DEMOGRAPHIC-CHANGE AND ASIAN LABOR-MARKETS IN THE 1990S

Diversity in Asia's demographic trends contributes to a wide range of labor market conditions. In Japan and the newly industrialized countries, labor force growth rates will continue to decline and labor costs will rise. The responses to greater tightening of labor markets will include additional restructuring into higher value-added production, additional movement of labor-intensive production abroad via direct foreign investment, and greater importation of labor. In the more labor-abundant countries of South and Southeast Asia, rapid labor force growth will ensure that labor absorption remains a crucial concern during the next two decades. The importance of rural nonfarm employment will grow, as will the burdens placed on the urban informal sectors of these countries. -Author