My impression is that Asian bread culture in general is very different. (Where "different" may be an euphemism)

But I don't really have the insights, so I'd love an introduction.

I just happen to live in Singapore at the moment. German supermarket (factory produced) bread is also better than most of what you can get in the UK.

It's just that German consumers demand a certain level of quality in their sourdough, and the market is big enough for people to build machines to deliver that quality at a good price.

Yes, bread here in Singapore is a bit sad. (But we got lots of other great food options to make up for that.)