Chief Economist, Aletheia Capital

Dr. Jim Walker

Jim Walker is the chief economist at Aletheia Analyst Network Limited, an independent research platform for the Asia Pacific region. Prior to joining Aletheia he was the founder and chief economist at Asianomics Group an economics and strategy research consultancy company formed in late 2007. 

Before establishing Asianomics he was the chief economist at CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets. He joined CLSA in late 1991. Over the years Dr Jim achieved numerous ‘best economist’ rankings in the Asiamoney, Institutional Investor and Greenwich surveys of fund managers. In 1995 he wrote about the prospect of Asia being forced off its de facto dollar peg “within the next two-three years”. The Asian Crisis, precipitated by the Thai baht devaluation, began in July 1997.

In recent years he is best known for forecasting the US 2007 downturn and financial sector meltdown in his series of ‘Apocalypse’ reports. He remains deeply sceptical of the prevailing wisdom in central banks’ approach to monetary policy.

Over the years he has also developed an approach to analysing Asian economies based on profit and credit cycles where the importance of investment spending as the driver of economic activity is explained.

Early in his career he worked in his native Scotland as a research fellow at the Fraser of Allander Institute for Research on the Scottish Economy, and then at The Royal Bank of Scotland’s Edinburgh headquarters. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree and a doctorate in economics from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow.

Chief Economist

The Week that Was in ASEAN@Smartkarma - Indonesian Retail, Digital Transformation and Infrastructure

Indonesia Politics Weekly: Prabowo on Ahok Plot; Rice Policy Row; Rp L/Cs for Exports; KPK Eyes NNT

The Week that Was In ASEAN@Smartkarma - Indonesian Politics, PhilippineTelcos, and Petroleum

Independent and original Asian investment research

Aletheia Capital

Aletheia Capital (HK) Ltd. (previously known as Asianomics) combines the extensive knowledge of its experienced team with technology and regulatory changes to disrupt Global Markets business in Asia. The firm is completely independent with no conflicts of interest either on Investment Banking advisory or Capital Markets execution.

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

The excitement with which Joko Widodo's (Jokowi's) presidential victory was received in 2014 is a distant memory in Jakarta. The advance of fundamentalist Islam in Indonesia has forced the president to alter direction in a way that few view as being truly his own choice. The announcement that Ma'ruf Amin, a Muslim cleric and the head of the Indonesia Ulama Council, would be his vice-presidential running mate in 2019 was a shock to everyone. Jokowi is still popular among voters but he has been forced to adopt increasingly nationalist and Islamist-friendly policies in the last two years. Gone is the business-friendly, FDI-welcoming reformer of 2014/15. The attractions of Vietnam and Thailand are growing as a result. Our guest writer, veteran journalist Edward Guthrie, takes a look at the prospects for next year's presidential election and outlines how Indonesia has changed in the last few years under the constant barrage of Saudi money. It's a sobering look at what is going wrong in one of Southeast Asia's key economies.

The excitement with which Joko Widodo's (Jokowi's) presidential victory was received in 2014 is a distant memory in Jakarta. The advance of fundamentalist Islam in Indonesia has forced the president to alter direction in a way that few view as being truly his own choice. The announcement that Ma'ruf Amin, a Muslim cleric and the head of the Indonesia Ulama Council, would be his vice-presidential running mate in 2019 was a shock to everyone. Jokowi is still popular among voters but he has been forced to adopt increasingly nationalist and Islamist-friendly policies in the last two years. Gone is the business-friendly, FDI-welcoming reformer of 2014/15. The attractions of Vietnam and Thailand are growing as a result. Our guest writer, veteran journalist Edward Guthrie, takes a look at the prospects for next year's presidential election and outlines how Indonesia has changed in the last few years under the constant barrage of Saudi money. It's a sobering look at what is going wrong in one of Southeast Asia's key economies.

Indonesia: Reforms Suffer Ahead of 2019 Polls