This unique compilation of essays addresses a core political economy question: how do market forces and trade regulation interact? Its fresh Asian perspective offers a much-needed contribution to our understanding of how treaty-based regional and bilateral economic integration is driven by the Factory Asia phenomenon. The authors also compellingly show where the World Trade Organization could fit in. An informative read for scholars and experts alike.' - Manfred Elsig, University of Bern, SwitzerlandThe global financial crisis exposed great shortcomings in the global economic architecture, generating extensive international debate about possible remedies for these deficiencies. The postwar global architecture was guided by major developed economies, centered around the IMF, the GATT, and the World Bank. Today, the balance of economic power is shifting toward emerging economies. Global governance and economic policy must reflect this shift. With contributions from prominent Asian and international trade experts, this book critically examines key changes occurring in the world trading system and explores policy implications for Asia. The world trading system, led by the World Trade Organization (WTO), is under pressure to evolve and address 21st-century trade issues. Meanwhile, economically salient Asia has built deep supply chains over decades, whilst experimenting with mega-regional trade agreements and economic policies to sustain growth amid a fragile economy. The Asian-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the United States-led Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership (TPP) are competing to set standards for Asia's trade and supply chains. Lessons from the Asian experience offer new approaches and economic policies to sustain growth, presenting the WTO as a forum for action to improve global and regional trade governance in the 21st century. Policy makers will benefit from the expert knowledge and policy lessons presented in this book, and development economists and researchers will profit from its critical examination of the world trading system. Undergraduate and postgraduate students interested in development, development economics, international development, and related fields will find this essential supplementary reading. Contributors: R. Baldwin, S.Y. Chia, B. Dhar, S.J. Evenett, S. Inomata, M. Kawai, P. Low, M. Nakatomi, R. Pomfret, V. Pontines, J. Tijaja, S. Urata, R. Wang, G. Wignaraja, Y. Zhang

This book addresses the prospects and challenges concerning both soft and hard infrastructure development in Asia and provides a framework for achieving Asian connectivity through regional infrastructure cooperation towards a seamless Asia. Key topics included are: - demand estimates of national and regional infrastructure in transport, electricity, information and communication technology, and water and sanitation; - empirical results on the costs and benefits of regional infrastructure for economies and households; - the impact of infrastructure development on the environment and climate; - sources and instruments of infrastructure financing; - best practices and lessons learned from the experiences of the Asian region and other regions; and - experiences of public-private partnership projects. This insightful book will serve as a definitive knowledge product for policymakers, academics, private sector experts and infrastructure practitioners interested in the regional and national infrastructure demand, investment and benefits in the region. Concerned officials from private and public sectors, and other experts involved in environmental and natural resources studies will also find this compendium invaluable. Contributors: R. Adhikari, N. Banik, B.N. Bhattacharyay, H. Dick, M. Fujimura, K.-C. Fung, A. Garcia-Herrero, J. Gilbert, T. Hertel, M. Kawai, R.M. Nag, F. Ng, J. Nunez-Ferrer, P.J. Rimmer, S. Stone, A. Strutt, W. van der Geest, F. Zhai, Z. Zhang

In light of the experience of the global financial crisis, this book develops concrete recommendations for financial sector reform and regulation in Asian economies aimed at preventing the recurrence of systemic financial crises, improving the ability to manage and resolve crises, managing capital flows and promoting the development of Asian bond markets. The focus of the book is on longer-term structural measures. It explores areas such as the scope for regional monitoring and cooperation; deepening and integration of Asian bond and money markets; liberalization/regulation of capital flows; and issues related to macroprudential oversight, regulatory structure and cooperation as well as the role of state intervention in crisis resolution in the financial sector. The need for and impacts of regulations on innovative financial products and specific investor groups such as hedge funds, ways to reduce systemic risk of pro-cyclicality of regulation and ways to improve the infrastructure and regulatory environment for local currency bond markets are also examined in depth. The book will appeal to public and private finance experts, policy makers and decision makers in governments and banks, think-tanks and students in graduate courses related to financial and economic development. Contributors: C. Adams, J.A. Batten, Y.J. Cho, S.F. de Lis, M. Fujii, A. Garcia-Herrero, W.P. Hogan, M. Kapur, M. Kawai, D.G. Mayes, R. Mohan, P.J. Morgan, M.G. Plummer, M. Pomerleano, M.M. Spiegel, P.G. Szilagyi, L.D. Wall, A. Winkler

There is a deepening debate in East Asia about the prospects for common exchange rate arrangements, even including the formation of a common currency in the longer term. This raises a complex set of issues and this volume provides a detailed yet comprehensive examination of key issues in the debate. It looks, for example, at the nature and extent of linkages in East Asia, in terms of trade and foreign investment, finance, labour, and consumption, investment and output. It examines how the exchange rate affects various aspects of economies. And it critically analyzes various proposals for currency regimes for the region, including floating exchange rates, basket pegs, and currency union.

