China and ASEAN remain the two major centers of trade in goods in the Asia-Pacific region(2)

Even in the face of the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the pace of Asia-Pacific economic integration has not stopped. On January 1, 2022, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) came into effect, marking the launch of the world's most populous and largest free trade zone in terms of economic and trade scale. Whether it is economic recovery or institutional building, the Asia-Pacific region provides new impetus to the world. With the gradual entry into force of RCEP, tariff barriers and non-tariff barriers in the region will be significantly reduced, and Asian economies, RCEP countries and CPTPP countries will continue to increase their dependence on Asia for trade in goods.

In addition, the "Report" also pointed out that financial integration is an important part of Asian regional integration and economic and trade integration. The process of financial integration of Asian economies will help all economies work together to deal with international challenges and jointly maintain regional and global financial stability. The growth rate of foreign investment in Asian economies in 2020 is 18.40%, which is 4% higher than the growth rate in 2019, indicating that the Asian financial market remains relatively attractive during the epidemic. Japan is the only Asian economy among the top 10 economies by global portfolio investment. China is one of the major economies with the fastest portfolio growth (both outflows and inflows) in recent years.

The "Report" believes that in general, the Asian economy will still be in the process of recovery in 2022, but the growth rate may converge. The development of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the geopolitical situation after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the rhythm and intensity of monetary policy adjustment in the United States and Europe, the debt problems of some countries, the supply of key primary products, and the change of government in some countries will become the key factors affecting Asian economic growth.