Some Chinese banks have been told by financial regulators to issue more loans to property firms for project development, two banking sources with direct knowledge of the situation told Reuters on Monday, in efforts to marginally ease liquidity strains across the industry. Chinese authorities have yet to publicly give any signal that they will relax the "three red lines" - financial requirements introduced by the central bank last year that developers must meet to get new bank loans.

China’s central bank signaled possible easing measures to aid the economy’s recovery after a sharp downturn in recent months fueled by a property slump, Bloomberg News reported. In its latest quarterly monetary policy report published Friday, the People’s Bank of China removed from its policy outlook a few key phrases cited in previous reports, including sticking with “normal monetary policy.” That suggests a shift in stance toward more supportive measures, several major banks like Citigroup Inc., Nomura Holdings Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said.

Malaysian budget airline AirAsia Group Bhd reported a wider quarterly net loss on Monday, as pandemic restrictions on travel in two of three of its operating markets weighed on revenue, while it logged a foreign exchange loss, Reuters reported. It said that enhanced lockdowns and travel restrictions in Malaysia and Indonesia impacted its aviation revenue, although its Philippines unit had a strong quarter.

Thailand’s unemployment rose to its highest level in more than 16 years after the worst wave of Covid-19 outbreak to hit the nation decimated jobs in the third quarter, Bloomberg News reported. The Southeast Asian nation had 870,000 unemployed people at the end of September, representing a 2.25% jobless rate, according to the National Economic and Social Development Council. It’s the worst showing since 2005 and is higher than the 1.89% posted in the second quarter, official data showed.

New Zealand’s central bank is expected to raise interest rates for a second straight month and signal a more aggressive tightening cycle to contain inflation amid a labor shortage, Bloomberg News reported. The Reserve Bank will lift the official cash rate by 25 basis points to 0.75% on Wednesday in Wellington, according to 21 of 23 surveyed economists. Two predict a hike to 1% and investors see a risk the RBNZ will opt for a 50 basis-point increase, but the bank could instead signal faster tightening ahead.

Up and down India in places like small town Vita, the mom-and-pop stores that account for four-fifths of a near-$900 billion retail market - more than $700 billion - are increasingly turning to JioMart to stock up on foreign and domestic brands, Reuters reported. Just as Ambani, India's richest man, has disrupted the country's telecoms industry, the tycoon is intent on shaking up retail distribution, taking on U.S. e-commerce giants like Amazon and Walmart Inc., expanding fast in India.

Japan’s government agreed on Friday to spend $490 billion on stimulus measures, a move by its prime minister to boost an economy battered by coronavirus restrictions and by a supply chain crunch that has affected the country’s largest manufacturers, the New York Times reported. Japan announced a partial easing of border restrictions this month and has lifted virtually all restrictions on its economy amid a falling virus caseload. And its rate of fully vaccinated people — 76 percent of the population, according to a New York Times tracker — is one of the highest among rich nations.

Financial creditors of two non-bank finance companies of the Srei group — Srei Infrastructure Finance (SIFL) and Srei Equipment Finance (SEFL) — may evaluate the prospect of a consolidated insolvency proceeding, TelegraphIndia.com reported. The corporate insolvency resolution process has been initiated in the two companies separately and two cases have been admitted with the Calcutta bench of the NCLT after the RBI superseded their boards on October 4, 2021. A consolidated insolvency proceeding may garner more interest among potential bidders than individual companies.

China should be able to contain the economic impact of financial strains experienced by real-estate developers but needs to step-up fiscal support for its slowing economy, the International Monetary Fund said, Bloomberg News reported. Downside risks to the IMF’s forecast of 8% growth in China this year and 5.6% in 2022 “are accumulating” due to factors such as “pandemic uncertainty” and weak consumption, the IMF said in a press release following an annual survey of the world’s second-largest economy.

China Evergrande Group plans to sell the rest of its stake in HengTen Networks Group Ltd. for HK$2.13 billion ($273 million), the first Hong Kong-listed business to be dropped by the debt-stricken property giant, Bloomberg News reported. The developer agreed to sell its 18% holding in the internet services firm to Hong Kong-based Allied Resources Investment Holdings Ltd. at HK$1.28 apiece, according to a Hong Kong stock exchange filing. That’s a discount of about 24% to the last close on Wednesday.