Asia Regional Integration Center

Trade Indicators

Note: Total trade data are sourced from the International Monetary Fund Direction of Trade Statistics (DOTS), except data for Taipei,China which are sourced from the CEIC Data. Total trade data are available for ADB regional member economies except Bhutan, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Timor-Leste, and Tuvalu. The commodity trade data are from the United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics (UN Comtrade) Online Database. They are based on the Harmonized System (HS) 1996 classification. Data availability varies across economies. Download data availability matrix.

• Export growth is the percentage change in the value of exports relative to the previous year.

  Export intensity indexis the ratio of a trading partner’s share to a country/region’s total exports and the share of world exports going to the sametrading partner. It is calculated as:

  

  where x_ij is the dollar value of exports of country/region i to country/region j, X_iw is the dollar value of the exports of country/region i to the world, x_wj is the dollar value of world exports to country/region j, and X_ww is the dollar value of world exports. An index of more than one indicates that trade flow between countries/regions is larger than expected given their importance in world trade.

  Export share is the percentage of exports going to a partner to total exports of a country/region. It is computed as the dollar value of exports of country/region i to country/region j expressed as a percentage share of the dollar value of exports of country/region i to the world. A higher share indicates a higher degree of integration between partner countries/regions.

  Import growth is the percentage change in the value of imports relative to the previous year.

  Import share is the percentage of imports from a partner to total imports of a country/region. It is computed as dollar value of imports of country/region i from country/region j expressed as a percentage share of the dollar value of imports of country/region i from the world. A higher share indicates a higher degree of integration between partner countries/regions.

  Intra-regional trade intensity index is the ratio of intra-regional trade share to the share of world trade with the region, calculated using trade data. It is computed as:

  

  where T_ii is exports of region i to region i plus imports of region i from region i; T_i is total exports of region i to the world plus total imports of region i from the world; and T_w is total world exports plus imports. It determines whether trade within the region is greater or smaller than should be expected on the basis of the region's importance in world trade. An index of more than one indicates that trade flow within the region is larger than expected given the importance of the region in world trade.
  ( Last update : 31 Oct 2013 )

  Intra-regional trade share is the percentage of intra-regional trade to total trade of the region, calculated using trade data. It is calculated as:

  

  where T_ii is exports of region i to region i plus imports of region i from region i and T_i is total exports of region i to the world plus total imports of region i from the world. A higher share indicates a higher degree of dependency on regional trade. ( Last update : 31 Oct 2013 )

  Total trade is the sum of the value of exports and imports.

  Trade growth is the percentage change in the value of total trade relative to the previous year.

  Trade intensity index is the ratio of a trading partner’s share to a country/region’s total trade and the share of world trade with the same trading partner. It is calculated as:

  

  where t_ij is the dollar value of total trade of country/region i with country/region j, T_iw is the dollar value of the total trade of country/region i with the world, t_wj is the dollar value of world trade with country/region j, and T_ww is the dollar value of world trade. An index of more than one indicates that trade flow between countries/regions is larger than expected given their importance in world trade.

  Trade share is the percentage of trade with a partner to total trade of an economy/region. 'Trade' is the sum of imports and exports.

  Trade openness is measured by total trade of an economy expressed as a percentage of nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in dollars. A higher value indicates a more open economy.

Foreign Direct Investment Indicators

Notes: FDI flows in the host economy by geographic origin are sourced from United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Bilateral FDI Statistics. However, UNCTAD’s Bilateral FDI Statistics is only available up to 2014. FDI inflows data from national sources, ASEANstats Database from Association of Southeast Asian Nations Secretariat, Eurostat Balance of Payments Database were also used. Total FDI inflows data from world for each country are from UNCTAD World Investment Report Statistical Annex. Inward Direct Investment Position data are from the International Monetary Fund Coordinated Direct Investment Survey (CDIS). Reporter country pertains to the host economy (recipient or destination) of FDI while partner country pertains to the home economy (investor or source) of FDI.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) refers to the category of international investment that reflects the objective of a resident entity in one economy obtaining a lasting interest in an enterprise resident in another economy. A 10 percent ownership of control qualifies as direct investment. Some economies may allow for subjective qualifications, but most foreign direct investment enterprises are branches or subsidiaries that are wholly or majority owned by the nonresident, and borderline cases are likely to be few. Components of direct investment capital transactions are recorded primarily on a directional basis (i.e., resident investment abroad, nonresident investment in the recording economy). Subcomponents of direct investment are equity capital, reinvested earnings, and other capital related to intercompany debt. FDI flows with a negative sign indicate that at least one of the three subcomponents is negative and not offset by positive amounts of the remaining components. These are instances of reverse investment or disinvestment. Inward FDI stock in the reporting economy is the value of capital and reserves (including retained profits) attributable to a parent enterprise resident in a different economy, plus the net indebtedness of affiliates to the parent enterprise. In concept, market price is the basis for the valuation of flows and stocks, but in practice, book value or historical cost is used, reflecting prices at the time when the investment was made. The standard for reporting FDI is the Balance of Payments (BOP) Manual 5th edition and 6th edition starting 2014. Please refer also to the UNCTAD website for FDI definitions, sources, methods, and practices.

