·
Seasonally unadjusted
GDP data are available for the third quarter for Taiwan and
Singapore. The year-over-year increase in real Taiwanese GDP in
the third quarter was 4.4% while the nominal increase was 3.5% implying
a decline in the deflator. While most other countries in the Asian
Pacific region--even Japan--have seen a reversal of price trends from
declines to modest increases, Taiwan is still experiencing
declines. The year-over-year change in the deflator for Taiwan is
compared with that of Singapore in the first chart. While both
countries show considerable variation in the year-over-year changes in
the deflators, there is a clear downward trend in the Taiwan data and a
slight upward trend in the Singapore data.
·
Real growth in Taiwan increased 4.4%
in the third quarter. So far this year growth has been steady at
around the 4 plus percent level. Growth in Singapore, on the other
hand, has declined over the year from 10.7% in the first quarter to 8.2%
in the second and 7.2% in the third. The year-over-year growth in
real GDP for the two countries is shown in the second chart. 
· Taiwan and, particularly, Singapore are two of the smaller nations of the Pacific Rim. In dollar terms, the GDP of Taiwan is currently about $88 billion and Singapore, $33 billion, compared to Japan's $1.1 trillion. They have been, however, among the faster growing nations in the East.