Asia-Pacific economy to grow at 4.5 pct in 2024: IMF

The growth in the Asia-Pacific region will moderate to 4.5 percent this year from the outperformed 5 percent in 2023, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its “Regional Economic Outlook Asia and Pacific” launched in Singapore Tuesday.

Asia-Pacific is expected to remain the most dynamic region across the world, contributing about 60 percent of global growth in 2024, the report noted.

The region embraces diverse growth drivers, from resilient domestic consumption in most ASEAN countries to a sharp uptick in tourism in the Pacific Island countries, IMF said.

Near-term risks are now broadly balanced. Retreating inflation and the prospect of earlier monetary easing have increased the likelihood of a soft landing, IMF said.

Stronger-than-expected growth in Europe and the United States will bring growth to Asia’s exporters while increased geo-economic fragmentation and geopolitical tensions continue to pose serious downside risks to medium-term growth in the region, it added.

Central banks should ensure that inflation returns smoothly to target, and policymakers should avoid making decisions overly dependent on anticipated interest rate moves by the Federal Reserve, IMF noted.