Indonesia

As money floods in, Asia's central banks are finding they cannot have free capital flows, controlled currencies, and moderate interest rates at the same time

Dec. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Indonesia has a scandal on its hands, and it involves gross domestic product.

That won’t sound too serious to observers worried about corruption or anti-pornography laws intensifying debates about Islam’s role in public. Yet what might best be described as the “4 percent crisis” is getting breathless press coverage.

That’s the dismal rate at which many expect the economy will grow next year. What, did someone say dismal? When you look around the world, it’s hard to think of a sizeable economy that might perform at even close to 4 percent.

The Republic of the Philippines mandates three banks for a $500 million offering as the country's first public subordinated debt issue is priced.

After requesting that banks submit ideas for a new dollar bond, the Department of Treasury mandated three houses yesterday (Wednesday) for a $500 million 10-year deal. HSBC, Salomon Smith Barney and UBS Warburg won the books for an offering, which may launch as soon as today.

In the meantime, Metrobank successfully completed the Republic's first public subordinated debt transaction yesterday under the lead of UBS Warburg.