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Welcome to the Nikkei Asian
Preview.
India's farmers will be able to return to work this week, though most
industries remain shut since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision
to
extend the country's lockdown until May 3. Elsewhere in the
Asia-Pacific
region, the southwest Chinese province of Yunnan
will reopen, while New
Zealand begins a soft reopening following
a four-week lockdown that has
been one of the world's strictest.
In Japan, monthly trade data on Monday is expected to show a slide
in
both imports and exports, followed on Friday by core CPI, which
may dip
into negative territory later this year. Results will come from
China's
power and auto giants, as well as a third quarter report from
Singapore
Exchange. And on Thursday, first quarter GDP numbers
are expected from
South Korea.
Keep up with our reporting by following us on Twitter @NAR.
MONDAY
Macao leader to
address casino concessions
Macao Chief Executive Ho Iat-seng is expected to outline plans to
jump-start the gambling hub's economy
and address the upcoming
expiration of casino companies' operating
concessions.
Macao's economy, which is dependent on mainland Chinese
visitors
to its casinos, has been hit hard by the coronavirus even though
there have been few local cases in the densely populated city.
India restarts rural
industries
Some activities in India, including farming and other industries
in rural
areas, will be allowed to resume on Monday.
These limited exemptions will
be enforced according to strict
social distancing rules, and will not
apply to virus hotspots with
clusters of positive cases.
"[This] permission will be withdrawn immediately if lockdown
rules
are broken," Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned
last Tuesday, when
he announced the extension of the lockdown
on 1.3 billion people, the world's largest.
Public transportation, education, cinemas, malls, gyms and
most
commercial activities will remain shuttered, while
essential services
such as hospitals, police, groceries and
pharmacies will continue to
operate during the extended lockdown.
TUESDAY
Results from BYD and
Great Wall Motor
The Chinese auto sector fell into a deep slump well before the
coronavirus hit. Two Chinese car companies are expected to
shed more
light on the poor state of the
industry when they report
results this week. BYD, famously backed by U.S. investor
Warren Buffett, already warned investors earlier that its net
profit may
drop as much as 93% from the previous year amid
a near-halving of auto
sales. Great Wall Motor will also be
filing
quarterly and annual results on Friday.
THURSDAY
Ramadan begins
Indonesia's religious ministry will hold a virtual meeting on Thursday
to
determine the start of Ramadan, which typically begins after the
first
crescent of the new moon.
In Indonesia, home to the world's largest Muslim population, that
typically signals the start of a journey for millions who travel to
their
hometowns to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the holiday that marks
the end of a
month of fasting.
This year will be different, however. With Islam's holiest month
falling
amid a pandemic, officials have urged people not to make
their annual
journey, fearing that mass travel would lead
to a wider spread of the coronavirus.
Ping An announces 1Q
results
Ping An Insurance, China's largest
insurer by market valuation,
reports first quarter earnings, in which it
will detail the impact on
business from the coronavirus epidemic, which
shut down most of
China for weeks. Investors' attention will shift to how
new business
is trending in the current quarter, with agents resuming
client
meetings amid rising protection awareness.
The hit from volatile capital markets, falling yields, pressure to
increase reserves and HSBC Holdings dividend cut will also be
of
interest. Ping An owns 7% of the London-headquartered bank,
which under
pressure from the U.K. regulator has decided not to
pay dividends till
the end of the year.
Canon announces 1Q
results
Canon, which has struggled in its camera
and laser
printer business, will report financial results for the
March quarter
on Thursday. The Japanese company has
fallen behind as smartphone cameras
become more advanced.
Renault announces 1Q
results
French automaker Renault, the alliance partner of
Japan's Nissan Motor, will report first quarter
results Thursday. The carmaker announced last week that
it would pull out of its joint business with
state-run
Dongfeng Motor in
China, a market in which Renault was already
struggling before the
pandemic.
FRIDAY
Results from China's
energy sector
China Shenhua Energy, the world's
largest coal producer,
is expected to have been hit by sharply lower energy consumption
during the
first quarter, when large parts of the country were
shut down. Shenhua's
results will follow those of
Huaneng Power International, the largest
listed
electricity generator and a major consumer of coal,
scheduled for
Tuesday.
SGX announces 3Q
results
There have been some winners from the market turbulence
of recent weeks,
and the Singapore Exchange is one of them.
The global market selloff led to higher trading volumes,
while intense
volatility led to greater demand for derivatives.
SGX's share price is up
10% this year, making it one of the
few stocks that has gained amid the
coronavirus.
52,000 Hong Kongers
sit for university exams
After being postponed for a month, Hong Kong's university
entrance exams
will take place at the end of this week.
Confirmed cases in the city have
dropped to single digits in
recent days, but around 52,000 examinees must
still wear
face masks, and tables at exam venues will be spaced 1.8
meters apart. Oral exams have been cancelled to prevent
the virus from
spreading.
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