Speaking at the end of a three-day conference in Yokohama, Japanese president Shinzo Abe said Africa will be an engine for world growth in the coming decades and Japan has to invest more heavily in the continent. The fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development finished its three-day meeting in Yokohama on Monday. The TICAD, held every five years, was started in 1993 at the initiative of Japan as a forum for African leaders to discuss Africa’s economic development and the shape of assistance to the continent. Some 50 African leaders attended this year’s conference, as did Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Japan pledged $32bn (£21bn) in aid to Africa, including money to tackle militant Islamists. Japan appears to be worried how its rival China is gaining more and more influence in the African region. “Africa will be a growth centre over the next couple of decades until the middle of this century… now is the time for us to invest in Africa,” Mr Abe said at the end of the conference co-hosted with the African Union (AU), World Bank and UN.
“Japan will not simply bring natural resources from Africa to Japan. We want to realise industrialisation in Africa that will generate employment and growth.” Critics repeatedly accuse China of simply making a grab for resources in Africa, but it denies the charge. It says it has invested heavily in building infrastructure on the continent. Japan’s five-year aid package includes spending in the public and private sectors to create jobs and develop infrastructure.
America still imports more than it exports
The US economy’s overall trade deficit widened to $40.3 billion in April, as imports climbed 2.4% whilst exports rose 1.2%. The Commerce Department said on Tuesday that the trade gap therefore rose by 8.5% – as demand for foreign cars and mobile phones, especially from China, outpaced growth in US exports. Notably, the trade deficit with China alone ballooned to $24.1 billion.
Economists also explained that Europe’s recession continues to be a problem for US companies. The deficit with the 27-nation European Union grew, as US exports to the region declined by 7.9%. The Institute for Supply Management also said Monday that its index of manufacturing activity fell to 49 last month from 50.7 in April – the lowest reading since June 2009 and the first time the index had slipped below 50 since November. A reading under 50 indicates contraction in manufacturing. However, so far this year the deficit is running at an annual rate of $491.9 billion, down 8% from the revised annual deficit of $534.7 billion for 2012. Furthermore, the US economy grew at an annual rate of 2.4% in the January-March quarter. Many economists fear that growth is slowing in the April-June quarter to an annual rate of around 2%.
China to develop London’s third financial district
The currently derelict 35 acre industrial site at London’s Royal Albert Dock, is to be given a new lease of life when Chinese developers build a new top of the range business park aimed at Asian firms looking for a European base. It is expected that 70% of the $1.5 billion complex will be sold to Asian businesses. London Mayor Boris Johnson earlier commented saying “Creating a third financial district in the capital, this development will act as a beacon for eastern investors looking west, bringing with it tens of thousands of jobs and billions of pounds of investment for the UK economy.”
The scheme is the first project outside China for developers ABP, which has built a 15 million sq ft business park in southwest Beijing and is building two others in the coastal city of Qingdao and Shenyang in northeast China. It is targeting Chinese and Asian businesses looking to set up in Europe, believing this will provide a strong source of demand at a time when many European and American firms are shelving office moves against a shaky economic backdrop.
ABP has yet to sign up tenants for the scheme but has seen strong interest from Chinese firms looking to take space, ABP’s chairman, Xu Weiping, said. The Royal Albert Dock, which opened in 1880, was once Britain’s largest and is one of three docks in east London which the mayor has pegged for economic regeneration.