STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Friday, 21 September 2012

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13. U.S. Consumers Proving Old Faithful for Asia Exporters: Economy

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-21/u-s-consumers-proving-old-faithful-for-asia-exporters-economy.html



Three years after the global recession blamed in part on debt-fueled U.S. consumption and insufficient Asian spending, Asia’s top three exporters are again finding American consumers a boon as their economies slow.

Japan’s exports to the U.S. jumped 17 percent so far this year from 2011, even as total shipments slumped 0.7 percent, government data showed yesterday. China’s exports are up 10 percent to America in January-through-August, outpacing a 7 percent total gain. South Korean sales to the U.S. climbed 6.1 percent, against a 1.5 percent overall drop.

Rising U.S. demand is proving a cushion as Europe’s crisis curbs a global rebound from the 2009 recession that spurred the Group of 20 nations to commit to rebalancing spending away from the world’s largest economy. The reliance raises risks for Asian exporters should the so-called fiscal cliff of budget tightening curtail American outlays at year-end.

“They are still holding the baton, moving forward,” said Thomas Lam, chief economist at OSK-DMG in Singapore, referring to U.S. consumers. “The idea of rebalancing and moving demand out of the key advanced economies -- particularly the U.S. --and having emerging markets like China and India take that role is a bit far-fetched at this juncture.”