Asia-Pacific Economic Update


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United States Pacific Command, Asia-Pacific Economic Update


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This year's Economic Update attempts to contribute to a Pacific Command perspective on the economic challenges confronting the Asia Pacific. Section 1 provides an overview of the causes and consequences of the economic crisis, points to some of the political and security implications, and discusses the role of U.S. policy in helping the region to manage the challenges ahead. Section II offers a description of dynamic growth in the Asia-Pacific region over the last quarter century and a summary of trade and investment, which continue to be robust despite the recent turmoil. Section III turns to issues that form the nexus between economics and security in Asia, including energy, shipping, defense spending, and the arms trade. Also included is an appendix that contains extensive economic data on the countries of the region. A central conclusion of the report is that Asia Pacific economies retain fundamental strengths that should enable them to prosper again in the near future. Indeed, many will emerge from the crisis stronger and more dynamic than ever before.




East Asia and Pacific Economic Update October 2014


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In China, growth will gradually moderate, reflecting intensified policy efforts to address financial vulnerabilities and structural constraints, and place the economy on a more sustainable growth path. In the rest of the region, growth will pick up, as exports firm in line with strengthening global activity, and the impact of domestic adjustment in large ASEAN countries eases. Significant uncertainties remain about the sustainability of the global recovery, and global financial conditions are likely to tighten. The short-term priority in several countries is to address the vulnerabilities and inefficiencies created by an extended period of loose financial conditions and fiscal stimulus. In China, the authorities need to strike a balance between containing growing risks from rising leverage and meeting the indicative growth targets. Over the longer term, the focus in most countries must be on structural reforms to enhance export competitiveness. The report’s special section focuses on education & skills development; international migration; and the policy priorities for the Pacific Island Countries.




World Bank East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, April 2023


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Economic activity in developing East Asia and Pacific has recovered from the recent shocks and is growing. However, output remains below pre-pandemic levels in many countries and inflation remains higher than target ranges in some countries. Near-term growth will depend on the dynamics of global growth and commodity prices, and financial tightening, which is likely to continue in the face of high inflation in the US. Taking a long-term view, growth in EAP has been faster and more stable than in much of the rest of the world. The result has been a striking decline in poverty and, in the last decade, also a decline in inequality. But it would be a mistake to let these achievements obscure vulnerabilities, past, present, and future. The region must implement structural, macro-financial, and climate-related reforms to address the problems of slowing productivity growth and scars from the pandemic, even as it faces up to the major challenges of deglobalization, aging and climate change.




World Bank East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, Spring 2020


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Growth in the developing East Asia and Pacific region slowed sharply in 2020Q1 because of the negative impact of the Covid-19 on economic activity. The decline has been broad-based reflecting the interconnectedness of the EAP economies and reverberations from the global economy as the virus turned into a pandemic. The Covid-19 outbreak followed an extended period of subdued growth in the region amid multiple external headwinds and heightened trade policy uncertainty. China and other regional economies have implemented monetary and fiscal policy measures to mitigate the negative impact of the outbreak. Growth in the East Asia and Pacific (EAP) region is projected to slow from 5.8 percent in 2019 to lower-than-expected [5.2 percent in 2020], reflecting the expected negative effects of the COVID-19. In this baseline scenario, which is subject to significant uncertainty, growth in the region is expected to recover to [5.6 percent in 2021], as the impact of Covid-19 gradually dissipates. In the medium-term regional growth is expected to continue its downward trend reflecting multiple structural headwinds. Policymakers should focus on designing economically efficient transmission control policies that consider both the marginal costs and the marginal benefits of preventive measures. Such policies would ideally be based on countries’ preparedness and exposure as well as economic circumstances. Targeted fiscal and monetary polices can help reduce the economic disruption caused by COVID-19 in the short term. In the medium-term, there is need to restore depleted buffers, address sources of financial instability, and invest in preventing and coping with infectious disease. Given the growing interdependence between EAP countries, coordinated policies and investments could increase resilience to shocks.




