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The Weekly Read Commentary
The Power Grid ASEAN Promised Is Starting Across a Few Kilometres of Water — and Nobody Planned It That Way

The first real stretch of the ASEAN power grid is emerging not from regional planning but from two uncoordinated bilateral tracks converging on Singapore's demand.

Lim Kheng Swe·10 Jul 2026·3 min
IndonesiaSingaporeASEAN-wide
The Weekly Read Commentary
The EU Is Quietly Signing Up Southeast Asia

Southeast Asian factories become the gateway to the EU — for those who make, not just assemble.

Lim Kheng Swe·3 Jul 2026·3 min
IndonesiaASEAN-wideEU
The Weekly Read Commentary
Thailand's New Investment Incentive Isn't a Tax Break. It's Speed.

Thailand's FastPass doesn't cut tax — it cuts approval time 20–50% across eight agencies. The edge is speed, and it accrues to strategic-lane projects.

Lim Kheng Swe·25 Jun 2026·3 min
ThailandManufacturingAutomotive / EV
Data Points Briefing
One Metal, One Government, Two Opposite Decisions: Indonesia's Nickel Quota U-Turn

Indonesia raised its 2026 nickel ore quota months after cutting it. The signal is not the level — it is how readily the policy floor moves.

Lim Kheng Swe·24 Jun 2026·1 min
IndonesiaMining & resourcesCapital flows
Data Points Briefing
China's Critical-Mineral Controls Have Become a System

China's critical-mineral export controls have widened since April 2025 — now consolidated under one security law and reaching China-origin goods abroad.

Lim Kheng Swe·23 Jun 2026·1 min
ASEAN-wideChinaMining & resources
The Weekly Read Commentary
The Tax Holiday Is Over. Southeast Asia Isn't.

The corporate tax holiday that built Southeast Asian industrialisation is being retired under the global minimum tax — but the real investment case never rested on it.

Lim Kheng Swe·21 Jun 2026·3 min
ThailandSingaporeASEAN-wide
Data Points Briefing
The Ringgit Fell 4.5% in June — and Stayed Among Asia's Best

The ringgit hit a seven-month low near 4.10/US$ as the dollar firmed, yet is down only ~2% YTD — dollar-driven volatility, not deterioration.

Lim Kheng Swe·18 Jun 2026·1 min
MalaysiaCapital flows
The Weekly Read Commentary
Not Every Chinese Company Belongs in the Singapore-Malaysia Tech Corridor. Here's Who Does.

The Johor-Singapore corridor is open to some Chinese companies and effectively closed to others. Order 837 decides which is which.

Lim Kheng Swe·11 Jun 2026·3 min
MalaysiaSingaporeChina
The Weekly Read Commentary
Decree 837: The Framework Is Written. Here's Where You Want to Be

China's first comprehensive outbound-investment framework supervises deals across their whole life, not just at entry. Three Southeast Asia investment types align with its grain.

Lim Kheng Swe·4 Jun 2026·4 min
ASEAN-wideChinaManufacturing
The Weekly Read Commentary
Indonesia's June 1 Export Rules: Not Everyone Pays the Same Price

Indonesia's 100% FX-retention rules treat exporters differently by trade-agreement status — and China has no Phase-1 pathway to the lighter bilateral terms.

Lim Kheng Swe·28 May 2026·2 min
IndonesiaChinaMining & resources
The Weekly Read Commentary
Indonesia Appoints a New Middleman for Commodity Trading. It's the Government.

Indonesia is making state enterprises the sole export intermediary for its five largest commodities — restructuring how USD 27–28bn of annual Chinese purchases are negotiated.

Lim Kheng Swe·20 May 2026·3 min
IndonesiaChinaMining & resources
The Weekly Read Commentary
The Xi-Trump Summit Structured the Competition. For Chinese Investors in Southeast Asia, That Is Enough.

The Beijing summit produced managed competition, not a reset. For Chinese capital in Southeast Asia, a system that accommodates non-alignment is enough to keep building.

Lim Kheng Swe·15 May 2026·2 min
ASEAN-wideChinaUSA
The Weekly Read Commentary
In a One-Party System, a Politburo Directive Sets the Path — Why Vietnam's Opening Is Different

A Politburo resolution naming the private sector the economy's most important force carries a durability no FDI figure does — and from 2026 it is codified in law.

Lim Kheng Swe·6 May 2026·3 min
VietnamChinaManufacturing
The Weekly Read Commentary
Not a Price Spike: Indonesia's B50 Mandate Is a Different Kind of Problem

Indonesia's B50 biodiesel mandate diverts 3.5m tonnes of CPO from export — a structural supply shift, not a price spike, with no thicker pool of alternative suppliers.

Lim Kheng Swe·2 May 2026·3 min
IndonesiaChinaEnergy
The Weekly Read Commentary
Malaysia's Data Centre Moratorium: When the Rules Look Clear, the Opportunity Has Already Gone

Malaysia is quietly rejecting non-AI data-centre applications. The clearest-looking market is often where the window has already closed.

Lim Kheng Swe·1 May 2026·3 min
MalaysiaChinaInfrastructure