ECX3550 - ECX5550 - Business in Asia

After two rounds of Quantitative Easing (QE) in response to the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, in 2013, the Federal Reserves in the US triggered a "taper tantrum" when it began to wind down its asset purchase program. As a result, emerging markets in Asia suffered sharp capital outflows and currency depreciation at that time, forcing central banks in the region to hike interest rates to protect their capital accounts.

In 2022, to fight with the high inflation, the Federal Reserves began to raise the interest rate and wind down its asset purchase program again.

The Federal Reserve's move to raise interest rates and tighten policy aggressively will hamper the economic recovery in Asia, according to the International Monetary Fund.

The current account surplus and the level of reserves are much higher among Asian countries this time compared to 2013 during the so-called "taper tantrum," said Changyong Rhee, director of the Asia and Pacific department at the IMF.

However, he warned the higher debt burden is a problem for the region.

"Overall, the debt has increased quite significantly after the global financial crisis. Around 2007, Asia accounted for about 27% of the global debt. Now in 2021, Asia accounted for almost 40% of global debt," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia" on Wednesday.

A. What is "Taper Tantrum"? Why could "Taper Tantrum" cause Asian economies to suffer from sharp capital outflows and currency depreciation?

B. According to IMF, The current account surplus and the level of reserves are much higher among Asian countries this time compared to 2013 - which put Asian countries in a better positioned to defend themselves against the recent Federal Reserves' rate hiking and asset purchase wind down. Explain the economic reasoning of this argument.

C. Meanwhile, higher debt is a problem for most Asian counties. Explain why the higher debt could make Asian countries more vulnerable to Federal Reserves' monetary policy.