The Bank of Japan indicated it has more confidence in much-awaited wage increases for this fiscal year, a shift that is likely to keep fueling market speculation over policy adjustments this year, Bloomberg News reported. “It is highly likely that the growth rate of scheduled cash earnings will increase clearly this year,” the central bank said in its full quarterly economic report released Monday.

Embattled property developer China Evergrande Group said on Thursday it would extend the deadline for receiving an incentive for its debt restructuring proposal to May 18 as the company disclosed levels of support from offshore debt-holders for its proposal, Reuters reported. Evergrande said that 77% holders of class-A debts and 30% holders of class-C debts have submitted their respective support for the restructuring proposal, among others.

Australia’s central bank is set to extend a pause in interest-rate increases on Tuesday following a deceleration in inflation that allows the board more time to assess the economic impact of its policy tightening to date, Bloomberg News reported. The Reserve Bank will keep its cash rate at 3.6% for a second straight month, most economists predict and money market pricing shows. Deutsche Bank AG and Westpac Banking Corp. were among those that switched to hold from hike calls after first-quarter core inflation came in under forecasts.

Japan's factory activity contracted for the sixth straight month in April, but the details of a private survey released on Monday showed the manufacturing sector was edging towards stabilisation amid a slower decline in new orders, Reuters reported. The final au Jibun Bank Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index was up slightly at 49.5 in April from March's 49.2, and matched the flash reading. New orders contracted at the softest pace since July while remaining below the 50.0 threshold for a tenth consecutive month as inbound demand stabilised moderately.

South Korea's exports fell for a seventh straight month in April for their longest losing streak in three years, driven by an extended slump in sales to China and suggesting persistent pressure on the economy from frail global demand, Reuters reported. The downturn comes despite the reopening of the Chinese economy - a major market for South Korean goods and especially for chips - in December, and raises the challenge for policymakers as they push for a robust post-COVID revival.

China's banking and insurance regulator said it would enhance credit support and lower the actual financing costs of small and micro enterprises this year to better support economic recovery, Reuters reported. In a statement on Thursday, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) said financial institutions should provide reasonable credits to small businesses, while preventing the risk of "over-lending". The CBIRC said it aims to improve the quality of financial services for small and micro enterprises, to promote market vitality and boost confidence.

Vera Liu, a Singapore property agent, was panicking in the wee hours of Thursday morning after new property taxes saw two of her deals fall through, Reuters reported. Singapore raised levies on private property purchases in a surprise move late on Wednesday night to cool the market, including a doubling of stamp duties for foreigners to an eye-watering 60%.

Sri Lanka's economy is expected to shrink by 2% in 2023, its central bank said in an annual report on Thursday, as the country struggled to emerge from its worst financial crisis in decades, Reuters reported. The central bank projected Sri Lanka's economy would grow by 3.3% in 2024, according to the report. The economy shrank by 7.8% in 2022, in a year dominated by deep political instability, soaring inflation and steep currency depreciation as Sri Lanka struggled with a financial crisis triggered by record low foreign exchange reserves.

A Hinduja Group firm on Wednesday emerged as the highest bidder with an offer of Rs 9,650 crore to take over debt-ridden Reliance Capital in the second round of auction, sources said. The bid by IndusInd International Holdings Ltd (IIHL) is higher than Rs 8,640 crore offer made by Torrent Investments in the first round of auction held in December last year. The other two suitors -- Torrent Investments and Oaktree -- did not participate in the second round of auction, sources said. An e-mail sent to Hinduja Group for comment remained unanswered.

In the latest official scrutiny of a prominent American business in China, the authorities visited the Shanghai offices of the U.S. management consulting firm Bain & Company this month to question its employees, the New York Times reported. In a written statement, Bain said that it is “cooperating as appropriate with the Chinese authorities,” but declined to comment on the nature of the investigation and whether its employees’ phones and computers had been seized during the visit.