ASIA has maintained stable growth and is expected to lead the world in economic development amid moderate recovery of major economies, said a Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) report yesterday.

The report, titled “Asian Competitiveness Annual Report 2018,” was released at a press conference of the BFA annual conference, which opened yesterday and runs until Wednesday in Boao in China’s southern island province of Hainan. Boao has earned a reputation as Asia’s Davos for its annual Boao Forum for Asia.

The report cited enhanced driving forces of external growth, transformed internal impetus and deepened cooperation among economically integrated markets as major reasons propelling Asia’s future development.

The Asian economy remains one of the major engines driving world economic development, it said.

Trade protectionism cannot secure an everlasting impetus for economic growth, but instead imposes restrictions on the sustainability of economic development, the report said.

Asia’s demand for investment is estimated to surpass US$8 trillion by 2020, according to a separate report, BFA Progress of Asian Economic Integration Annual Report, also released at the press conference. It urged Asian economies to take advantage of the opportunity and work together to create a world-class integrated financial market through reform.

Driven by the Belt and Road Initiative, the Asian economic integration process has accelerated, and their joint implementation of the international market increment strategy will continue to bring more development dividends, according to the Asian competitiveness report.

With Asian economic integration deepened, the potential of such market increments in creating wealth will be continuously unleashed to ensure the related Asian economies further stabilize and develop well, the report said.

More and more Asian economies are transforming their development patterns through innovation, hoping to bring more high value-added benefits via advanced science and technology, it said.

The theme of this year’s four-day Boao Forum is “An Open and Innovative Asia for a World of Greater Prosperity.”

President Xi Jinping will deliver a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of this year’s conference.

Launched in 2001, the forum has always served as a platform to build Asian consensus, promote regional cooperation and advance the continent’s influence on the world stage.

(Xinhua)