According to CNBC, the World Bank lifted its growth forecast for the East Asia and Pacific region to 4.5% this year from 4.2% in April, citing artificial intelligence-related exports, while warning that the region remains vulnerable to a reversal in global tech spending. Growth is projected to ease to 4.4% in 2027 and 4.3% in 2028, and Vietnam received the largest upgrade among major economies, with its 2025 forecast raised 1.1 percentage point to 7.4%.

The bank said trade growth excluding AI-related goods has been weak or negative, and that those products accounted for more than half of export growth in most regional economies and more than 70% in Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam shipped $1.4 trillion of AI-related goods in the 12 months through April. The report also said AI-related capital expenditure has reached about 6% of U.S. GDP, and that of the $2.9 trillion in AI capex planned for 2025-2028, $800 billion is expected to come from private credit.