Series Information:
RoutledgeCurzon Studies in the Growth Economies of Asia

This book addresses the prospects and challenges concerning both soft and hard infrastructure development in Asia and provides a framework for achieving Asian connectivity through regional infrastructure cooperation towards a seamless Asia. Key topics included are: - demand estimates of national and regional infrastructure in transport, electricity, information and communication technology, and water and sanitation; - empirical results on the costs and benefits of regional infrastructure for economies and households; - the impact of infrastructure development on the environment and climate; - sources and instruments of infrastructure financing; - best practices and lessons learned from the experiences of the Asian region and other regions; and - experiences of public-private partnership projects. This insightful book will serve as a definitive knowledge product for policymakers, academics, private sector experts and infrastructure practitioners interested in the regional and national infrastructure demand, investment and benefits in the region. Concerned officials from private and public sectors, and other experts involved in environmental and natural resources studies will also find this compendium invaluable. Contributors: R. Adhikari, N. Banik, B.N. Bhattacharyay, H. Dick, M. Fujimura, K.-C. Fung, A. Garcia-Herrero, J. Gilbert, T. Hertel, M. Kawai, R.M. Nag, F. Ng, J. Nunez-Ferrer, P.J. Rimmer, S. Stone, A. Strutt, W. van der Geest, F. Zhai, Z. Zhang

The Asian model of export-led growth served it well in the post-war period, but prolonged sluggish growth of the developed economies following the global financial crisis, together with growing inequality and rising environmental problems, point to the need for a new growth model. The purpose of this book is to describe the challenges facing Asian economies in the post-global financial crisis environment and to identify structural issues and policies that can help guide Asian policymakers to expand the growth potential of domestic and regional demand in coming years, and thereby create a basis for balanced, sustainable, and inclusive long-term growth. These issues and policies span a variety of dimensions, including macroeconomic policy (monetary, fiscal, and foreign currency management), real sector issues (trade and industrial structure), infrastructure development, labor market and social policy, financial sector reform and regulation, and regional cooperation and architecture. Key recommendations to achieve these goals include measures to: deepen social protection to support social resilience; increase infrastructure investment to create a "seamless Asia"; enhance productivity in the services sector; establish a region-wide free trade agreement to encourage intraregional trade in goods and services and investment through economies of scale and dynamic efficiency of a larger market; promote a shift to a low-carbon society and support green growth; and deepen and integrate financial markets to facilitate the recycling of Asia's high savings for investment within the region.

This book contributes to the theoretical and empirical literature on Asian regionalism, with a focus on the innovations needed to reform the current institutional architecture in Asia. After reviewing the key issues and challenges related to the political economy of Asia's economic cooperation and integration, the book discusses various aspects of regionalism from political and economic perspectives. It looks at the rationale for regional collective action and reviews the trend of economic integration with a focus on the implications of the global financial crisis. In addition to reviewing the key issues related to the development of regional institutions for integration, the book analyzes issues such as trade and finance and deals with the implications of regionalism in terms of the introduction of domestic reforms in Asian countries before discussing the possible formation of a region-wide economic community. The eight chapters of the book are based on respective papers initially prepared for the Asian Development Bank Institute Conference 2010.

By providing a comprehensive overview of policy proposals for the international monetary system from an Asian perspective, this book aims to identify what innovations are needed to reform the international monetary and financial system to promote financial stability and sustainable economic growth for emerging economies. The book is organized into four parts. Part 1 discusses major theoretical and empirical issues related to reform of the international monetary system. Part 2 includes two chapters that present the recent developments and challenges for managing capital flows. Part 3 presents different perspectives on regional currency cooperation in Asia and Europe by assessing the evidence supporting increased currency coordination in Asia and by review issues of policy cooperation in the Euro area after the global financial crisis and their implications for Asia. Part 4 discusses emerging issues for regional/global cooperation and financial safety nets. The main inference of the book is that, in light of the drawbacks of the existing international monetary system exposed in the global financial crisis, along with other countries, Asian emerging economies should work cooperatively to reform and strengthen international monetary and financial policy. To do so, regional and global monetary cooperation is needed and financial safety nets should be strengthened to alleviate the impact of possible global financial crises. This will be one of the first books written about the global financial crisis and the on going the European sovereign debt crisis to comprehensively address the issues related to currency cooperation, based on the Euro area experience, with the specific implications for Asia.

