Peter J. Morgan, Senior Consulting Economist and Advisor to the Dean
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Peter Morgan
Peter Morgan joined the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) as a senior consultant for research in December 2008 and currently also serves as Advisor to the Dean.
He previously served as ADBI’s Vice-Chair of Research until March 2022. He also worked in Hong Kong, China as Chief Asia Economist for HSBC where he was responsible for macroeconomic analysis and forecasting for Asia. Before that, he was Chief Japan Economist for HSBC and held comparable positions at Merrill Lynch, Barclays de Zoete Wedd, and Jardine Fleming. Prior to entering the financial industry, he worked as a consultant for Meta Systems Inc in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the United States specializing in energy and environmental areas, including energy policy issues in Asian countries, and at International Business Information KK in Tokyo specializing in financial sector consulting.
His research focuses are macroeconomic policy and financial sector regulation, reform, financial development, financial inclusion, fintech, financial literacy, and financial education. His recent publications include Fintech and Financial Inclusion in Southeast Asia and India and Impacts of COVID-19 on Households in ASEAN Countries and Their Implications for Human Capital Development. He earned his MA and PhD in economics from Yale University.
Blue Economy and Blue Finance: Toward Sustainable Development and Ocean Governance
Billions of people in Asia and the Pacific depend on healthy oceans for their livelihoods, food security, health, and recreation.COVID-19 Impacts and Policy Options: An Asian Perspective
COVID-19 economic recovery can be advanced by greater efforts to boost longer-term resilience and sustainability in Asia and the Pacific.Leveraging SME Finance through Value Chains in CAREC Landlocked Countries
SMEs in Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation countries can contribute to economic development by helping to diversify the production base, create employment opportunities, alleviate poverty, and increase regional food security.Environmental, Social, and Governance Investment: Opportunities and Risks for Asia
Interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investment has been growing steadily around the world, and investors are increasingly integrating ESG factors into their investment decisions.Central Bank Digital Currency and Fintech in Asia
The development of financial technology has already radically altered the landscape of the financial system in Asia and promises to have an even greater impact in coming years.Financial Inclusion, Regulation, Literacy, and Education in Central Asia and South Caucasus
This book surveys the experiences of countries in Central Asia and South Caucasus to assess factors affecting the ability of low-income households and small firms to access financial services.Demystifying Rising Inequality in Asia
Rising income inequality is a key challenge for policy makers in developing Asia.Routledge Handbook of Banking and Finance in Asia
This handbook brings together leading scholars, policy makers, and practitioners to provide a comprehensive and cutting-edge guide to Asia’s financial institutions, markets, and systems.Avoiding the Middle-Income Trap in Asia: The Role of Trade, Manufacturing, and Finance
Growth in high-income countries differs qualitatively from that of middle-income countries, and hence requires different factor endowments, industrial structures, and policies.Global Shocks and the New Global and Regional Financial Architecture: Asian Perspectives
This book addresses how Asia’s regional financial architecture can be strengthened and meshed with those of the International Monetary Fund and the Financial Stability Board to effectively deal with economic and financial shocks.
Food Insecurity, Inflation and Government Aid: Evidence from a Household Survey in Developing Asia
Food insecurity has become more crucial following the economic downturn and inflation surge during the COVID-19 pandemic.Do Remote Learning Tools Reduce Learning Loss during School Closure? Experience from Central Asia and the Caucasus during the COVID-19 Pandemic
A combined usage of TV programs and paper lessons may be an effective alternative to online lessons during longer school closure periods.Learning Disruptions during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from Household Surveys in Southeast Asia
A household survey documents considerable differences between countries in terms of school closures, the government's response, and the education situation.Financial Literacy and Fintech Use in Family Business
A higher level of financial literacy has strong and positive effects on fintech use in family businesses and various business outcomes.Family Business during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Asia: Role of Government Financial Aid and Coping Strategies
Government financial aid is associated with a lower probability of a decline in family business income and a higher probability of adopting coping strategies.Benchmarking Adoption of E-commerce across the G20 Members
Emerging market economies are severely affected by inadequate infrastructure, digital illiteracy, and low use of digital payments by enterprises.Impacts of COVID-19 on Households’ Business, Employment and School Education: Evidence from Household Survey in CAREC Countries
The COVID-19 crisis has severely affected employment and education in member countries of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation.Impacts of COVID-19 on Households in ASEAN Countries and Their Implications for Human Capital Development: Medium-Run Impacts and the Role of Government Support
The outbreak of the COVID -19 virus and the resulting drop in demand are having a severe impact on Asian economies and, by extension, Asian households.The People's Republic of China's Digital Yuan: Its Environment, Design, and Implications
The digital yuan, a digital currency being developed by the People's Bank of China, could contribute to financial inclusion and financial stability in the People's Republic of China.Impacts of COVID-19 on Households in CAREC Countries
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the income of all households, regardless of their economic status.
