Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Senior business leaders attended a high-level roundtable discussion at Asia House today to explore the themes emerging from HSBC’s latest research on international trade.
Figures from organisations including Alibaba, Arup, KPMG, and HSBC discussed ‘Navigator: Now, next and how for business’ at the roundtable, chaired by Michael Lawrence, Chief Executive of Asia House.
The discussion covered data localisation, trade in services, e-commerce channels as an opportunity and a risk, US trade policy, and investment prospects across the Asia-Pacific.
The Navigator report, prepared by HSBC, reveals that 77 per cent of firms globally are optimistic about cross-border business growth in the next 12 months. However, 61 per cent of firms think governments are becoming more protective of their domestic economies.
The Asia-Pacific has the most positive outlook, the report found, with 82 per cent of firms in the region expressing optimism for growth in cross-border business. However, 68 per cent of firms in the region said they viewed governments as becoming more protectionist, second only to the Middle East and North Africa region, where 70 per cent of firms expressed the same view.
Average annual trade growth in the Asia-Pacific is projected to be +7 per cent in goods and +8 per cent in services between 2020 – 2030, the Navigator report predicts.
The Asia-Pacific accounted for approximately one-third of world merchandise trade in 2017, and this is projected to rise to 37 per cent by 2030.