Asian economies strengthened their monetary and currency management after the Asian financial crisis of 1997-1998, and came through the global financial crisis of 2007-2009 relatively well. Nevertheless, the recent global crisis has presented new challenges. This book develops recommendations for monetary and currency policy in Asian economies aimed at promoting macroeconomic and financial stability in an environment of global economic shocks and volatile capital flows. Monetary and Currency Policy Management in Asia draws lessons from crises and makes concrete macroeconomic policy recommendations aimed at minimizing the impacts of an economic and financial downturn, and setting the stage for an early return to sustainable growth. The focus is on short-term measures related to the cycle. The three main areas addressed are: monetary policy measures, both conventional and unconventional, to achieve both macroeconomic and financial stability; exchange rate policy and foreign exchange reserve management, including the potential for regional cooperation to stabilize currency movements; and ways to ease the constraints on policy resulting from the so-called 'impossible trinity' of fixed exchange rates, open capital accounts and independent monetary policy. This is one of the first books since the global financial crisis to specifically and comprehensively address the implications of the crisis for monetary and currency policy in emerging market economies, especially in Asia. Presenting a broad menu of policy options for financial reform and regulation, the book will be of great interest to finance experts and policy makers in the region as well as academics and researchers of financial and Asian economics and also economic development. Contributors: J. Aizenman, M.D. Chinn, A. Filardo, S.-i. Fukuda, H. Genberg, H. Ito, M. Kawai, S. Kim, Y. Kon, P.J. Morgan, I. Patnaik, A. Shah, S. Takagi, D.Y. Yang, F. Zhai A Joint Publication of the Asian Development Bank Institute and Edward Elgar Publishing

The structure and policy architecture of the world economy, as it emerges from the historic challenges now underway, will be affected by the dramatic rise of Asian economies and deepening connections among them. This important book examines the rapid transformation of the Asian economy, the challenges it faces, emerging regional solutions, and how Asia can play a more constructive role in the global economy.Asia is becoming not just the world?s factory, but also its leading creditor, and one of its key sources of dynamism and stability. Key questions are identified and addressed in three areas: Asia?s growth and productivity, financial stability, and regional economic integration. In each of these areas, the contributing authors evaluate current trends and the forces shaping the future. They consider whether the region?s progress is sustainable and what it will take to make it so. How is Asia reshaping its economy in response to the changing global landscape? More urgently, how can Asia weather the severe financial and economic storm originating from the global credit crisis? How will it extend its gains to people left behind? And how can it contribute to better governance and greater prosperity in the world economy? This book covers new ground by connecting theory, assembling detailed evidence on trends and challenges, and offering forward-looking policy prescriptions.This timely book will appeal to Asian economic policy-makers as well as postgraduate students interested in Asian economies, international economics and regional integration. Staff of international and regional organizations interested in Asian economies will also find this book invaluable.

Managing Capital Flows provides analyses designed to help policymakers develop a framework for managing capital flows that is consistent with prudent macroeconomic and financial sector stability.While capital inflows can provide emerging market economies with significant benefits in pursuing economic development and growth, they can also pose serious policy challenges for macroeconomic management and financial sector supervision. The expert contributors cover a wide range of issues related to managing capital flows and analyze the experience of emerging Asian economies in dealing with surges in capital inflows. They also discuss possible policy measures to manage capital flows while remaining consistent with the goals of macroeconomic and financial sector stability. Building on this analysis, the book presents options for workable national policies and regional policy cooperation, particularly in exchange rate management.Containing chapters that bring in international experiences relevant to Asia and other emerging market economies, this insightful book will appeal to policymakers in governments and financial institutions as well as public and private finance experts. It will also be of great interest to advanced students and academic researchers in finance.

This book contributes to the theoretical and empirical literature on Asian regionalism, with a focus on the innovations needed to reform the current institutional architecture in Asia. After reviewing the key issues and challenges related to the political economy of Asia s economic cooperation and integration, the book discusses various aspects of regionalism from political and economic perspectives. It looks at the rationale for regional collective action and reviews the trend of economic integration with a focus on the implications of the global financial crisis. In addition to reviewing the key issues related to the development of regional institutions for integration, the book analyzes issues such as trade and finance and deals with the implications of regionalism in terms of the introduction of domestic reforms in Asian countries before discussing the possible formation of a region-wide economic community. The eight chapters of the book are based on respective papers initially prepared for the Asian Development Bank Institute Conference 2010."

