Workers carry sacks of animal feeds inside a market in Quezon City, the Philippines, April 11, 2024. Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
MANILA, April 11 (Xinhua) -- Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report.
Despite uncertainties in the external environment, including escalating geopolitical tensions, the outlook "is broadly positive," said ADB in the annual flagship outlook report.
The end of interest rate hiking cycles in most economies, as well as continued recovery in goods exports from an upturn in the semiconductor cycle, will support growth, ADB Chief Economist Albert Park said in the report.
Stronger growth in South Asia and Southeast Asia will lead the region's performance, said the report, urging policymakers to promote resilience by continuing to enhance trade, cross-border investment, and commodity supply networks.
The report also forecast that inflation in the region's developing economies is projected to continue to gradually decline, from 3.3 percent in 2023 to 3.2 percent in 2024, further to 3 percent in 2025.
Meanwhile, the report warned of multiple challenges to the region, highlighting the region's vulnerability to geopolitical tensions and conflict which could disrupt supply chains and reignite inflationary pressures.
Public debt has stabilized in many economies following pandemic-related stimulus, but debt levels remain higher than before the pandemic, the report added.
"Elevated interest rates and slow revenue continue to pose a challenge to public finances throughout the region," ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa said. ■
A vendor prepares coconuts inside a market in Quezon City, the Philippines, April 11, 2024. Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
A worker is seen at a construction site in Quezon City, the Philippines, April 11, 2024. Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
A woman shops for clothes at a market in Quezon City, the Philippines, April 11, 2024. Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
A vendor cuts fish at a market in Quezon City, the Philippines, April 11, 2024. Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
A vendor cuts meat at a market in Quezon City, the Philippines, April 11, 2024. Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
A vendor waits for customers inside his stall at a market in Quezon City, the Philippines, April 11, 2024. Asia and the Pacific's economy remains strong, with growth rate in region's developing economies projected at 4.9 percent in 2024 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Thursday said in its latest outlook report. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)