JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #70 - January/February 2012 - 70

economy

Myanmar (Burma), a resource-rich country, suffers from rural poverty. Despite Burma’s emergence as a natural gas exporter, socio-economic conditions have deteriorated. The most productive sectors will continue to be in extractive industries – especially oil and gas, mining and timber. The global crisis of 2008-09 caused exports and domestic consumer demand to drop. Remittances from overseas Burmese workers – who had provided significant financial support for their families – slowed or dried up as jobs were lost and migrant workers returned home. Although the Burmese government has good economic relations with its neighbours, significant improvements in economic governance, the business climate and the political situation are needed to promote serious foreign investment.

donors, including the World Bank and IMF, to address the country’s many pressing needs. The major economic challenge for Cambodia over the next decade will be fashioning an economic environment in which the private sector can create enough jobs to handle Cambodia’s demographic imbalance. Indonesia, a vast polyglot nation, has weathered the global financial crisis relatively smoothly because of its heavy reliance on domestic consumption as the driver of economic growth. Increasing investment by both local and foreign investors is also supporting solid growth. Although the economy slowed to 4.5% growth in 2009 from the 6%-plus growth rate recorded in 2007 and 2008, by 2010 growth returned to a 6% rate. During the recession, Indonesia outperformed most of its regional neighbours. The government made economic advances under the first administration of President Yudhoyono, introducing significant reforms in the financial sector, including tax and customs reforms, the use of Treasury bills, and capital market development and supervision. Indonesia’s debt-to-GDP ratio in recent

years has declined steadily because of increasingly robust GDP growth and sound fiscal stewardship, leading two of the three leading credit agencies to upgrade credit ratings for Indonesia’s sovereign debt to just one notch below investment grade. In late 2010, increasing inflation, driven by higher and volatile food prices, posed an increasing challenge to economic policymakers and threatened to push millions of the near-poor below the poverty line. In 2011, the government faced the ongoing challenge of improving Indonesia’s infrastructure to remove impediments to growth, while addressing climate change concerns, particularly with regard to conserving Indonesia’s forests and peatlands, the focus of a potentially trailblazing $1 billion REDD+ pilot project. Lao PDR: The government of Lao PDR (Laos) began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986. The results, starting from an extremely low base, were striking – growth averaged 6% per year from 1988 to 2008 except during the short-lived drop caused by the Asian financial crisis that began in 1997. Despite this high growth rate, Laos remains a country with an underdeve-

status with the US in 2004, and is taking steps required to join the World Trade Organization, such as reforming import licensing. Related trade policy reforms will improve the business environment. On the fiscal side, Laos initiated a VAT tax system in 2010. Simplified investment loped infrastructure, partiprocedures and expanded cularly in rural areas. It has a bank credits for small farmers rudimentary, but improving, and small entrepreneurs will road system, and limited improve Laos’s economic external and internal telecom- prospects. The government munications. China has signed appears committed to raising a deal with Laos to build a the country’s profile among high-speed rail system in the investors. The World Bank has country. Construction on the declared that Laos’s goal of $7 billion project is slated to graduating from the UN Devebegin in April 2011 and will lopment Programme’s list of take five years. Electricity is least-developed countries by available in urban areas and in 2020 is achievable. According many rural districts. Subsisto Laotian officials, the 7th tence agriculture, dominated Socio-Economic Development by rice cultivation in lowland Plan for 2011-15 will outline areas, accounts for about efforts to achieve Millennium 30% of GDP and 75% of total Development Goals. employment. In financial year 2009/10, the government Malaysia, a middle-income received $586 million from country, has transformed international donors. Ecoitself since the 1970s from nomic growth has reduced a producer of raw materials official poverty rates from into an emerging multi-sec46% in 1992 to 26% in 2010. tor economy. Under current The economy has benefited Prime Minister Najib, Malayfrom high foreign investment sia is attempting to achieve in hydropower, mining and high-income status by 2020 construction. Laos gained and to move farther up the Normal Trade Relations value-added production chain

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Malaysia, Petrajya Mosque’s dome made of composites

70 jec composites magazine / No70 January - February 2012

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #70 - January/February 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #70 - January/February 2012