US, European Economic Weakness Blamed for Disappointing Asian Figures

Posted November 10th, 2011 at 3:25 am (UTC-5)
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Sagging demand in the United States and Europe is being blamed for a wave of disappointing economic figures from across East Asia Thursday.

China reported a sharp drop in exports, while Japan reported a sharper-than-expected drop in core machinery orders — a leading indicator of corporate spending. Australia, meanwhile, said foreign tourist arrivals are down sharply from this time last year.

The reports come just a day after International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde warned in Beijing that Asia is “not immune” from the risk of a downward economic spiral that the rest of the world is facing.

China said Thursday its exports in October were almost 16 percent higher than in the same month a year ago, but down more than $11 billion from September. Reduced exports to the United States and the European Union accounted for almost half of the decline.

Analysts said the drop was caused by a combination of turbulence overseas and inflation-fighting tight money policies at home.

Japan, meanwhile, said core machinery orders in September were down by 8.2 percent from the previous month, indicating that companies are scaling back their spending plans. Analysts blamed the drop on a combination of a strong yen and weak overseas demand.

In Australia, weak foreign economies and a strong Australian currency were blamed for a 9 percent drop in September tourist arrivals compared to the same month last year. Tourism industry officials were quoted saying their sector, a major source of employment, is in a state of crisis.