Economy

Agricultural and food industries are crucial to Thailand's aim to be the "kitchen of the world", a key government policy. Thailand was the world's 12th largest food exporter last year, with total shipments of 90bn baht (US$2.9bn) according to the National Food Institute. The Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE) expects the value of food exports to exceed 1 trillion baht this year.

French colonists first introduced coffee to Vietnam in 1857. It has become embedded in the local culture ever since. The country is currently the world’s second largest producer and exporter of coffee, after Brazil.

The Union finance ministry expects Indian Economy would grow at least 6% in the current financial year, citing a pickup in investment and rising investor confidence. RBI has projected the Indian economy to grow at 5.7%, which is lower than even some private forecasts.

Recently, Thailand has indicated interest in capturing the opportunities for growing the luxury retail sector via the volume of tourist shoppers and growing local middle class. In a global survey by MasterCard, it was found that Bangkok visitor spending contributed to annual USD 14.4 billion dollars, ranking 4th globally in visitor spending.

“China is a horse and the world, an idea” 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, a major symbol and myth within Chinese civilization that signifies strength and power – and how very apt this is.