The traumatic experiences of the first half of the twentieth century helped shape the postwar global architecture, which saw the creation of the IMF, the GATT, and the World Bank. Today, this economic architecture is ill-fitted to the global economy. The balance of financial power has moved towards the emerging economies, especially those in Asia, a shift which is not sufficiently reflected in the governance of these institutions. New Global Economic Architecture addresses how a regional architecture, particularly in Asia, can induce a supply of regional public goods that strengthens the global public goods supplied through the global architecture, to promote sustainable economic development. The global network is moving towards a decentralized system with global, regional, and national institutions, and the book presents a comparison of the pace of reforms in various institutions and the identification of the reform agenda from an Asian perspective. It provides suggestions for strengthening regional institutions in Asia so they may better provide regional public goods. The evolution of institutions and policies that comprise the international monetary, financial, trade and development architecture is considered since their establishment after the Bretton Woods conference of 1944. Policymakers, academics, think tanks and practitioners will benefit from the international perspective of the book, particularly those interested in the influential Asian architecture. This book is also a useful reference tool for students of macroeconomics, development economics, international trade, and finance at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Contributors: A. Chabchitrchaidol, A.F. Cooper, H. Hill, M. Kawai, J. Menon, P.J. Morgan, V. Nehru, M.G. Plummer, F. Prada, P.B. Rana, R. Siregar, G. Wignaraja

The Asian model of export-led growth served it well in the post-war period, but prolonged sluggish growth of the developed economies following the global financial crisis, together with growing inequality and rising environmental problems, point to the need for a new growth model. The purpose of this book is to describe the challenges facing Asian economies in the post-global financial crisis environment and to identify structural issues and policies that can help guide Asian policymakers to expand the growth potential of domestic and regional demand in coming years, and thereby create a basis for balanced, sustainable, and inclusive long-term growth. These issues and policies span a variety of dimensions, including macroeconomic policy (monetary, fiscal, and foreign currency management), real sector issues (trade and industrial structure), infrastructure development, labor market and social policy, financial sector reform and regulation, and regional cooperation and architecture. Key recommendations to achieve these goals include measures to: deepen social protection to support social resilience; increase infrastructure investment to create a "seamless Asia"; enhance productivity in the services sector; establish a region-wide free trade agreement to encourage intraregional trade in goods and services and investment through economies of scale and dynamic efficiency of a larger market; promote a shift to a low-carbon society and support green growth; and deepen and integrate financial markets to facilitate the recycling of Asia's high savings for investment within the region.

By providing a comprehensive overview of policy proposals for the international monetary system from an Asian perspective, this book aims to identify what innovations are needed to reform the international monetary and financial system to promote financial stability and sustainable economic growth for emerging economies. The book is organized into four parts. Part 1 discusses major theoretical and empirical issues related to reform of the international monetary system. Part 2 includes two chapters that present the recent developments and challenges for managing capital flows. Part 3 presents different perspectives on regional currency cooperation in Asia and Europe by assessing the evidence supporting increased currency coordination in Asia and by review issues of policy cooperation in the Euro area after the global financial crisis and their implications for Asia. Part 4 discusses emerging issues for regional/global cooperation and financial safety nets. The main inference of the book is that, in light of the drawbacks of the existing international monetary system exposed in the global financial crisis, along with other countries, Asian emerging economies should work cooperatively to reform and strengthen international monetary and financial policy. To do so, regional and global monetary cooperation is needed and financial safety nets should be strengthened to alleviate the impact of possible global financial crises. This will be one of the first books written about the global financial crisis and the on going the European sovereign debt crisis to comprehensively address the issues related to currency cooperation, based on the Euro area experience, with the specific implications for Asia.

This book takes stock of and analyzes the events during the Asian financial crisis (AFC) and subsequent developments, including the global financial crisis (GFC), that led to the development of the ASEAN+3 regional financial cooperation framework and the establishment of the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office. The book is the first of its kind to compile comprehensive recollections of the major players during the AFC and the GFC, including country-level narratives on the causes and developments of the crises, and measures to overcome them. The book not only presents an analytical and deeper examination of country experiences during both crises, but also assesses the two crises and covers the lessons learnt from the crises, particularly with a focus on the development of regional financial cooperation. The book concludes with regional financial cooperation in retrospect, aiming to catalyze further discussions on the direction of the region's financial cooperation.

