Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. Space Industry and Business News .




POLITICAL ECONOMY
Asian economies to rebound but recovery fragile: ADB
by Staff Writers
Hong Kong (AFP) April 9, 2013


China inflation slows to 2.1% in March: government
Beijing (AFP) April 9, 2013 - Inflation in China slowed to 2.1 percent in March, the National Bureau of Statistics said Tuesday, down from 3.2 percent in February when prices spiked during the Lunar New Year holiday.

The March rise in the consumer price index (CPI) -- a main gauge of inflation -- was lower than the median forecast of 2.4 percent in a poll of 16 economists by Dow Jones Newswires.

Month on month CPI fell by 0.9 percent, the bureau said. In the first three months of the year inflation stood at 2.4 percent year-on-year, it added.

Food prices remained a leading driver of inflation in March, rising 2.7 percent year on year.

But prices for pork declined by 5.5 percent last month from a year ago, apparently as consumers turned away from the meat as more than 16,000 dead pigs were found in a river that flows through Shanghai.

The scandal highlighted China's troubles with food safety, adding the country's most popular meat to a growing list of food items rocked by controversy.

China has set its inflation target for this year at 3.5 percent, lower than last year's goal of 4.0 percent but higher than the actual inflation rate for 2012, which stood at 2.6 percent.

The Asian Development Bank said Tuesday the region's emerging economies would pick up this year but warned that the recovery remained fragile due to the eurozone crisis and tensions in Asia.

The Manila-based lender said in its latest forecast that the uptick in China's economy and "robust growth" in Southeast Asia would lead expansion in the region, which would be also boosted by strong domestic consumption.

The ADB estimated that the gross domestic product (GDP) for developing Asia, which covers 45 nations, was set to grow at 6.6 percent this year before edging up to 6.7 percent in 2014.

The region's growth slowed to 6.1 percent last year -- the lowest since 2009 when it saw 6.0 percent expansion.

"Developing Asia's recovery phase remains vulnerable to shocks," the bank said in its Asian Development Outlook report.

"Strong capital inflows could feed asset bubbles. Political discord surrounding fiscal debates in the United States, austerity fatigue in the euro area, and border disputes in Asia could jeopardise macroeconomic stability."

The ADB said growth was expected across the region, with China's GDP forecast to expand at 8.2 percent this year, up from 7.8 percent last year, on strong domestic demand and a better export performance.

South Asia's growth would turn around after two years of softening, it said, with powerhouse India forecast to see its GDP rise from last year's 5.0 percent to 6.0 percent this year.

"India has considerable potential, but its future performance relies on resolving contentious structural and policy issues that inhibit investment," the bank said.

The stronger economic activity expected for this year however would spur renewed price pressure, with inflation expected to rise from 3.7 percent in 2012 to 4.0 percent this year and 4.2 percent next year.

"These pressures remain manageable for now, but will need to be monitored closely, especially as strong capital inflows raise the spectre of potential asset market bubbles," the report said.

Southeast Asia would continue to shine on robust private consumption and increased intra-regional trade. Its GDP is set to expand at 5.4 percent this year.

An ambitious plan by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations regional bloc to create a common, barrier-free market by 2015 would encourage even higher growth and help to diversify its market, the ADB report noted.

.


Related Links
The Economy






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








POLITICAL ECONOMY
China's Xi says Asia faces 'new challenges' to stability
Boao, China (AFP) April 7, 2013
Chinese President Xi Jinping said Sunday that Asia faced "new challenges" to its stability and warned no one should be allowed to throw the region into chaos as tensions mounted over North Korea. Xi, delivering a speech at an annual international forum on the southern Chinese island of Hainan, did not mention the crisis on the Korean Peninsula or China's territorial disputes with Japan and S ... read more


POLITICAL ECONOMY
What's between a slip and a slide?

Light may recast copper as chemical industry 'holy grail'

New camera system creates high-resolution 3-D images from up to a kilometer away

Theory and practice key to optimized broadband, low-loss optical metamaterials

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Northrop Grumman Awarded U.S. Navy Contract to Upgrade, Enhance NGC2P Tactical Data Link Processor

Soldiers and Families Can Suffer Negative Effects from Modern Communication Technologies

DARPA Seeks More Robust Military Wireless Networks

DoD Selects Northrop Grumman for Joint Command and Control System

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Future Looks Bright for Private US Space Ventures

Europe's next ATV resupply spacecraft enters final preparatio?ns for its Ariane 5 launch

ILS Proton Launches Satmex 8 Satellite for Satmex

When quality counts: Arianespace reaffirms its North American market presence

POLITICAL ECONOMY
China preps civilian use of GPS system

GPS device could stem bike thefts

Apple patent shows pen with GPS, phone

Ground system improves satellite navigation precision

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Fasten seatbelts for bumpier flights: climate study

Hong Kong airbridge collapse rips off plane door

Third F-35B For United Kingdom Makes First Flight

Eurocopter vies for big-ticket Polish chopper deal

POLITICAL ECONOMY
World Record Silicon-based Millimeter-wave Power Amplifiers

A giant step toward miniaturization

ORNL microscopy uncovers "dancing" silicon atoms in graphene

A mighty wind

POLITICAL ECONOMY
First Light for ISERV Pathfinder, Space Station's Newest 'Eye' on Earth

Watching over you

New Live Bi-ocular Animations of Two Oceans Now Available

NASA Flies Radar South on Wide-Ranging Scientific Expedition

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Albania to hold referendum on waste imports

Smog-eating pavement on greenest street in America

Latin America looks to earn from e-waste

Russia seeks Baltic pollution partnerships




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement