Sri Lanka, Jan. 14 -- By Shabiya Ali Ahlam

The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) yesterday expressed confidence in 2021 delivering strong and broad-based recovery for the South Asian region, albeit unlike in the previous years, the awaited bounce back would be led by services, not manufacturing.

Although a global services recovery is less supportive for Asian exports, capex could offer a cushion and inflation may prove volatile, the international bank said. Nevertheless, it expressed confidence in a broader recovery by April.

"A number of countries started the year off with a lot of challenges stemming from rising infection rates (COVID-19) but we do expect very strong growth to come through across the region, starting ...