This monograph addresses Asia's rise in global free trade agreement (FTA) activity. This has sparked concerns about the erosion of the World Trade Organization (WTO) trading system and the Asian "noodle bowl" (multiple and possibly conflicting FTAs). The study identifies for policymakers how best to minimize the costs of FTAs while maximizing their benefits. It reexamines key trends and challenges in Asian FTAs and offers new information from analysis of FTAs, economic models, and firm surveys. This analysis supports strengthening business support for FTAs; rationalizing rules of origin and upgrading their administration; expanded coverage of agricultural and services trade; forging comprehensive "WTO-plus" agreements; and encouraging a region-wide FTA. The analysis suggests a bottom-up approach to global trade liberalization as a complement to WTO processes.

Staff working papers in the International Finance and Discussion Papers (IFDP) series are primarily materials produced by staff in the Division of International Finance. These topics are focused on, though by no means limited to, international macroeconomics, international trade, global finance, financial institutions, and markets, as well as international capital flows.

`East Asia is the region of the world that is changing fastest in terms of trade arrangements. Dozens of free-trade agreements are signed every year, turning a complex situation into the East Asian "noodle bowl" of FTAs. This book addresses the crucial question posed by these new agreements - how do they affect business? While many studies have focused on government-to-government issues, this book gets to the heart of the matter, studying what it means for the firms actually doing the trade and investment. I recommend this book to any serious student of trade, particularly those interested in understanding the rapidly evolving landscape in this most dynamic part of the world.' - Richard Baldwin, Professor of International Economics, Graduate Institute, Geneva, Switzerland `The pursuit of more than one hundred Free Trade Agreements in East Asia is quietly producing a fundamental change in the global economic architecture. This path-breaking new volume provides an indispensable guide to the practical effect of such agreements on commercial transactions in the region. It is a must-read for businessmen and policymakers who seek to both understand the impact of FTAs in the real world and expand their contributions to economic growth and development.' - C. Fred Bergsten, Director, Peterson Institute for International Economics, US `[East Asia] needs to think about appropriate measures to overcome the Asian FTA noodle bowl in the future. In this vein, the study suggests several practical measures including encouraging rationalization and flexibility of rules of origin, upgrading origin administration, improving business participation in FTA consultations, and strengthening institutional support systems for SMEs. . . It is hoped that this study will contribute to strengthening regional trade policies in Asia and compatibilities with global trade rules.' - Haruhiko Kuroda, President, Asian Development Bank `This is a valuable contribution in a crowded field. Kawai and Wignaraja have gone beyond familiar arguments about the relative merits of regionalism and multilateralism to ask businesses what it all means to them. Policymakers should take note.' - Patrick Low, Chief Economist, WTO `For policymakers in the region, the debate is no longer between regionalism and multilateralism. The real question is how we should create the model for regionalism that will become the building blocks to a multilateral trading system and avoid raising costs of doing business from the noodle bowl effect. Therefore the comparative and micro-level research found in this book provides valuable insights on the impact of FTAs on businesses. These insights will be relevant input as policymakers forge ahead in implementing regional FTAs, thinking of ways to amend and improve on them and, most importantly, harmonize or consolidate between existing regional FTAs in East Asia.' - Mari Pangestu, Minister of Trade, Indonesia The spread of Asia's free trade agreements (FTAs) has sparked an important debate on the impact of such agreements on business activity. This pioneering study uses new evidence from surveys of East Asian exporters - including Japan, the People's Republic of China, the Republic of Korea and three ASEAN economies of the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand - to shed light on the FTA debate. Critics are concerned that FTAs erode the multilateral trading process and foster an alarming `noodle bowl' of overlapping regulations and rules of origin requirements - which may be costly to business. Asia's Free Trade Agreements makes key recommendations for improving business use of FTA preferences, reducing costs of FTAs and creating a region-wide FTA. This well-researched and documented book will appeal to undergraduate and postgraduate students in international business, international economics, economic development, public administration and public policy. Academics, researchers and members of think-tanks around the world will also benefit from this book as will trade negotiators and trade policy officials from developed and developing countries.

