Europe's debt crisis poses little risk to Asia: UN

Asia-Pacific economies face little risk of being dragged down by Europe's debt crisis but authorities in the region must remain vigilant to potential risks, a senior UN economist said Wednesday. "The likelihood of contagion is very, very limited," said Nagesh Kumar, chief economist of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
The region has strong macroeconomic fundamentals and prudent financial and banking sector regulations, he noted. "So far the European debt crisis has not had any major significant contagion on the Asia-Pacific region," Kumar told reporters at the launch of an update of its regional economic and social survey. The UN agency said, however, that in the worst-case scenario of one or more simultaneous sovereign debt defaults in Europe, Asia-Pacific economies would be unlikely to escape unscathed.