• Inward FDI flows are foreign capital reported as balance-of-payments net inflows. Data is available from 2001 for 47 regional members of ADB except for Nauru.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) share is the percentage of regional FDI inflows to total FDI from the investing region. Data is available from 1995 at the earliest for 26 regional member countries. A higher share indicates a stronger preference for the region and a higher degree of integration.

Inward Direct Investment Position refers to the value of outstanding positions by immediate direct investor, broken down by counterpart economy, and between equity and debt instruments. It is a stock data. Direct investment arises when a unit resident in one economy makes an investment that gives control or a significant degree of influence on the management of an enterprise that is resident in another economy. Data in the CDIS are recorded by economy based on the location of the immediate counterpart economy relative to a direct investment position. Please see CDIS Guide for more information. Data is available from 2009.

Money and Finance Indicators

Note: Annual rates are computed as the average of daily rates. Data for bond, lending and money market rates; and stock market returns are sourced from Bloomberg. Download data availability matrix.

• Bond Market Rates
  Bond market rates are yields for domestic 10-year sovereign bonds. Data are available for Australia; Hong Kong, China; India; Indonesia; Japan; the Republic of Korea; Malaysia; New Zealand; Pakistan; the Philippines; Singapore; Taipei,China; and Thailand.

  • Bond market rate correlation is a pair-wise measure of co-movement in the bond markets. Rates are available for 13 economies and the correlations are given as single data points for each year. A higher correlation indicates a higher degree of integration in the markets.

    Bond market rate differential is the difference in the bond market rates between two economies. The smaller the difference, the more integrated the financial markets are in the two economies.

  Lending Market Rates
  Lending market rates are prime rates or equivalent short-term corporate lending rates. Data are available for the People’s Republic of China; Hong Kong, China; India; Indonesia; Japan; the Republic of Korea; Malaysia; the Philippines; Singapore; Taipei,China; and Thailand.

  • Lending market rate correlation is a pair-wise measure of co-movement in the lending markets. Rates are available for 11 economies and the correlations are given as single data points each year. A higher correlation indicates a higher degree of integration in the markets.

    Lending market rate differential is a pair-wise measure of convergence. It is the difference between the rates in two lending markets. Rates are available for 11 economies. A lower differential indicates a higher degree of convergence.

  Money Market Rates
  Money market rates are three-month interbank offer rates or equivalent money market rates. Data are available for Australia; the People’s Republic of China; Hong Kong, China; India; Indonesia; Japan; Kazakhstan; the Republic of Korea; Malaysia; New Zealand; Pakistan; the Philippines; Singapore; Sri Lanka; Taipei,China; and Thailand.

  • Money market rate correlation is a pair-wise measure of co-movement in the money markets. Rates are available for 16 economies and the correlations are given as single data points for each year. A higher correlation indicates a higher degree of integration in the markets.

    Money market rate differential is a pair-wise measure of convergence. It is the difference between the rates in two money markets. Rates are available for 16 economies. A lower differential indicates a higher degree of convergence.

  Stock Market Returns
  Stock market returns are computed as year-on-year percent change of daily stock price indices. Data are available for Australia; Bangladesh; the People’s Republic of China; Hong Kong, China; India; Indonesia; Japan; the Republic of Korea; Malaysia; New Zealand; Pakistan; the Philippines; Singapore; Sri Lanka; Taipei,China; and Thailand.

  • Stock market returns correlation is a pair-wise measure of co-movement in the stock markets. Stock price indices are available for 16 economies and the correlations are given as single data points each year. Please see sources for stock market returns. A higher correlation indicates a higher degree of integration in the markets.

  Coefficient of Variation
  Coefficient of variation is a measure of dispersion calculated as the standard deviation normalized by the mean. The formula for standard deviation is:

  

  where x is the observation, x is the mean or average, and n is the number of observations.

  • Coefficient of variation of bond market rates measures the dispersion of bond market rates as the standard deviation divided by the mean. A lower coefficient indicates a higher degree of convergence of rates in the markets. It is calculated for NIEs-4, East Asia,Asia, ASEAN, ASEAN+3, Emerging East Asia-14, East Asia-15, SAARC, and Southeast Asia. See list for Integration Indicators groupings

    Coefficient of variation of lending market rates measures the dispersion of lending market rates calculated as the standard deviation divided by the mean. A lower coefficient indicates a higher degree of convergence of rates in the regions?markets.It is calculated for NIEs-4, East Asia,Asia, ASEAN, ASEAN+3, Emerging East Asia-14, East Asia-15, SAARC, and Southeast Asia. See list for Integration Indicators groupings

    Coefficient of variation of money market rates measures the dispersion of money market rates calculated as the standard deviation divided by the mean. A lower coefficient indicates a higher degree of convergence of rates in the regions?markets. It is calculated for NIEs-4, East Asia,Asia, ASEAN, ASEAN+3, Emerging East Asia-14, East Asia-15, SAARC, and Southeast Asia. See list for Integration Indicators groupings

  Portfolio Investment Assets
  Portfolio investment assets data are sourced from the International Monetary Fund Coordinated Portfolio Investment Survey (CPIS). The survey covers 71 participants including 14 ADB regional member economies, namely Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vanuatu.

