This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on June 29, 2026 - July 5, 2026
Malaysia’s June manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), Bank Negara Malaysia’s May banking statistics and two high-profile court cases are among the key events in focus this week.
Bank Negara is scheduled to release its May monthly highlights on Tuesday, providing fresh insights into banking system liquidity, loans and deposits.
Attention will then shift to the S&P Global manufacturing PMI surveys for June, due on Wednesday, with data from key Asian economies including Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, India and South Korea.
Malaysia’s manufacturing PMI slipped to 49.9 in May from a four-year high of 51.6 in April, returning to contraction territory for the first time since February as softer demand weighed on new orders and output.
In the courts, the Federal Court is expected to deliver its final decision on Tuesday in the prosecution’s appeal against former youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman’s acquittal.
In June last year, the Court of Appeal (COA) acquitted Syed Saddiq of all charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT), misappropriation of property and money laundering, overturning his 2023 High Court conviction over the alleged misappropriation of RM1.12 million belonging to Bersatu’s Youth wing Armada.
Meanwhile, the COA will begin a three-day hearing on Wednesday on Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor’s appeal against her conviction in the RM1.25 billion solar hybrid project case.
Rosmah, wife of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, was sentenced in September 2022 to 10 years’ imprisonment and fined RM970 million after being convicted on three corruption charges linked to a solar energy project involving 369 rural schools in Sarawak.
Elsewhere in the region, Vietnam will become the first major Asian economy to report second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) on Friday. UOB Global Economics and Markets Research expects growth to slow to 6.5% year on year from 7.8% in the first quarter. Vietnam will also release June data on Consumer Price Index (CPI), Industrial Production Index (IPI), trade and retail sales on the same day.
Singapore is due to publish May bank lending and money supply data on Tuesday.
China will release its official June manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMIs on Tuesday. A Bloomberg survey projects manufacturing PMI to edge up to 50.1 from 50.0 in May, while the non-manufacturing reading is expected to ease to 49.9 from 50.1. The June services PMI is due on Friday, with Bloomberg estimates pointing to the index easing slightly to 53.0-53.5 from 54.4 in May.
Other regional releases include May IPI data from India on Monday and South Korea on Tuesday. Thailand and the Philippines will report May trade figures on Tuesday, followed by Indonesia on Wednesday and Australia on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Indonesia will publish June inflation data on Wednesday, with South Korea’s CPI due a day later.
South Korea’s President Lee Jae-myung is expected to host a national briefing on Monday outlining three flagship investment projects, with executives from major memory chipmakers set to discuss investment plans in semiconductors, artificial intelligence data centres and physical AI, according to UOB in its weekly outlook report last Friday.
In the US, investors will watch for the Supreme Court’s final rulings of the current term, including cases involving President Donald Trump’s bid to restrict birthright citizenship and his attempt to remove Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. Decisions could be handed down as early as Monday, says UOB.
Despite the shortened trading week ahead of the July 4 Independence Day holiday, the US economic calendar remains busy, the bank added. Markets will focus on Institute for Supply Management surveys and early labour market indicators.
Key releases include the April House Price Index, the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index and the May Job Openings and Labour Turnover Survey (JOLTS), all due on Tuesday.
The US earnings season also begins, with 267 companies scheduled to report results this week, although only four are constituents of the S&P 500, according to UOB.
No major developed-market central banks are scheduled to announce monetary policy decisions this week. Instead, investors will turn their attention to the European Central Bank’s (ECB) Forum on Central Banking, taking place in Sintra, Portugal, from June 29 to July 1 under the theme “Shaping Europe’s Future: Innovation, Growth and Stability”. ECB president Christine Lagarde will kick off the forum with her opening address on Tuesday.
The key segment of the forum will be policy panel discussion on July 1 with Lagarde, US Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh, Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey and Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem.
Across Europe, preliminary June inflation readings from Germany, France and the eurozone will also be closely watched.
In Malaysia’s corporate calendar, companies scheduled to hold their annual general meetings this week include Lianson Fleet Group Bhd (KL:LFG) on Monday. On the same day, Signature International Bhd (KL:SIGN),
Jaycorp Bhd (KL:JAYCORP) and Metro Healthcare Bhd (KL:METRO) will hold their extraordinary general meetings, followed by Magma Group Bhd (KL:MAGMA),
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