Alex Holmes heads up EIU’s analysis and forecasts for Asia Pacific markets and is based in Singapore. His career to date has been focused on macroeconomic research, both deep country-level analysis and delving into the cross-cutting themes affecting Asia. Being in a region where external trade plays such an oversized role in the economy, Alex takes a particular interest in related issues, including structural supply chain reconfiguration, the global electronics cycle and models of export-led development. Alex regularly appears in the media and has also co-hosted a business video-podcast produced by Bloomberg.

Prior to the EIU, Alex was Lead Economist at Oxford Economics, following stints at Capital Economics, ICAP, Barclays Bank and the UK Government Economics Service.

Alex holds a BSc in economics from the University of Sheffield and an MSc in financial economics from the University of London.

U.S. Consul General Gregory May arrived in Hong Kong in September 2022. Prior to Hong Kong he served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia and as Consul General at the U.S. Consulate General in Shenyang, China. Mr. May had two prior assignments in China at the U.S. Consulate General in Guangzhou and at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. He also worked at the U.S. Embassy in Rome, Italy. In Washington, Mr. May worked as Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Political Affairs and held various positions focused on China, Vietnam, and the State Department’s Executive Secretariat.

Prior to entering the U.S. Foreign Service, Mr. May served as the Assistant Director and Research Associate in Chinese Studies at the Nixon Center, a foreign policy think tank in Washington, D.C. From 1993 to 1996, he worked as a journalist for International Community Radio Taipei, an English language radio station; and worked as a correspondent for Newsweek.

Originally from Texas, Mr. May is a graduate of the University of Texas. He holds a master’s degree in China Studies from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. He is married and has three children.

Raymond is currently the Managing Director of Sime Darby Motors - Greater China. He has 35 years of extensive experience in management and automotive operations for leading brands in Chinese mainland, Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan region.

Raymond joined Sime Darby Hong Kong Group in 1989 as an Internal Auditor. During his 35-year illustrious career with Sime Darby, Raymond played an instrumental role in developing the automotive-arm to where it is today – 19 automotive brands across 70 outlets in Greater China with annual sales volume of 70k units and revenue of HKD27 billion in FY23/24. The company has won numerous awards, accolades and praises from customers and OEMs under Raymond’s stewardship.

Raymond continues to demonstrate excellent leadership skills and sound business decision making. He is known for his strategic mindset and forward vision which guides his 5,800-strong Greater China team to stay ahead of the “ACES” trends transforming the automotive industry. Most recently in May, the company introduced its first Chinese BEV brand – XPeng in Hong Kong SAR, with more potential brands to follow suit in the near future.

Raymond obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences from the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in 1986, a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in 1993 and subsequently a Master of Science in Economics degree from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) in 1998. He is an Associate Member of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Fritz Walleczek is the Managing Director of ALDI’s international buying office in Hong Kong. Fritz grew up in Vienna, Austria, before moving to the UK to study international business and law at the University of Manchester. After graduating he joined the ALDI Stores Area Manager training programme in 2006. Since then, Fritz has occupied a variety of different roles for ALDI, including responsibilities in Store Operations, Buying, Quality and Sustainability. Before moving to Hong Kong in 2020, Fritz was Managing Director for National Supply Chain Management for the UK and Ireland.

International Buying Asia incorporates ALDI’s direct sourcing operations across the whole of Asia, supply chain management responsibility for ALDI’s global ocean freight operations as well as international buying functions for several food and non-food categories pre-dominantly sourced from Asia. Fritz is responsible for the strategic leadership of the Hong Kong office, coordinating developments with national and international colleagues across the globe.

Anke Schrader is the China director of the Economist Intelligence Corporate Network. Utilizing over two decades of living and working in China, Anke works closely with network members to help inform their business strategies through political, economic, and operational insight and to connect them with their senior leadership peers.

Anke is also a recognized sustainability expert. She is the author of numerous publications on ESG, citizenship, and sustainable development issues in China and served six years as Chair of the American Chamber of Commerce in China’s Business Sustainability Committee.

Before joining The Economist Group, Anke was the Asia Research Director at The Conference Board, where she led strategic planning and execution of thought leadership research for China and the Asia region, leading a team of economists and researchers covering macroeconomics, human capital, and sustainability research. She also previously worked as a strategy consultant at PwC in Beijing advising multinational clients on macroeconomic, policy, market entry strategy, and operational issues.
Anke has led multi-year China research partnerships with Cornell University and Indiana University (funded by the Henry Luce Foundation and the Ford Foundation), was a guest lecturer at Cornell’s Employment and Disability Institute, and a mentor for the Schwarzman Scholars Program at Tsinghua University.

Anke received scholarships for Chinese language studies at the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE) in Beijing and Shanghai Jiaotong University’s international MBA program. She holds an M.A. in politics and management from University of Konstanz.

Edward Chui is the Hong Kong Director at the Economist Intelligence Corporate Network (EICN), and is responsible for program development and engaging with top executives in the region on key economic and political issues as well as industry-specific analysis to support their businesses in Hong Kong.

Mr Chui has worked in the Greater China region for over 20 years. Before coming to The Economist Group, he was a consultant with Chesapeake Pacific Capital Management overseeing a range of thought leadership projects on the ultra-high net worth, family office, philanthropy, and next generation wealth succession. He was also Vice President at The Private Bank at JPMorgan in Hong Kong working with senior management in the expansion of the Asia Pacific business through special programs and wealth management publications for clients. Mr Chui also possesses extensive experience in the media and technology sectors having worked at StarTV, a subsidiary of NewsCorp, AlterEgo Networks in Silicon Valley and EF Education focusing on the China mobile business.

Mr Chui has a BA in Government from Wesleyan University and an MBA from the USC Marshall School of Business.