Strategic Asia 2005-06: Military Modernization in an Era of Uncertainty

Strategic Asia by the Numbers

Indicators Strategic Asia by the Numbers The following eighteen pages contain tables and figures drawn from NBR’s Strategic Asia database and its sources. The appendix consists of 21 tables covering: economic growth, trade and foreign investment, population size and growth; politics and international relations; energy consumption and oil supplies; and armed forces, defense expenditures, conventional military capabilities, and weapons of mass destruction. The data sets presented herein summarize the critical trends in the region and changes underway in the balance of power in Asia. The Strategic Asia database contains additional data for all 37 countries in Strategic Asia. Hosted on the program’s website (http://strategicasia .nbr.org), the database is a repository for authoritative data for the years 1990 to 2004, and is continually updated. The 70 indicators are arranged in 10 broad thematic areas: economy, finance, trade and investment, government spending, population, energy and environment, communications and transportation, armed forces, weapons of mass destruction, and politics and international relations. The Strategic Asia database was developed with .NET, Microsoft’s XML-based platform, which allows users to dynamically link to all or part of the Strategic Asia Program’s data set and facilitates easy data sharing. The database also includes additional links that allow users to seamlessly access related online resources. The information for Strategic Asia by the Numbers was compiled by Strategic Asia graduate research fellows Peter Mattis and Evan Morrisey. 26 • Strategic Asia 2005–06 Economies Strong domestic demand and high levels of investment have led to strong growth in Asia. The GDP growth rates of Strategic Asia’s economies continue to outpace the rest of the world, driven in large part by China. In 2004, China’s GDP growth was 9.1%, Northeast Asia’s (excluding China) average GDP growth was 5.5%; Southeast Asia’s average was 5.4%; and GDP growth in South Asia averaged 5.1%. • China’s economy continues to diversify and expand from labor-intensive production to more high-technology/heavy manufacturing sectors. • Japan appears to be nearing the end of its decade-long stagnation, but South Korea’s reliance on export-led growth appears to be slowing its economy recovery. • While China pursues an economic modernization policy focused on manufacturing, India is instead pursuing service sector related growth. • Southeast Asia is finally recovering from the financial crisis of 1997–98, with GDP and investment levels returning to previous highs. 1. Gross Domestic Product GDP (constant 2000 $ billion) Rank 1990 1995 2000 2003 1990 2003 United States 7,055.0 7,972.8 9,764.8 10,343.0 1 1 Japan 4,107.8 4,428.5 4,746.1 4,876.1 2 2 China 412.7 726.9 1,080.7 1,375.2 4 3 Canada 535.0 582.3 713.8 766.1 3 4 South Korea 283.7 413.2 511.9 586.1 6 5 India 268.0 345.4 457.4 543.7 8 6 Australia 274.4 322.0 389.1 431.2 7 7 Russia 385.9 239.7 259.7 306.7 5 8 Taiwan* … … 309.5 286.0 … 9 Hong Kong 106.2 139.4 165.4 174.7 9 10 Indonesia 99.3 145.1 150.2 167.7 10 11 Thailand 79.4 120.0 122.7 141.1 11 12 Malaysia 45.5 71.5 90.3 99.4 15 13 Singapore 43.9 67.5 91.5 93.2 16 14 Philippines 56.2 62.6 75.9 85.3 12 15 Sources: World Bank, World Development Indicators, 2005. Data for Taiwan is from Central Bank of China, Financial Statistics, 2005. Note: Figures are calculated using the average exchange rate of corresponding year. Ellipses indicate that no data is available. 2 • Strategic Asia 2005–06 Trade Trade continues to be a major factor in the economic growth of Strategic Asia, particularly in the rising economies of East and Southeast Asia. However, poorer areas of Central, South, and Southeast Asia remain largely unequipped to compete in global trade markets. Asian states are aggressively promoting free trade; since 1999, Asian states have established or proposed 100 bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements. • China’s trade flows are growing rapidly with indications that they will soon surpass those of Japan. • Over one quarter of the United States’ record trade deficit is with China, prompting recent calls for trade protection against Chinese goods. • The recent dissolution...