ADB report: Asia’s GDP set to expand

 DEVELOPING Asia’s gross domestic product is forecast to expand by 6.6% in 2013 and 6.7% in 2014 following the slower 6.1% pace in 2012, an Asian Development Bank report states.

According to the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2013, growth is expected to rebound in China from 7.8% in 2012 to 8.2% in 2013 and 8% in 2014, driven by strong consumption and investment.

India’s growth has the potential to pick up from 5% in 2012 to 6% in 2013 and 6.5% in 2014.

The major industrial economies are expected to manage 1% growth in 2013 and 1.9% in 2014.

Inflation in developing Asia is expected to pick up from 3.7% in 2012 to 4% in 2013 and 4.2% in 2014.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ resilience is expected to extend through the forecast horizon, with its member economies averaging growth of 5.4% in 2013 and 5.7% in 2014.

In the depth of global financial turmoil, as bank liquidity dried up everywhere, aggregate inflows to the 10 large regional economies plummeted to 1.7% of GDP in 2008-09 from an average of 8.4% the previous three years.

In 2011, the China’s share of global commodity consumption was 20% for non-renewable energy resources, 23% for major agricultural crops and 40% for base metals.

Emerging from a trough of 6.5% growth in 2012, East Asia’s GDP will expand this year and next by an average of 7.1%, the most rapid rate among the sub-regions.

Growth in South Asia is forecast to rise to 5.7% in 2013 and 6.2% in 2014, as India’s growth edges up to 6.0% and then 6.5%.

Southeast Asia’s momentum is forecast to continue in 2013, with growth at 5.4%, and quicken slightly to 5.7% in 2014 as the outlook improves for the industrial economies.

Central Asia saw growth slip to 5.6% in 2012 and can expect to roughly maintain that pace, with 5.5% growth in 2013. 

Average regional growth is expected to rise to 6% in 2014.

Growth in the Pacific is expected to slow to 5.2% in 2013 before rising slightly to 5.5% in 2014.