Trump Lashes Fed, Factory Rebound, Jokowi's China Anger: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Monday, Asia. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help get your day started:

• President Donald Trump ratcheted up his pressure on the Fed, saying U.S. GDP would be higher if it had “not mistakenly raised interest rates.” Trump’s pick to serve on the central bank’s board said he’d be independent and that he doesn’t always agree with the president
• China’s first official gauge for March signaled a stabilization in the economy; still, Chang Shu says seasonal volatility cautions against reading too much into the data. A quarter-century ago, Beijing Electron was on the brink of collapse; now it’s a symbol of China’s remarkable technological ambitions
• Indonesia might be the next Asian nation to push back against China’s advances as an urgently-needed fast train draws controversy over delays and a lack of transparency in the belt-and-road project
• Down in Australia, with an election just weeks away and the government trailing badly in opinion polls, Prime Minister Scott Morrison is mounting a last-ditch effort to woo back disaffected voters with a spending spree
• Over in Israel, a widening budget deficit should be dealt with before economic growth slows, Bank of Israel chief Amir Yaron warned, echoing concerns that helped to put his predecessor out of a job
• The new head of Japan’s main banking lobby has warned the central bank against deepening negative interest rates
• The U.S. may finally sell Taiwan the warplanes it has sought for more than a decade to defend against China. Their arrival would deal more of a political shock than a military blow to Beijing

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael Heath in Sydney at mheath1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nasreen Seria at nseria@bloomberg.net, Chris Bourke

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