Asian economies to regain pre-COVID scale in 2022: JCER

Economists foresee slow recovery in 2021, with vaccines key to progress

Haze over Bangkok, Thailand. Economists have predicted that while ASEAN's biggest economies will start to turn around in 2021, their recovery will be slow. © Reuters

KIYOSHI KUSAKA, Principal economist, Japan Center for Economic Research

December 21, 2020 17:09 JST

Economists expect Asian economies to turn around in 2021 following sharp drops in 2020, but the improvement could be slow as the future course of efforts to contain COVID-19 remains unclear. It is in 2022, not 2021, when these economies will regain pre-pandemic levels, a survey of economists suggests, with the effectiveness and availability of coronavirus vaccines likely to impact the pace of recovery.