Economics, Politics and Public Policy in East Asia and the PacificAuthor: Peter TY Cheung, HKU
The Occupy Movement has seen the political awakening of a large segment of the Hong Kong community. The massive outbursts of political protests lasted 79 days and tested the limits and will of the Hong Kong people and government. Hong Kong–mainland relations have been pushed into a downward spiral of mistrust and confrontation, but movements towards reconciliation remain out of sight. Read more…
Author: Jong-sung You, ANU
Disasters and political scandals dominated South Korean politics in 2014. And hopes for progress on North–South relations on the Korean peninsula were left unfulfilled.
At the beginning of 2014 — in Dresden, Germany — President Park Geun-hye had unveiled her government’s vision for Korean reunification. Read more…
Author: Dr Kirill Nourzhanov, ANU
By local standards, 2014 was a reasonably successful year for the leaders of Central Asian countries. There were no revolutions, insurgencies or mass protests threatening their grip on power. Incumbent heads of state carried out regime maintenance in their customary manner: focusing primarily on managing the inner circle of the ruling elite. Read more…
Author: Nobumasa Akiyama, Hitotsubashi University
Shinzo Abe’s second term as prime minister of Japan, unlike his first, was a modest success through till 2014. But he will have to bring real and tangible outcomes for Japan and the Japanese economy if it is to succeed the third time round. Read more…
Author: Cesar Virata, Manila
The economy of the Philippines hit some rough patches in 2014. The outlook for 2015, on the other hand, is fairly strong.
GDP growth slowed down to about 6 per cent. This was because government spending — in particular, infrastructure spending — did not meet its targets. Read more…
Author: Gary Hawke, NZIER
New Zealand obviously does not enjoy the economic growth rates of Southeast Asia, let alone China. Nonetheless, indications were during 2014 that New Zealand could sustain long-term growth of 3 per cent per annum without supply constraints and inflationary pressures. It had previously been thought that the limit was little more than 2 per cent. Read more…
Author: Thuy T. Do, ANU
Vietnam’s diplomacy saw many successes in 2014, but also faced many challenges.
In early May, the country saw the worst maritime tension with China since their 1988 naval clashes in the South China Sea (SCS). Read more…
Author: Kheang Un, Northern Illinois University
Cambodia had a year of political reform in 2014, and observers are sceptical about how much change it will bring. But it might be premature to dismiss Prime Minister Hun Sen’s reform efforts as cosmetic. Read more…
Author: Kim Keeseok, Kangwon National University
It is not hard to list the domestic and international challenges for South Korea for 2015. There are many.
At the end of 2014, South Korea faces economic slowdown, an ageing population, worsening socio-economic inequality, rising youth unemployment, mounting household debt and a real-estate market slump. Read more…
Authors: Mukul G. Asher, NUS, and Chang Yee Kwan, Independent
On the usual measures of economic prosperity, Singapore went from strength to macroeconomic strength in 2014. Real economic growth was between 2.5 and 3.5 per cent for the year. The world economy was forecast by the IMF in October to have grown at 3.3 per cent. Singapore continued to grow in importance as an ASEAN hub for RMB-denominated financial services, and was named, for the ninth year running, the best global location for business and enterprise. Read more…
Author: Tuvshintugs Batdelger, National University of Mongolia
Mongolia experienced drastic changes in its macroeconomic environment in 2014.
The economy is expected to grow by 7 per cent in 2014. This is a healthy pace. But the majority of this growth has come from the mining sector, which experienced a significant boost from the production ramp up in the first phase of the Oyu Tolgoi project. Read more…
Author: Shankaran Nambiar, MIER
After a year of solid achievement on the economic front, Malaysia’s leaders will face difficult circumstances as they implement reform in 2015.
One of the more impressive achievements of the Malaysian government in 2014 was the resolve it demonstrated in trying to balance the budget. Read more…
Author: Thomas Jandl, MRTJ Asia Consulting
For Vietnam’s leadership, 2014 was another year of growing into a role as an increasingly active international player, both diplomatically and economically. Two events — the Haiyang 981 oilrig incident and TPP accession negotiations — gave Vietnam a place in the spotlight and shed light on a continued path for 2015. Read more…
Author: Sajjad Ashraf, NUS
Pakistan is in a state of discord. Its civilian governance structure is becoming corrupt and oligarchic. Its façade of democratic order belies a more tawdry reality characterised by money, patronage and cronyism, in which parliament exists to enhance the privileges of the few. Read more…
Author: Kazuhiko Togo, Kyoto Sangyo University
The emphatic victory of Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in the December 2014 lower house election masks a quiet power shift toward liberal-centre forces, away from nationalist right-wing forces. What this shift portends is a crucial question for the direction of Abe’s administration. Read more…