Author: Kirill Nourzhanov, ANU
Central Asia had a relatively tranquil year in 2011. None of the five former Soviet republics constituting the region experienced regime change, civil conflict or economic meltdown — which is an achievement in its own right compared to the preceding tumultuous decade.
Authoritarian super-presidential regimes continued to muddle through in Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan seemingly unperturbed by the Arab Spring or any form of organised opposition. Read more…
Author: Mohamed Ariff, INCEIF
After registering an impressive 7.2 per cent growth in 2010, the Malaysian economy visibly slowed down in 2011. GDP growth moderated to 5 per cent in the first half of the year, due mainly to sluggish export growth, but increased to 5.8 per cent growth in the third quarter, thanks to commodity exports and domestic demand.
Manufactured exports, the main driver of growth, did not fare well over the year, owing to depressed demand conditions in the US and EU. Read more…
Author: Thee Kian Wie, LIPI
Indonesia’s economic growth remained strong in 2011 despite continued turmoil in the international financial markets, due to the euro crisis, and weakened global growth.
Significantly, this slow down also affected China, which has become one of Indonesia’s major export markets, but Jakarta was able to see off this risk. Read more…
Author: Sandy Gordon, ANU
South Asia is a vast region encompassing eight nations (if we include Afghanistan) and over one-fifth of humanity.
It is difficult to do it justice in this short summary of the year’s events. Read more…
Author: Mekere Morauta, PNG
Navigating a small economy through the choppy waters of the global economy is never easy.
But it is even harder when facing the peaks and troughs of resource booms and the unpredictable undercurrents of a complex polity. Read more…
Author: Yiping Huang, Peking University
China’s economic developments in 2011 closely resembled those of 2008: over-heating at the beginning of the year; moderating due to policy tightening around mid-year; and decelerating as a result of external recession before year’s end.
But 2012 will probably not be a replay of 2009, as neither a hard landing nor a sharp rebound look likely this year. Read more…