  • Total portfolio investment assets are the holdings of portfolio securities issued by non-residents reported by economies participating in the IMF Coordinated Portfolio Investment Survey. A higher volume of regional portfolio investment indicates greater financial accessibility and integration in the region.

    Portfolio share is the percentage of intra-regional portfolio assets to total portfolio assets held by economies in the region. A higher share indicates a higher degree of integration.

    Portfolio investment assets: equity securities cover instruments that give the holder ownership claim on the residual value of enterprises. A higher volume of regional portfolio investment indicates greater financial accessibility and integration in the region.

    Portfolio investment assets: debt securities cover instruments that give the holder the right to a fixed money income. A higher volume of regional portfolio investment indicates greater financial accessibility and integration in the region.

    Portfolio investment assets: long-term debt securities cover instruments such as bonds, debentures, and notes that give the holder the right to a fixed money income and have an original term to maturity of more than one year. A higher volume of regional portfolio investment indicates greater financial accessibility and integration in the region.

    Portfolio investment assets: short-term debt securities cover instruments that give the holder the right to a fixed sum of money on a specified date and have an original term to maturity of one year or less. A higher volume of regional portfolio investment indicates greater financial accessibility and integration in the region.

  International Debt Securities
  International debt securities outstanding by residence of issuer are sourced from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Securities Statistics. Data obtained are for December of each year.

  • International debt securities by residence of issuer are the amounts of outstanding debt securities in dollars issued internationally by residents of an economy, as reported in the Bank for International Settlements Statistics. It is a measure of the degree of financial openness of an economy. A higher amount of financing tapped from the international markets is indicative of greater financial openness.

Movement of People Indicators

Migration

According to the United Nation’s International Organization for Migration, the term “migrant” is an umbrella term and is not defined under international law. For the purpose of collecting data on migration, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) defines “international migrant” as “any person who changes his or her country of usual residence” (UN DESA, Recommendations on Statistics of International Migration, Revision 1 (1998) para. 32). The UN DESA definition excludes movements that are due to “recreation, holiday, visits to friends and relatives, business, medical treatment or religious pilgrimages” (ibid.). Please refer to the United Nations website on migration for an overview of the issue of migration and the International Organization for Migration website for key migration terms.

• Inbound Migrants per Thousand Population refers to the number of inbound international migrants to a country/subregion/region/group for every thousand population of the country/subregion/region/group. Data is available every five years from 1990 to 2020.

• Outbound Migrants per Thousand Population refers to the number of outbound international migrants to a country/subregion/region/group for every thousand population of the country/subregion/region/group. Data is available every five years from 1990 to 2020.

• Outbound Migration Share is computed as: (the number of outbound migrants from economy i to a given destination, economy j) divided by (the number of outbound migrants from economy i to the World).

Remittances

Remittances refer to the sum of the following: (i) workers’ remittances which are recorded as current transfers under the current account of the IMF’s Balance of Payments (BOP); (ii) compensation of employees which includes wages, salaries, and other benefits of border, seasonal, and other nonresident workers and which are recorded under the “income” subcategory of the current account; and (iii) migrants’ transfers which are reported under capital transfers in the BOP’s capital account. Transfers through informal channels are excluded.

• Remittance inflows as % of GDP refers to the ratio of the total remittance inflow received by a country to its GDP.

• Remittance inflows per capita refers to the ratio of the total remittance inflow received by a country to its population.

• Remittances Inflow Share is computed as: (the remittances received by economy i from a given source, economy i) divided by (the total remittances received by economy i from the World).

• Remittances Inflow Growth is computed as the year-on-year growth of remittances received by economy i from a given source.

Tourism

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (WTO) defines tourism as a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes. These people are called visitors (which may be either tourists (overnight visitors) or excursionists (same-day visitors); residents or non-residents) and tourism has to do with their activities, some of which involve tourism expenditure.

WTO defines outbound tourism as the activities of a resident visitor outside the country of reference as part of an outbound tourism trip. Reporter country refers to the source country of outbound tourists. Partner country refers to the destination country of outbound tourists.

The World Bank defines international tourism receipts as expenditures by international inbound visitors, including payments to national carriers for international transport. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

• Tourism receipts as % of GDP refers to the ratio of international tourism receipts of a country to its GDP.

• Tourism receipts per capita refers to the ratio of international tourism receipts of a country to its population.

• Outbound tourism as % of population refers to the ratio of the number of outbound tourists from country i to its population.

• Outbound Tourism Share is computed as: (the number of outbound tourists from economy i to destination economy j) divided by the (total number of outbound tourists from economy i to the World).

• Outbound Tourism Growth is the year-on-year growth in the number of outbound tourists from economy i to a given destination, economy j.

• Inbound Tourism Share is computed as: (the number of inbound tourists to economy i from a given source economy j) divided by the (total number of inbound tourists to economy i from the World).

• Inbound Tourism Growth is the year-on-year growth in the number of inbound tourists to economy i from a given source, economy j.