This book undertakes rigorous empirical research on competitiveness of the sub-national economies of India. One of the cornerstones of Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI)'s research strategies is to factor in the diversity of sub-national economies in a large and diverse country like India and undertake rigorous research that will inform policymakers in these economies. ACI's competitiveness framework computes rankings for all the sub-national economies of India by accounting for a plethora of socio-economic development indicators that determine competitiveness.Into its fourth edition, this book entitled 2016 Annual Competitiveness and Growth Slowdown Analysis for Sub-National Economies of India presents our annual update of competitiveness analysis of India's sub-national economies. ACI's competitiveness analysis employs 75 different indicators across four different environments to capture the dynamics of competitiveness in a holistic way at the sub-national level. The book also has a What-if competitiveness simulation exercise to identify the specific policy areas that each sub-national economy must focus on to improve its rankings.Further to an analysis of competitiveness, the book delves deeper into understanding the dynamics of economic growth of the various sub-national economies in India, which is a significant value-addition to the related literature as the book has a comprehensive and dedicated discussion on the prospects of and determinants of growth slowdown at the sub-national level.

The book 2016 Annual Competitiveness Analysis and Growth Slowdown Analysis for ASEAN-10 begins by presenting the insights of Mr George Yeo, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore, who provides a thoughtful reflection on identities and their continued relevance for policy-making. It then provides an update to the annual competitiveness analysis for ASEAN-10. Based on a rich dataset of 121 indicators, the study covers four environments of competitiveness: (1) Macroeconomic Stability, (2) Government and Institutional Setting, (3) Financial, Businesses and Manpower Conditions, and (4) Quality of Life and Infrastructure Development. It then presents each economy's strengths and weaknesses, and conducts 'what-if' policy simulations to offer insights into the ASEAN economies. Furthermore, given prevailing worries about ASEAN economies falling into the 'middle-income trap', growth slowdown analysis for the ASEAN economies is conducted. Through income-group specific econometric models, determinants of growth slowdown are identified and predictive probability of slowdown for each ASEAN economy is computed. Finally, progress of economic reforms in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam is evaluated, from which policy implications for these countries' future development are drawn.

This book is an update of the competitiveness rankings for Greater China economies at the sub-national and regional level with the latest available data. The study uses a comprehensive methodology which measures competitiveness across four unique dimensions to provide an in-depth competitiveness analysis for the 34 economies and the five regions of Greater China. It then recommends policy prescriptions which would be relevant to each economy and region based on their specific strengths and weaknesses.Aside from exploring competitiveness, the book also analyses the growth slowdown phenomenon for Greater China economies by income thresholds. This volume is recommended for scholars and researchers interested in China's economic development.

This book is an update of the annual flagship study by the Asia Competitiveness Institute at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore, that dissects Indonesia's sub-national competitiveness at both the provincial level (covering 34 provinces) and the regional level (covering six major island groups). Based on a rich dataset of 100 indicators, the study covers four environments of competitiveness: (1) Macroeconomic Stability, (2) Government and Institutional Setting, (3) Financial, Businesses, and Manpower Conditions, and (4) Quality of Life and Infrastructure Development. It also presents each province and region's comparative strengths and weaknesses, and conducts 'what-if' policy simulations to propose policy suggestions.Aside from exploring competitiveness, the book also features empirical research on the determinants of growth slowdown in Indonesian provinces and its impact on policy implications. It also features the inaugural Ease of Doing Business Index on Attractiveness to Investors, Business Friendliness and Competitive Policies (EDB Index ABC) for Indonesian provinces. Coupled with practical insights and policy implications, this book is a recommended read for policymakers, researchers, and the general audience interested in Indonesia's economic development.

The Chinese economy has been playing an increasingly significant role on the global stage. This book is the sixth annual project of Asia Competitiveness Institute studying competitiveness at the sub-national level of Greater China. ACI's flagship competitiveness study not only adopts a comprehensive framework to measure competitiveness by incorporating 102 indicators under four environments and 11 sub-environments, but is also undertaken at the sub-national level to account for the considerable disparities within a large economy like Greater China. The comparative strengths and weaknesses based on the scores and rankings as well as the what-if simulation analysis can be used to formulate development strategies that are specific and of practical value for each sub-national economy and region.The Shapley methodology adopted by ACI introduces a novel approach for the assignment of weights to the various indicators that constitute competitiveness. This concept has introduced an element of objectivity in terms of the assignment of weights. The findings using the Shapley value also tend to validate the robustness of results obtained from the competitiveness studies over the past years.Moreover, the empirical research featured in this book attempts to understand the drivers of exports of Mainland China provinces, with a specific focus on real effective exchange rate movements and volatility. Nowadays with the international flows of goods and capital becoming ubiquitous and comprising an important aspect of national competitiveness, the role of exchange rate is drawing much more policy attention. In view of this, the research findings presented in this book make an important academic and policy contribution by empirically examining the relationship between exports and exchange rate.Finally, the timing of this publication makes it indispensable to include some dedicated discussions of the trade disputes between the US and China. Several topics would be discussed in this book, including China's protection on Intellectual Property Rights, its violation of World Trade Organisation rules, challenges to its economic growth, the development of its three regional megalopolises, and how to mitigate the impact and ramification of its trade war against the US. This book attempts to identify the growing concerns in the US-China trade tension and provide suggestions for China's development in the future.

This book by the Asia Competitiveness Institute introduces a new ease of doing business index that aims to allow for a better approximation of ease of doing business conditions in India's sub-national economies. The approach takes into account three major aspects of doing business, namely (a) Attractiveness to Investors, (b) Business Friendliness, and (c) Competitive Policies. The bottom-up approach considers the various operational issues that firms face at the ground level, with the emphasis being on de facto issues.The analysis provided in the book not only stands up to academic scrutiny as it is grounded in rigorous methodological foundations, but also remains accessible and appealing to policymakers with the co-authors recommending appropriate policy interventions to improve the ease of doing business of India's sub-national economies.

Indonesia's diverse economic landscape and growing importance in the global and regional stages warrant deeper understanding of the economy at sub-national levels. This book by the Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI) is an update of ACI's annual study of the competitiveness landscape of 34 Indonesian provinces. With 100 indicators covering four environments and 12 sub-environments of competitiveness, the study's unique methodology incorporates comparative strengths and weaknesses, and 'what-if' policy simulations aimed at policy suggestions for each province.This fifth instalment will continue to feature a structure and graphical presentation that offer investors an overview of each province's competitiveness landscape. A novel addition to this update is the chapter co-authored by academics from Indonesian provinces, which details recent developments in 34 provinces of Indonesia. This latest edition also introduces a novel approach of weights assignment in the form of Shapley values as a robustness test to our findings. Additionally, a new appendix has been included which provides a richer visual representation of each province's competitiveness profile. Finally, our study on the impact of exchange rates on foreign direct investment inflows to the provinces of Indonesia is also featured as a chapter in this book.Coupled with practical insights and policy implications, this book is a recommended read for policymakers, researchers, and the general audience interested in Indonesia's economic development.