Asia Regional Integration Center

Economic growth decelerated to 6.3% in FY2018 from 7.9% in FY2017. Despite devastating earthquakes and trade disruptions, growth momentum continued on robust growth in domestic spending. Construction grew by 10.6%, bolstered by government capital spending and accelerated post-earthquake reconstruction. Manufacturing expanded by 8.0%, benefitting from more and better electricity supply. Services increased by 6.6% as tourism increased amid normalized economic activity. GDP should grow by 6.2% in FY2019 and 6.3% in FY2020. Services will remain the key driver of growth, supported by wholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants, and finance. Industrial production should rise as manufacturing firms reach capacity given improvements in existing plants. On the demand side, higher public infrastructure spending, buoyant government recurrent spending, and remittance-driven private consumption will contribute to growth.