growth of this city is typical of the change that is taking place in parts of China, particularly in the South, and it is just part of the wave of transformation that is sweeping across the Asia-Pacific region.
For most of this century, the world economy has been dominated by the United States. But the economies of the Asia-Pacific are now growing at twice the rate of the USA or Europe. China, for example, the most populous country in the world, has an economy growing at 12% per annum, with 20% growth in some of its cities.
This is all the more remarkable at a time of recession in much of Europe and America. Even Japan, which has experienced its share of recessionary troubles, should on no account be dismissed. Japan's economy is still basically sound, and even at its present relatively low growth rates it is set to overtake the US as the largest economy in the world early next century. The other economies in the region are growing from a lower starting point. But it is worth reflecting on the fact that the region contains more than half of the population of the world and will have 30% of world GDP by the year 2000. There is thus a vast potential market for our exporters and a huge potential source for inward investment.
The Asia-Pacific region will continue to be an economic powerhouse well into the next century. This is not only a matter of volume growth. It is also the case that competitive standards of excellence in quality and service are increasingly being set there. Think of Japan. Others are following suit. Singapore and Hong Kong are firmly established as centres of excellence and have long ceased to be regarded as places for producing cheap goods using low-cost labour. South Korea is also leaving this image behind. Taiwan and Malaysia are clearly on the same road.
There are many impressive statistics which highlight the importance of this region. Two which made me stop and think regard South Korea. In the 1950s, South Korea had per capita income below that of Zambia. Today it is above that of Greece and Portugal. And the combined income of South Korea's top ten companies is greater than the GDP of Saudi Arabia.
Politically, too, the Asia-Pacific region offers some grounds for optimism. Many Western observers have been surprised to see how Asian economies have flourished under political regimes which range from the quietly directionist to the fiercely autocratic, and from capitalist to communist. It seems that political openness and democracy are not necessarily a pre-requisite for economic success. But they may well be an effect of it.
As incomes rise and more people join the ranks of the middle class, so demands for greater participation in the political process increase. Whole new generations of well-educated, internationally-minded, economically influential citizens are coming to the fore and
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