Indonesia with its 255 million residents is the economic heavyweight of the region. The country is rich in raw materials such as natural gas, oil, tin, nickel, copper, bauxite and gold, and it is the world’s largest exporter of steam coal. Agriculture is a dominant factor in the Indonesian economy. The country has abundant wood reserves and exports agricultural products such as palm oil, rubber, cocoa, tea, coffee and tobacco. Other important branches of industry are the textile, clothing and shoe industries as well as furniture production. The Jakarta metropolitan area is a service center of international standing.
The economy in Thailand is based roughly equally on services and industry, and agriculture makes only a small contribution to GDP. The most important export goods are electrical and electronic equipment, automobiles and automobile parts, chemical and agricultural products (rubber, rice, bananas, pineapples, seafood). Tourism has developed into an important industry over the past 20 years.
The economy of the Philippines shows a dichotomy that is typical of emerging countries: on the one hand there is a modern electronics industry (e.g. semiconductors, electronic components) and a booming service sector (telecommunications, outsourcing destination for call centers, etc.), while there is also a large one Part of the poor rural population from subsistence-oriented agriculture. Currently, the country with its thousands of islands is increasingly relying on the expanding tourism industry. The mining sector has significant potential thanks to large deposits of gold, copper and nickel. For more information about the continent of Asia, please check thereligionfaqs.com.