With W. Kodama, L. Trinh, D. Azhgaliyeva, and K. Kim. World Development 182 (106653) October, 2024.
With A. Maddawin, A. Park, D. Suryadarma, L. Trinh, and P. Vandenberg. International Journal of Educational Development 100, May, 2024.
With L. Q. Trinh and L. H. Nguyen. The Singapore Economic Review 69(2): 751-791, 2024.
With L. Q. Trinh and N. Yoshino. Financial Innovation 9: 101, 2023.
With L. Q. Trinh. Emerging Markets Finance and Trade 59(2): 561-588, 2023.
With L. Q. Trinh. Emerging Markets Finance and Trade (December), 2022.
Asia-Pacific Sustainable Development Journal 29(1), 2022.
With T. Beck, D. Fernandez, and B. Huang. Journal of Banking & Finance 136(106448), 2022.
Asian Economic Policy Review, 2022.
With L. Q. Trinh and L. H. Nguyen. The Singapore Economic Review (September 2021).
With F. Taghizadeh-Hesary, N. Yoshino, and Y. Chang. The Singapore Economic Review 66(2): 313–322, 2021.
With F. Taghizadeh-Hesary, N. Yoshino, and Y. Inagaki. International Review of Economics and Finance 74: 1–12, July 2021.
With L. Q. Trinh and T. Sonobe. Emerging Markets Review 45: 100739, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ememar.2020.100739
With F. Taghizadeh-Hesary, E. Rasoulinezhad, Y. Chang, and N. Yoshino. Singapore Economic Review, 2020.
With L. Q. Trinh. Journal of Asian Economics 68: 1–20, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asieco.2020.101197
With L. Q. Trinh and M. B. Tran. Singapore Economic Review, 2020.
Asian Economic Papers 19(3): 111–125, 2020.
With L. Q. Trinh. Asian-Pacific Economic Literature 33(2), 3–26, 2019.
With Long Q. Trinh. Journal of Financial Risk and Management 12(1), 9, 2019. https://www.mdpi.com/1911-8074/12/1/19/htm
With P. Regis and N. Salike. Journal of Financial Intermediation. 37(1): 89–103, 2018.
With C. Horioka, Y. Niimi and G. Wan. Journal of Asia and Pacific Economy. 23(4): 511–514, 2019.
Asia Economic Policy Review. 14(1): 119–120, 2019.
With V. Pontines. Singapore Economic Review 63(1), pp. 111-124. 2018.
With Y. Zhang. Singapore Economic Review 63(1), pp. 125-146. 2018.
With Y. Zhang. Asia-Europe Journal 15(4), pages 463-482, 2017.
Asia Economic Policy Review. 2017 12(2), 206-207.
With G. Wan. Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy. 22 (1), 2017.
With Justin Yifu Lin and Guanghua Wan. Journal of Comparative Economics 44 (4), 2016.
With Justin Yifu Lin and Guanghua Wan. China & World Economy 24(5), 20-41, 2016.
With Ganeshan Wignaraja, Michael Plummer and Fan Zhai. Asian Economic Papers 14 (3). 2015.
With Jonathan Batten and Peter Szilagyi. The Singapore Economic Review 60(1), March 2015.
With M. Kawai. PRI Financial Review 120 (4) (in Japanese). Tokyo: Policy Research Institute, Ministry of Finance, Japan. September 2014.
With Bart Edes. Public Policy Review, Vol.10 No 2. Tokyo: Policy Research Institute, Ministry of Finance, Japan. August 2014.
Public Policy Review, Vol.8, No 3. Tokyo: Policy Research Institute, Ministry of Finance, Japan. September 2012.
Journal of Asian Economics, 23/1, 12-35.
2011. Asian Economic Policy Review, 6/2, 245-246.
Journal of the Korean Economy, 11/1, 55-102.
Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 10, 248-269 (1983).
The Bell Journal of Economics 9(2), pp. 457-487 (1978), with Neil R. Ericsson.
In F. Taghizadeh-Hesary and S. Hyun, eds. 2022. Green Digital Finance and Sustainable Development Goals. Singapore: Springer.
The Routledge Handbook of Financial Literacy. New York: Taylor and Francis.
Redefining Strategic Routes to Financial Resilience in ASEAN+3. Asian Development Bank.
Leveraging SME Finance through Value Chains in CAREC Landlocked Countries. Tokyo: ADBI.
Avoiding the Middle-Income Trap in Asia: The Role of Trade, Manufacturing and Finance. Tokyo: ADBI. With B. Huang and N. Yoshino.
