INFRASTRUCTURE SPENDING MOST COMMON IN ASIA PACIFIC STIMULUS PACKAGES

KUALA LUMPUR, March 24 (Bernama) -- The most common component of stimulus
packages in the Asia Pacific region is infrastructure spending with the
exceptions being Thailand and Japan.

The other common elements are tax cuts and cash transfers, according to Tine
Olsen, an economist in the Sydney office of Moody's Economy.com.

In a statement here Monday, Olsen said Japan was focusing on fixing its
financial system and supporting consumers.

She said governments in Europe meanwhile were devoting less to
infrastructure except Spain, France and Poland who had allocated more than
half their economic packages to infrastructure.

"The European focus is primarily on tax cuts and transfers. This contrasts
with Asian economies that are focusing on infrastructure because they are still
undergoing economic development, and their small public sector would find it
hard to administer tax cuts and transfers," said Olsen.

She said the Asia Pacific region was in a sense luckier than Europe, since
it was still developing and investment in infrastructure will stimulate the
economy.

"On the other hand, export-oriented Asian economies also have to respond to
a sharper downturn in the current business cycle," she added.
-- BERNAMA