The World Bank has raised its 2026 growth forecast for the East Asia and Pacific region to 4.5%, an increase of 0.3 percentage points. This improvement is largely driven by exports of AI-related hardware, such as chips and data center components.
Vietnam saw the most significant upward revision, with growth expectations rising to 7.4%. Forecasts for Malaysia and Thailand also increased by 0.7 percentage points, reaching 5.1% and 2.0% respectively. Meanwhile, China’s growth is projected at 4.4%.
Over 70% of export growth in Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam is tied to AI products. The World Bank warns that this heavy reliance creates risks if global AI spending slows down. Other threats include high energy prices and agricultural damage.
The ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) maintained a 4.1% growth outlook for its region. AMRO noted that a potential decline in AI-related activity could reduce growth by up to 1.5 percentage points.
