Regional integration is gathering momentum in Asia. This study examines the diverse experience of regional integration of South and East Asian economies during the last two decades and offers lessons for latecomers. The global economic crisis is expected to merely dampen rather than halt the pace of Asian integration. Global recovery will give renewed impetus to Asian integration. East and South Asia include the world's largest and most dynamic open economies alongside several least developed countries. Using a set of country cases based on a similar framework, the study addresses an important policy question: how can each country's integration with its neighbors and more distant regional economies be improved? Of the eight country studies, five are from South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka) and three are from East Asia (the People's Republic of China, Thailand, and Singapore). The country cases--which differ by per capita income, country size and location--provide fascinating insights on the relationship between regional economic performance and strategies for regional integration at the country level.

Regional integration is gathering momentum in Asia. This study examines the diverse experience of regional integration of South and East Asian economies during the last two decades and offers lessons for latecomers. The global economic crisis is expected to merely dampen rather than halt the pace of Asian integration. Global recovery will give renewed impetus to Asian integration. East and South Asia include the world's largest and most dynamic open economies alongside several least developed countries. Using a set of country cases based on a similar framework, the study addresses an important policy question: how can each country's integration with its neighbors and more distant regional economies be improved? Of the eight country studies, five are from South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka) and three are from East Asia (the People's Republic of China, Thailand, and Singapore). The country cases--which differ by per capita income, country size and location--provide fascinating insights on the relationship between regional economic performance and strategies for regional integration at the country level.

This volume honors the extraordinary career of Thomas Hertel. It also celebrates the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) by Prof. Hertel. All of those contributing to this volume, including Prof. Hertel's students and colleagues, have benefitted in some ways from the selfless professional generosity and dedication to scientific public goods that have been hallmarks of his career.The book examines the history of the GTAP project, the scientific contributions of Prof. Hertel, and the general application of computational modeling to global economic policy analysis. The applications in the volume, reflecting the broad contributions made by the GTAP community to global policy analysis, range from the impact of globalization on employment to the sustainability impacts of economic integration.