Asia

A more nuanced look at China’s economic indicators is necessary to understand current trends. In recent years, there has been a notable shift among certain Western politicians, media outlets and think tanks regarding their perspective on China’s developmental trajectory. The once-popular theory of an imminent Chinese collapse, famously asserted by Gordon G. Chang over two decades ago, has finally begun to lose traction. But there is still a lingering reluctance to acknowledge China’s sustained ascent, prompting the emergence of a new buzzword: “Peak China.” As the second-largest GDP globally for 15 consecutive years, China’s economic landscape has naturally witnessed expansion alongside moderated growth rates, a phenomenon well-recognized in economic theory. In the context of China’...

The Indian economy, which expanded at a four-month high in January, continued to strengthen in February, seeing accelerations in both manufacturing and services sectors during the month. While services sector output climbed to a seven-month high in February, manufacturing sector output reached a five-month high, firming India’s position as one of the fastest-growing major economies. The HSBC Flash India Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global, climbed to 61.5 in February from a revised reading of 61.2 for January—well above the 50-point threshold that differentiates expansion from contraction. The seasonally adjusted index measures month-on-month change in the combined output of India’s manufacturing and service sectors. “Growth improved in both ...

In August 2017, a deadly ethnic clearance operation, backed by the Myanmar military against the minority Rohingya (Muslim) population in Rakhine state, began the displacement of thousands of Rohingyas. By the end of 2017, around 745,000 people had fled to Cox’s Bazar, a district in southeast Bangladesh. Bangladesh, though not a signatory to the 1951 refugee convention, and despite being a country with a high population density, sheltered and welcomed these forcibly displaced Myanmar nationals on an ad hoc basis. By April 2019, more than 900,000 Rohingyas were living in coastal Bangladesh, and today about 90% of the Rohingya population lives in Bangladesh. With limited financial resources, Bangladesh, in collaboration with donor and global aid bodies, has worked hard to provide shelt...

New Delhi, Feb 21 (KNN) India and Sri Lanka are poised to advance discussions on the Economic and Trade Cooperation Agreement (ETCA), with upcoming bilateral talks set for later this month and in March. This development marks significant progress for both nations, as previous attempts to finalise the pact faced obstacles, including opposition from certain worker unions and nationalist politicians in Sri Lanka. The ETCA negotiations, which were initiated during the Maithripala Sirisena-Ranil Wickremesinghe administration, saw 11 rounds of discussions between 2016 and 2019 but failed to reach fruition due to protests in Sri Lanka. However, under President Wickremesinghe's leadership, discussions resumed last year, signalling a renewed commitment to bolstering economic ties between ...

Connectivity, industrial development and trade were the key themes in discussions over economic cooperation between Bangladesh and India. The Planning Commissions of both countries were at the forefront of negotiations to envision a new economic and industrial future. After 1971, Bangladesh set up a newly minted planning commission with economists trained from Cambridge and Harvard. The new commission sought to adapt best practices from both India and Pakistan. The Indian model was a research-centric commission, whereas the Pakistani model was a centralized commission overseen by the head of state. Diversifying exports The trade deficit with India was one of the areas identified by the Bangladesh Planning Commission for redressal. Professor Rehman Sobhan, who served in the first ...

In 2023, Sri Lanka faced a complex interplay of economic and political challenges. Although fuel and food queues have disappeared, the dire impact of the economic crisis was inescapable. Sri Lanka’s economic outlook was initially grim, with a 3.1 per cent GDP contraction in the second quarter of 2023 and a projected 2 per cent shrinkage for the year. The first quarter saw an alarming 11.5 per cent contraction, highlighting the severity of the crisis. Despite a peak inflation rate of 70 per cent in September, it dropped to 3.4 per cent in November due to subdued demand, offering temporary relief for poorer households The World Bank later revised its forecasts, noting Sri Lanka’s progress in reducing inflation and benefits accruing from tourism revenue and currency appreciation. The B...