It has been almost 5 years since the Global Financial Crisis began to unfold in 2007. We are supposedly now living in the "New Normal", whatever that means. There remains much gnashing of teeth and wringing of hands about the stuck-in-the-mud Western economies compared to the the much celebrated recovery of the Asian economies post-crisis. However, on closer examination, I fear that the dynamism of the Asian economies may be over-generalised.

First, let's examine exports, which is what Asia is largely about. The attached chart shows monthly exports in US$, indexed to 100 in Jan 2007.

David Fuller's view I think subscribers will be interested in Bernard Tan's graphics, tables and conclusions.