Asian emerging economies' grwoth to slacken in 2014
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E-mail Xinhua, January 9, 2014
Final statistics on economic growth last year in the region are still being compiled and would not be available until the end of this month.
The World Bank expects the Chinese economy to expand by 7.5 percent in 2013 down from its April forecast of 8.3 percent.
China's 2014 growth is estimated at 7.7 percent, the World Bank said, down 0.3 percentage point from the previous prediction.
The World Bank expects the Philippines to grow by 7.0 percent last year, much faster than the April forecast of 6.2 percent. For 2014, the Philippine economy would probably expand by 6.7 percent, better than the bank's previous estimate of 6.4 percent.
The World Bank said its regional forecasts faced greater likelihood of being revised downwards than upwards, citing potential headwinds such as a less orderly tapering of the U.S. Federal Reserve's stimulus program and a prolonged fiscal deadlock in Washington.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), on the other hand, said that Asia is likely to remain the world's economic engine despite increasing volatility in international financial markets.
In its latest update on Regional Economic Outlook, the IMF said that they are "essentially optimistic that despite the more complex global environment, Asia will remain a growth leader with emerging Asia growing above 6 percent in 2013 and next year."
The IMF said that it expects Asia's economy to grow at 5.3 percent in 2014, up from 5.1 percent in 2013.
In a report also released last month, the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said that economic outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India remains robust over the medium term, anchored by the steady rise in domestic demand.
The OECD said that growth in emerging Asia is projected to moderate gradually but stay resilient over the 2014-2018 period, with an average annual growth of 6.9 percent, albeit less than the 8.6 percent registered before the global financial crisis in 2007.
In its update on the region also released last month, the Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) said an improving growth outlook in Japan and the United States along with the stronger- than-expected performance in China support a steady growth outlook for developing Asia.
The ADB forecasts average growth of 6 percent in 2013 for its 45 developing member countries, improving to 6.2 percent in 2014. The forecasts were essentially unchanged from its update issued in October 2013.
"Despite uncertainties in the global economic environment, developing Asian economies remain resilient. The region has performed well in 2013 and is now poised to benefit from the further signs of growth momentum in the advanced economies," the ADB said.
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