Routledge Handbook of Banking and Finance in Asia. Oxon, UK: Routledge. With U. Volz and N. Yoshino.
Routledge Handbook of Banking and Finance in Asia. Oxon, UK: Routledge.
China in the Local and Global Economy: History, Geography, Politics and Sustainability, 1st Edition. Oxon, UK: Routledge.
Routledge Handbook of Banking and Finance in Asia. Oxon, UK: Routledge. With S. Nakabayashi and N. Yoshino.
Global Shocks and the Global–Regional Financial Architecture: Asian Perspectives. ADBI Press.
Global Shocks and the Global–Regional Financial Architecture: Asian Perspectives. ADBI Press.
Slowdown in the People's Republic of China: Structural Factors and the Implications for Asia. ADBI Press.
Slowdown in the People's Republic of China: Structural Factors and the Implications for Asia. ADBI Press.
Slowdown in the People's Republic of China: Structural Factors and the Implications for Asia. ADBI Press.
Financial Inclusion, Regulation, and Education: Asian Perspectives. ADBI Press.
Financial Inclusion, Regulation, and Education: Asian Perspectives. Tokyo: ADB Institute.
Central and Local Government Relations in Asia. Edward Elgar.
Central and Local Government Relations in Asia. Edward Elgar.
Connecting Asia: Infrastructure for Integrating South and Southeast Asia. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishers.
Connecting Asia: Infrastructure for Integrating South and Southeast Asia. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishers.
Macro-Financial Linkages in the Pacific Region. Routledge. Oxon, UK and New York, USA.
Rebalancing for Sustainable Growth: Asia’s Postcrisis Challenge. ADB/ADBI. Manila.
New Global Economic Architecture: The Asian Perspective. Cheltenham, UK and Northampton, MA, USA: Edward Elgar Publishers.
Reform of the International Monetary System: Asian Perspectives. Tokyo: Springer.
Monetary Policy Regimes in the Pacific Region: Background Papers. Osaka, Japan and Singapore: Pacific Economic Cooperation Council.
Responding to Financial Crisis: Lessons from Asia Then, the United States and Europe Now. Manila and Washington, DC: Asian Development Bank and Peterson Institute for International Economics.
Monetary and Currency Policy Management in Asia. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
Implications of the Global Financial Crisis for Financial Reform and Regulation in Asia. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishers.
Implications of the Global Financial Crisis for Financial Reform and Regulation in Asia. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishers.
The impacts of climate change, marine pollution, unsustainable fishing, and rapid, unsustainable coastal development are threatening ocean ecosystems and jeopardizing small island nations and other developing coastal economies.
Asia has seen steady overall progress on financial inclusion, but gender gaps are still growing in some countries.
Reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases must be achieved in the coming decades to avoid catastrophic global temperature rises. Limiting global warming to within 1.5°C will require rapid, far-reaching, and unprecedented changes in all sectors.
The number of COVID-19 cases in many Asian developing countries is surprisingly low, but this may simply reflect inadequate levels of testing. The high correlation between rates of testing and per capita GDP strongly suggests that lower-income countries face a number of barriers to carrying out adequate testing.
Education is a key driver for sustainable development (UNESCO 2018). However, the goal of realizing education for all in the Digital Age faces two major challenges. First, many countries and economies are still not ensuring quality education for all.
In the postwar period, the global economic and financial architecture was dominated by the advanced economies in the West. They designed the international monetary system, international development financing frameworks, and global trade liberalization schemes.
Financial literacy has gained an important position in the policy agenda of many countries, and the importance of collecting informative, reliable data on the levels of financial literacy across adult populations has been widely recognized (OECD/INFE 2015a).
IThe fiscal burden of public pensions in most emerging Asian economies is relatively small, reflecting relatively young populations and limited coverage of the retired-age population in public pension programs.
Financial inclusion has been receiving increasing attention for its potential to contribute to economic and financial development while fostering more inclusive growth and greater income equality. There are numerous arguments in favor of increasing financial inclusion, and a large body of evidence shows that increased financial inclusion can significantly reduce poverty and boost shared prosperity.
With its rapid economic growth and integration into the global economy over the last 3 decades, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has emerged as a major economic power and an important source of growth for the world economy.
Financial sectors in Asian economies are dominated by banks, so maintaining their financial stability is crucial. Domestic banking crises often originate in the real estate sector -- the subprime crisis in the United States in 2007 to 2010 was only the most recent example. Therefore, one might conclude that mortgage lending is negative for financial stability.
