Wake-up Western Europe

Rather than spending their time in fruitless negotiations about the EU budget (sorry US readers this is a moan about Europe) they would have done a lot better to have read the Retail & Consumer Worlds report from PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

The centre of economic gravity in the world today is shifting to the east, towards Eastern Europe and Asia. In Asia, the 3-4 time zones from Mumbai to Shanghai cover over 40% of the world’s population and over 20% of the world’s GDP with a recurrent average growth of 8-9%. Change in this region is taking place at lightening speed. India is fast becoming tomorrow’s hottest destination. Just think: GDP per capita in China doubled from $550 ten years ago to $1,000 now. India’s GDP is currently $560, and in ten years time? Watch India! As far as Eastern Europe (including Turkey) and Russia are concerned, these regions have combined populations of 315 million and an average GDP growth of 5%.

By contrast, in Western Europe, many countries appear not inclined to take on the pain of change: they want to keep things as they are. Western Europeans seem to have adopted a survivor’s defensive mentality, while the people of the new economies are opportunistic, pragmatic and ready for change.

Makes you want to weep. Dick Stroud