TNAG-2597-FCO40-3785-Appointment-of-Chris-Patten-as-new-Governor-of-Hong-Kong--Ap-1992 — Page 25

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THE ASIAN NEWLY INDUSTRIALIZED ECONOMIES IN A RAPIDLY CHANGING ASIA PACIFIC

I. INTRODUCTION

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Despite a slowdown in the world economy and the adverse effects of the Gulf

Crisis, Asia has remained the fastest growing region in the world. In 1990, the average

economic growth rate of Asia was 5.8%, which was higher than the average growth rate

of 2.4% of the developing world as a whole, and much higher than that of 1.7% of the

world. Amidst a fast growing Asia, we could identify a number of forces which help

render long term, to explain this recent growth experience of the region and to

self-sustaining economic growth possible.

In the past decade, it was witnessed that the Asia Pacific region was moving towards

a greater degree of regional interdependence. There were two major driving forces

behind the scene. Firstly, the region was undergoing profound structural changes which

gave rise the rapid upsurge of intra-regional trade and intra-regional investment; and

the emergence of sub-regional economic growth zones along the coastal areas of West

Pacific. Secondly, some major countries in the region have undertaken significant policy

changes. While some of them are in the process of transformation into more liberalized

and deregulated economies, others are placing considerable emphasis on building

physical infrastructure. These structural and policy changes have made it possible and

necessary for Asia Pacific economies to escalate their economic interactions and

cooperation.

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