As the world economy recovers, developing countries will need to rely on
international markets – including dynamic emerging markets – as a source of
demand to revitalize economic growth. Despite recent calls to reconsider the
merits of openness, trade integration remains key to economic growth. It is
well known that China and other emerging markets, which account for over 40
percent of the world’s population, are growing at an unprecedented pace, pulling
much of Asia and the rest of the world with them. East Asia has become the
third most integrated region in the world after North America and the European
Union. South-South trade expansion is helping to drive global trade recovery.