The Sustainability Of Asia S Debt

This is an open access title available under the terms of a [CC BY 3.0 IGO] License. It is free to read, download and share on Elgaronline.com. Asia has shown the world what success in economic development looks like. From the amazing transformations of Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the other ‘tigers’ in the early 70s, to the more recent takeoffs of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), India, and the leading economies in Southeast Asia, the region has prospered at a startling pace. Technologies were adopted, productivity raised, and export markets conquered. Billions were lifted out of poverty. What was once a backwater is now a global engine of growth.

This thought-provoking book investigates the anatomy and dynamics of debt accumulation in Asia, both before and after the Covid-19 pandemic. Well-renowned contributors provide an in-depth review of the debt accumulated by both public and private sectors and examine how sustainable this is now and will be in the future.

Addressing the Global Financial Crisis required fiscal intervention on a substantial scale by governments around the world. The consequent build up of public debt, in particular its sustainability, have moved centre stage in the policy debate. If the Asia Pacific region is to continue to serve as an engine for global growth its public debt must be sustainable. The book addresses this issue for Asia Pacific as a whole as well as for three of the most dynamic economies in the region: China, India and Vietnam. The book begins with a discussion of the reasons why there is increased attention on debt related issues and outline the contents of the volume. The book also includes fiscal indicators for Developing Member Countries (DMCs) as categorized by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Debt sustainability for these countries is assessed through extant approaches and with the most updated data sources. It also surveys the extant literature on debt sustainability, outlining the main issues related to debt sustainability and discusses the key implications for the application of debt sustainability analysis in developing Asia. The book highlights the importance of doing individual country studies in view of wide variations in definitions of public expenditure, revenues, contingent liabilities, government structures (e.g. federal), and the like as well as in the impact of debt on interest rates. It provides in-depth debt sustainability analyses of China, India and Vietnam. The book is a comprehensive analytical and empirical update of the sustainability public debt in developing Asia. It breakes new ground in that various characteristics of the sustainability that have not yet been explored in the literature which, nevertheless, are crucial to understanding it. As a consequence, the policy analysis is based on firmer footings than in the extant literature and should prove useful to graduate students, researchers as well as policymakers.

One of the main value additions of the Survey 2023 is a proposal for an augmented Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA) approach that duly incorporates SDG investment needs, potential socioeconomic and environmental gains, government's structural policies that go beyond financial considerations, and government's resource mobilization strategies and financial capacity. The Survey 2023 also provides new insights on how to prevent potential public debt crises and resolve public debt distress in order to effectively pursue the SDGs. For example, in prevention of public debt crisis, governments will need to explore unconventional policy measures such as leveraging the potential of non-tax policy measures and public assets. In resolving public debt distress governments might need to bring the rising number of commercial debt creditors into discussions with the existing institutional investors, while fundamental policy actions to enhance fiscal resources are still needed, governments will also need to explore unconventional policy measures, such as leveraging the potential of non-tax policy measures and public assets amid rising public indebtedness. In resolving public debt distress, while the emergence of commercial creditors brings new opportunities as many of them are increasingly mindful about the importance of sustainable development, their participation in the existing global debt architecture is virtually missing. At the same time, several unconventional, SDG-aligned debt relief modalities have recently been proposed. Amid these and other changes in the global and Asia-Pacific debt landscapes and rising public indebtedness in the region, it is time to rethink public debt issues in support of the SDGs.

This book examines key issues and policy concerns relating to fiscal sustainability and competitiveness in European and Asian economies. In addition to estimating the extent of fiscal capacity or lack thereof for these economies, the authors supplement the empirical analysis with country case studies.

The global economy has experienced four waves of rapid debt accumulation over the past 50 years. The first three debt waves ended with financial crises in many emerging market and developing economies. During the current wave, which started in 2010, the increase in debt in these economies has already been larger, faster, and broader-based than in the previous three waves. Current low interest rates mitigate some of the risks associated with high debt. However, emerging market and developing economies are also confronted by weak growth prospects, mounting vulnerabilities, and elevated global risks. A menu of policy options is available to reduce the likelihood that the current debt wave will end in crisis and, if crises do take place, will alleviate their impact.

Sustainable and inclusive growth in emerging Asian economies requires high levels of public investment in areas such as infrastructure, education, health, and social services. The increasing complexity and regional diversity of these investment needs, together with the trend of democratization, has led to fiscal decentralization being implemented in many Asian economies. This book takes stock of some major issues regarding fiscal decentralization, including expenditure and revenue assignments, transfer programs, and sustainability of local government finances, and develops important findings and policy recommendations.