World Bank East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, October 2019


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Growth in the developing East Asia and Pacific region slowed in the first half of 2019 given weakening global demand and heightened policy uncertainty amid ongoing trade tensions. Steady consumption growth helped to partly offset the effects of weakening exports and investment on growth. The region’s growth prospects face intensified downside risks, including further escalation of trade disputes, a sharper-than-expected slowdown in China, the United States and the Euro Area, along with a disorderly Brexit, and an abrupt change in global financing conditions. In some countries, rising indebtedness and other vulnerabilities, such as the constrained capacity for foreign debt rollover, could amplify the negative effects of external shocks. The regional growth moderation underscores the need to address key vulnerabilities and preserve economic dynamism among developing East Asia and Pacific economies. In the short run, countries with sufficient policy space should use available policy tools to stimulate domestic activities. Better quality spending, together with prudent debt management, is needed to safeguard fiscal sustainability. Deepening regional integration would help offset the negative impact of global protectionism. In the medium to long term, pursuing structural reforms that raise competitiveness, support trade and investment, and encourage innovation is critical to boosting productivity and growth.




World Bank East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, October 2022


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East Asia and the Pacific does not so far conform to the current narrative of stagflation. The region, with some exceptions, is growing faster and has lower inflation than other regions. And prospects for several countries have improved, as they bounced back from the distress of the Delta wave in a still buoyant global economy. But this rosy picture must not obscure four impediments to inclusive and sustainable growth: disease, deceleration, debt, and distortions. In particular, current policies to contain inflation and debt are distorting the markets for food, fuel and finance in ways that could compromise development goals. In each case, more efficient measures could address current difficulties without undermining longer term objectives.




Asia-Pacific Economic Update. Volume 2. Connecting Economics to Security


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The three decades of economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region demonstrated to the world that economic prosperity through international trade and investment improves the domestic and international security for all participants. (1) In 1973, the Asia-Pacific region accounted for just 15% of the world's economic output. By 2000, the region's share was 27% of world output when measured on an exchange rate basis. (2) Today, when measured on a purchasing power basis, the Asia-Pacific region is home to the world's second and third largest economies-China and Japan. The region's growth reflects a combination of quantitative and qualitative factors. Also, when growth falters, the mismanagement of these factors is evident. These factors include: (1) Relatively open economies characterized by vigorous trade and investment ties with the United States, Japan, and Europe. (2) High inflows of capital and labor to modern, internationally-oriented sectors. (3) High rates of national saving and aggressive investment in physical and human capital. (4) Stable macroeconomic policies conducive to investment and commercial activity. (5) Pro-market government interventions intended to steer resources into more productive activities. (6) Reliance on cultural factors that value education and a strong work ethic. Trade, investment, and aid are like steel girders in a bridge, buttressing the economies of the Asia-Pacific region and interlocking their common security. (1) Developing Asia produced 20% of the world's total exports in 2000, while the United States exported 13% and Japan produced 8%. (2) Asia-Pacific trade is multi-polar in nature, with neither the United States nor Japan being the single, dominant trade partner of Developing Asia.




East Asia and Pacific Economic Update April 2014


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Developing countries in the East Asia Pacific region will see stable economic growth this year, bolstered by a recovery in high-income economies and the market’s modest response so far to the Federal Reserve’s tapering of its quantitative easing, according to the East Asia Pacific Economic Update. Developing East Asia will grow by 7.1 percent this year, largely unchanged from 2013, the report says. As a result, East Asia remains the fastest growing region in the world, despite a slowdown from the average growth rate of 8.0 percent from 2009 to 2013. In China, growth will ease slightly, to 7.6 percent this year from 7.7 percent in 2013. Excluding China, the developing countries in the region will grow by 5.0 percent, slightly down from 5.2 percent last year.