"Meet the next global currency: the Chinese renminbi, or the ""redback."" Following the global financial crisis of 2008, China's major monetary policy objective is the internationalization of the renminbi, that is, to create an inter-national role for its currency akin to the international role currently played by the U.S. dollar. Renminbi internationalization is a hot topic, for good reason. It is, essentially, a window onto the Chinese government's aspirations and the larger process of economic and financial transformation. Making the renminbi a global currency requires rebalancing the Chinese economy, developing the country's financial markets and opening them to the rest of the world, and moving to a more flexible exchange rate. In other words, the internationalization of the renminbi is a monetary and financial issue with much broader supra-monetary and financial implications. This book offers a new perspective on the larger issues of economic, financial, and institutional change in what will eventually be the world's largest economy. "

Asia has witnessed a proliferation of free trade agreements (FTAs) since the turn of the millennium. The first regional agreement - the ASEAN FTA - was transformed into the ASEAN Economic Community at the end of 2015. In the meantime, ASEAN forged five ASEAN 1 FTAs and began to negotiate a sixteen-member Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement. In parallel, the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), supporting U.S. foreign policy of ""Pivot to Asia"", was broadly agreed in October 2015. The RCEP and the TPP are accompanied by other mega-regional integration processes developing elsewhere in the world, including the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership for the European Union and the United States, and the Pacific Alliance among four Latin American member states. Meanwhile, APEC is also striving to meet its Bogor Goal targets and create a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific. Each of these mega-regionals aims to achieve greater trade and investment liberalization and facilitation and more harmonized trade and investment rules so that all member economies can participate in the global value chain of production. Instead of undermining, these regional exercises can be building blocks for a more liberal global trading system supported by the World Trade Organization.This book ruminates on these regional agreements, their economic and strategic rationales and challenges during negotiations and afterwards. The book brings together eminent scholars and experts to deepen our understanding of the complex nature of the mega-regional trade agreements and their implications. It is useful both for the academic and research community and for policymakers who focus on trade and economic cooperation issues.

The global financial crisis and the Eurozone crisis have led to a profound rethink in East Asia about the international monetary system and regional monetary and financial integration. After the East Asian crisis of 1997, deeper regional cooperation was seen as the way to avoid reliance on the IMF and the rest of the world. Steps were taken, but they were limited because of disagreements reflecting regional rivalries. Still, integration into the global financial system and Europe's regional process were seen as objectives to be adapted to East Asia, as detailed in an overview chapter. The crises have shaken this strategy but also revealed the pre-existing deep disagreements. This book presents contributions by scholars from different countries. Each one was invited to describe the vision of their policymakers. The traidtional rivalry between China and Japan, the region's largest economies, reveals Chinese confidence into its rising power and Japanese growing doubts about its ability to weigh on the debate. For opposite reasons, both display a declining interest into regional cooperation. Korea and the ASEAN countries do not wish to choose between the regional powers but remain attached to regional cooperation and integration. They look for pragmatic solutions that recognize the value-chain characteristic of trade. Additional contributions by US and European scholars provide evaluations of the global and Eurozone crises and of their relevance for East Asian integration.

Persistently large external imbalances in the world economy contributed to the outbreak of the recent financial crisis. The current account imbalances were particularly severe among the economies that border on the Pacific --the United States ran large deficits, with offsetting surpluses in East Asia. The depth and breadth of the global recession also demonstrated the need for a coordination of national policies to achieve a sustained recovery.

While the magnitude of global-trade disruption led to some reduction in the size of the imbalances, closer examination suggests that the progress may prove temporary. On the other hand, significant changes in the underlying patterns of saving and investment suggest that some of the recent rebalancing may prove to be more permanent. Are such imbalances really a problem? If so, why and for whom? What should be done about them --if anything --and what does the future likely hold for transpacific trade relations? In this timely book, Asian and American economists explore those important questions.

Copublished with the Asian Development Bank Institute, "Transpacific Rebalancing" is coedited by Barry Bosworth --long one of the Brookings Institution's leading economic analysts --and Masahiro Kawai, dean of the ADBI. They brought together leading economists from either side of the Pacific to analyze such issues as:

- The impact of exchange rates

- The policy choices facing the "Asian tigers"

- The specifics and effects of trade imbalances in specific countries including the United States, South Korea, Thailand, India, and China

Contributors include Hwee Kwan Chow, Susan M. Collins, Barry Eichengreen, Joonkyung Ha, Yping Huang, Ginalyn Komoto, Jong-Wha Lee, Rajiv Kumar, Deunden Nikomborirak, Gisela Rua, Lea Sumulong, Chalongphob Sussankam, Kunyu Tao, Willem Thorbecke, and Pankaj Vashisht.