Asian countries dominate new Growth Markets Index

Asian countries dominate a new global index released by risk analysis firm Maplecroft, which identifies markets with the best growth prospects for business in the next two decades.

Extraordinary GDP growth and the size of current and future markets in China and India see them ranked first and second respectively. However, other BRIC nations, Brazil (6th) and Russia (11th), didn’t score so well.

Maplecroft’s Growth Markets Index provides an evaluation of economic performance, investment conduciveness, recent structural reforms and projected future demographic trends, including growth of middle class consumers. Each country is assessed against a selection of key indicators to evaluate whether its economy is likely to outperform in the future.

Developing nations also fared well in the new Index. Tanzania (12th), Peru (15th), Uzbekistan (20th), Ethiopia (21st), Iraq (22nd), Ghana (24th), Morocco (28th) and Uganda (30th) were all listed in the top 30 markets with the best growth prospects during the next two decades, suggesting investors could see significant gains there in the medium-to-long-term.

The Index predicts East and South-East Asia are likely to remain the regions with the best performing economies. It also notes that promising signs coming out of Latin America, including good measures of human capital and infrastructure readiness.