, companies have raised worsening labor shortages as one of the biggest concerns that could cause their performances to decline, with 313 companies having gone out of business in the fiscal year of 2023 as a result.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has limited scope to cut interest rates this year and shouldn’t ease policy until it’s sure inflation will return to target, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, Bloomberg News reported. "Inflation is likely to be persistent,” the OECD said in its Economic Surveys: New Zealand 2024 report published Monday in Wellington.