Much of Asia can't ignore the US yet

Decoupling fans can't be happy. Those clinging to the idea that Asia separated its fortunes from the US have to be sobered by China's latest growth figures. Gross domestic product grew 10.1 per cent in the second quarter from a year earlier, down from 11.9 per cent for all of 2007. That's still the kind of growth that economies such as the US' can only dream about. Yet global developments may prove dangerous for a nation that needs to create millions of jobs to keep people from protesting on Tiananmen Square. The breakdown of China's GDP data may be a harbinger of a difficult year ahead. Observers are offering a balanced take on things. "The global slowdown has dented external demand, while faster yuan appreciation, higher wages and rising raw material costs have eroded China's export competitiveness," says Jing Ulrich,... [read full story]