By BERNAMA / Pic By BLOOMBERG

HANOI • Growth in the Asean-5 countries namely Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam are expected to stabilise at around 5.3% this year as domestic demand remains healthy and exports continue to recover, Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported, citing the latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The IMF kept the projected global growth at 3.9% for 2018 and next year as in the April 2018 WEO, but noted that the expansion is becoming less even and risks to the outlook are mounting.

It said the rate of expansion appears to have peaked in some major economies and growth has become less synchronised.

The WEO forecast the US economy will expand by 2.9% in 2018 and 2.7% in 2019. It also revised down growth of the eurozone economy, Japan and the UK at 2.2%, 1% and 1.4% respectively, lower than the previous forecasts of 2.4%, 1.2% and 1.6%.

Among emerging market and developing economies, growth prospects are also becoming more uneven amid rising oil prices, escalating trade tensions and market pressures on the currencies of some economies with weaker fundamentals.

Emerging and developing Asia is expected to maintain its robust performance, growing at 6.5% in 2018 and 2019.

Growth in China is projected to moderate from 6.9% in 2017 to 6.6% in 2018 and 6.4% in 2019, as regulatory tightening of the financial sector takes hold and external demand soften.