Asia Pacific: Economic overview

GDP growth is expected to slow in Japan and China this year, but India’s economy is likely to expand more quickly.

Japan’s GDP is expected to grow by 0.8% this year compared with 0.9% in 2016. The growth is forecast to decline further in 2018, to just 0.5%. Although the projection for 2017 is weak, it nevertheless constitutes a 0.2% improvement from the International Monetary Fund’s previous forecast. Signs of stronger-than-expected growth in exports and manufacturing, as well as the weakening value of the yen, have supported the economic growth outlook. With the likelihood of relatively weak growth during this year and next, the prospects for increases in energy consumption or gas demand are limited. Japan’s demand for gas is expected to fall during the year.