India, China and Asean — Competing, complementing, cooperating

Accounting for half the world's population but less than a tenth of global income, China, Asean and India are the emerging economic powerhouses. But India has a lot of catching up to do, both in matters economic and social. Mohan Guruswamy mak es a statistical analysis of the three regions.

INDIA, China and South-East Asia together account for nearly half of the world's population (47 per cent). Yet, this region accounts for less than a tenth of the world's income (7.8 per cent). Countries of the South-East Asian region (or the Association of South East Asian Nations — Asean) and China are, however, twice as rich as India in per capita terms.

   While India's per capita income is $530, for Asean and China it is $1264 and $1100 respectively. However, in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms, India outperforms Asean with a per capita income of $2880, while the latter's is $2014. This probably explains why we in India prefer to state our income in PPP terms. However, it is important not to generalise the economic situation in Asean. Like India and China, Asean masks a vast diversity of incomes. Cambodia and Laos are no better than Bihar or UP, or many parts of interior China. Delhi, Bombay and Shanghai have profiles nearer to that of Singapore and Hong Kong.

   The disparity in incomes is glaring. While six out of 10 countries in Asean have a per capita income of less than $1000, four countries have over $2200. Singapore and Brunei are, in fact, at par with developed countries with per capita incomes of $21,500 and $13,500 respectively.