Amid various measures taken to strengthen the banking system and tax reform which boost investment, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in its latest report has said that Indian economy is on track to meet fiscal year 2018 projected growth of 7.3% and will further accelerate to 7.6% in 2019. An international development finance institution also forecasted that the growth in Asia and the Pacific’s developing economies will remain solid in 2018 and 2019 despite rising trade tensions.
ADB further said that even though rising trade tensions remain a concern for the region, protectionist trade measures implemented so far in 2018 have not significantly dented buoyant trade flows to and from developing Asia and added that prudent macroeconomic and fiscal policymaking will help economies across the region prepare to respond to external shocks, ensuring that growth in the region remains robust.
The report also noted that South Asia continues to be the fastest growing subregion, led by India, while in Southeast Asia, growth projections for the subregion remain unchanged at 5.2% in both 2018 and 2019, on the back of robust domestic demand. As per the report, Central Asia is growing faster than expected, prompting an upward revision to forecasts from 4.0% to 4.2% in 2018 and from 4.2% to 4.3% in 2019.