Amazon excludes PH from planned $33-B SE Asia cloud, AI investments

• Asian markets surged on Monday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 breaching the 64,000 mark for the first time and Taiwan's Taiex hitting an all-time high above 43,000. • The rally was driven by a sharp decline in oil prices, which boosted risk sentiment across the region despite holiday-thinned trading.

• Singapore Airlines has announced plans to explore opportunities to increase flight frequencies on the Singapore-Amsterdam route starting after October 2026. • The airline aims to expand its capacity and connectivity between these two major hubs to meet travel demand.

• Singapore's economy grew by 6.0% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, significantly exceeding the official advance estimate of 4.6%. • In a separate incident on Sunday, three people were killed and one was injured during lifeboat maintenance work at a floating storage and offloading (FSO) vessel.

• U.S. Senator Marco Rubio announced that India has committed to purchasing $500 billion in American goods over the next five years. • The procurement will primarily focus on three key sectors: energy, technology, and agriculture.

• Senator Marco Rubio recently highlighted India's commitment to purchase $500 billion in goods from the United States. • Experts suggest this purchase intent may no longer be relevant due to the collapse of the reciprocal tariff framework following an unfavorable US Supreme Court verdict.

• Indian equity benchmarks, including the Nifty and Sensex, closed modestly higher on Friday, driven primarily by gains in financial stocks. • Overall market growth was limited by significant weakness in the pharma and healthcare sectors, resulting in a range-bound movement.

• India has pledged to purchase $500 billion worth of U.S. goods over the next five years, according to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. • The agreement focuses on critical sectors including energy, technology, and agriculture to strengthen bilateral trade.

• S&P Global Inc. reported solid quarterly financial results, driven by sustained high demand for its core credit ratings, indices, and financial data services. • The company's business model leverages its position as a critical data powerhouse, providing essential benchmarks and risk assessments for global financial markets.

• A new study reveals that the United Kingdom's GDP per capita has fallen below that of every individual U.S. state. • This finding highlights a widening economic gap between the U.S. and the U.K. that has been increasing for more than a decade.

• Amazon has announced plans to invest over US$33 billion in cloud infrastructure across Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand by 2039. • The investment focuses on expanding data center capabilities to strengthen the digital infrastructure of these four Southeast Asian nations.

• U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held discussions focused on strengthening bilateral trade and energy security. • The leaders addressed the ongoing crisis in West Asia, coordinating efforts to maintain regional stability and security.