The most recent report coordinated by the Asian Development Bank, an organization that attempts to reduce poverty in Asia-Pacific, and the World Bank, had two main focus: comparing purchasing power parity and real expenditure of Asian countries with Western countries. The result can be summerized as thus:
- Brunei is the richest country in Asia, GDP per capita = $34,632, followed by Singapore, Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
- Nepal is the poorest country in Asia, GDP per capita = $788, followed by Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos and India.
- China is above regional average (GDP per capita = $2,621) with GDP per capita = $2,986.
- The GDP per capita gap between rich and poor countries have been widening since 2005.
- Hong Kong residents are the biggest spenders, based on the per capita actual final consumption expenditure index, followed by Taiwan and Brunei.
- Both China and India lagged behind the regional average in consumption.
Do you think that China and India's lack of domestic consumption will affect their growth potential in the long run?
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