the pips - Associated Press (AP) words on Asia

January 21st, 2008 · No Comments

the pips -

Courtesy of ‘Lorraine’

Asia would be able to weather any recession in the U.S., analysts say, because rising trade and investment within the region make it less dependent on the U.S. economy than in the past. While a severe downturn in the U.S. would drag on Asian growth by eroding demand for exports, a rapidly growing middle class is fueling orders for automobiles, electronics and housing - much of which will be supplied from Asia itself. Voracious demand for oil, iron ore and other commodities to build roads, sewage systems, and office buildings - especially in the booming economies of China and India - will also help sustain the region through any U.S. slowdown. “The U.S. economy is not that important anymore,” Hans Timmer, a World Bank economist, said in Singapore earlier this month. “China and India represent a bigger presence on the world stage than just a half dozen years ago,” said David Cohen, director of Asian forecasting at Action Economics in Singapore. China, in particular, has “more it can bring to buffer whatever happens in the U.S.”