Developing Asia to grow by 5.2 pct in 2022: ADB

MANILA, April 6 (Xinhua) -- Developing Asia's economy is forecast to grow by 5.2 percent this year and 5.3 percent in 2023, according to an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report released on Wednesday.

The Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2022, the Manila-based bank's flagship annual economic publication, says gross domestic product (GDP) in the region will expand "on continued recovery in domestic demand and solid exports."

In 2021, developing Asia's economy rebounded by 6.9 percent, but the report says the recovery is still "largely incomplete in most regions."

The report predicts inflation to rise to 3.7 percent in 2022 and 3.1 percent in 2023 as the economic recovery continues and energy, commodity prices remain elevated. It warns that rising inflationary pressures and supply disruptions are intensifying global uncertainty.

The report says the pace of recovery varies across the sub-regions. South Asia's growth will lead the region with 7.0 percent in 2022, followed by Southeast Asia with 4.9 percent and East Asia with 4.7 percent.

In a virtual press conference, ADB chief economist Albert Park said the Ukraine-Russia conflict has "heightened uncertainties and ratted commodity and financial markets amid the global pandemic."

Park cited risks, including escalation of the ongoing conflict, financial instability triggered by the U.S. Federal Reserve's aggressive tightening, and emergence of more lethal COVID-19 variants. "Several downside risks cloud the region's outlook," Park said.