Domestic banking crises often originate in the real estate sector. Therefore, one might conclude that mortgage lending is negative for financial stability. However, in normal (noncrisis) periods, mortgage lending may actually contribute to financial stability. This is because mortgage loans have different risk properties from other bank assets such as commercial loans, so having some share of mortgage loans in a bank’s portfolio tends to diversify the risk of that portfolio.
The global financial crisis of 2007–2009 underlined the need for central banks and financial regulators to take a macroprudential perspective on financial risk, i.e., to monitor and regulate the buildup of systemic financial risk in the economy as a whole, as opposed to simply monitoring the condition of individual financial institutions (microprudential regulation).
The time is ripe for enhancing economic integration between South Asia and Southeast Asia. The new "normal" era of slow growth in advanced industrial economies following the global financial crisis suggests that Asian economies will need to rely more on domestic and regional demand to secure inclusive growth.
South Asian and Southeast Asian economies have all embraced an outward-oriented development strategy, albeit to different degrees. The result has been an impressive increase in international trade, foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows, and significant productivity improvements, which in turn have contributed to important socio-economic gains.
This article assesses the case for promoting financial education in Asia. It argues that the benefits of investing in financial education can be substantial.
In the aftermath of the global financial crisis of 2007-2008, financial literacy and financial education are gaining more attention around the world. There were sobering lessons, for example, in how the mis-selling of financial products contributed directly to the severity of the crisis, both in developed economies and in Asia.
A key lesson of the 2008 global financial crisis (GFC) was the importance of containing systemic financial risk and maintaining financial stability. At the same time, developing economies are seeking to promote financial inclusion, such as greater access to financial services for low-income households and small firms, as part of their overall strategies for economic and financial development.
Recent research has found that economic recoveries from banking crises tend to be weaker and more prolonged than those from traditional types of deep recessions (see for example IMF 2009). Japan’s “two lost decades” perhaps represent an extreme example of this, and the experience has now passed into the lexicon as “Japanese-style stagnation” or “Japanization” for short.
The Bank of Japan (BoJ) announced its much-awaited new monetary policy framework on 22 January 2013, following heightened pressure from newly-elected Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for it to pursue “unlimited” monetary easing in order to finally overcome deflation.
The Great East Japan Earthquake on 11 March 2011 was the biggest earthquake recorded in Japanese seismic history, and the fourth largest recorded in the world. The scope of the triple disaster consisting of an earthquake, a tsunami, and a nuclear accident, far exceeded that of the Hanshin Earthquake of 1995.
Two episodes of quantitative easing (QE) by the United States (US) Federal Reserve Bank (Fed) since early 2009 aroused widespread concerns in emerging Asia and elsewhere because of the possibility that they would weaken the US dollar (so-called “currency wars”) and stimulate capital inflows in emerging economies that might lead to increased inflationary pressures and asset price bubbles.
The global financial crisis showed the need for a large-scale and effective international financial safety net (IFSN). Although East Asia has had a regional financial arrangement (RFA) since 2000 (the Chiang Mai Initiative), it was not tapped during the global financial crisis for a variety of reasons.
Leveraging SME Finance through Value Chains in CAREC Landlocked Countries
SMEs in Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation countries can contribute to economic development by helping to diversify the production base, create employment opportunities, alleviate poverty, and increase regional food security.
Introducing the Book Environmental, Social, and Governance Investment: Opportunities and Risks for Asia
This ADBI Press book offers critical guidance for boosting environmental, social, and governance investment and its potential to enhance economic sustainability and resilience in Asia.
Peter Morgan, Senior Consulting Economist and Vice Chair of Research, on Driving Policy Innovation
Peter Morgan, ADBI Senior Consulting Economist and Vice Chair of Research, describes his role in leading ADBI’s research agenda, what he finds most rewarding about his job, and his focus on advancing financial inclusion.
The Future of Work and Education for the Digital Age
Peter Morgan, who is lead co-chair of Think20 (T20) Japan’s work and education for the digital age task force, addresses how digital disruptions to work and education impact economic growth into the future.
Financial Inclusion, Regulation, and Education in Asia
Policies to promote financial inclusion need to be aligned with economic incentives; otherwise the results may miss targeted groups. Simply setting quotas for financial access for target groups is unlikely to ensure access for the neediest groups. Peter Morgan, ADBI senior consultant for research, explains that a thriving microfinance sector can make an important contribution to financial inclusion.
In this podcast, ADBI Vice Chair of Research, Peter Morgan, examines SME trade challenges in Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation – CAREC – countries. He also describes the importance of boosting the region’s SME participation in production and supply chains and measures for doing so.
In this podcast, ADBI Vice Chair of Research, Peter Morgan, discusses the challenges of advancing financial inclusion, financial education, and financial literacy in an increasingly digital world and how the COVID-19 pandemic is further raising the stakes for policy makers and the future of socio-economic welfare.