25 fastest growing economies

Continued industrialisation, urbanisation, strong population growth and the emergence of a substantial middle class will encourage continued growth in rapid growth markets - of which SA is one - over the next decade, according to a new quarterly economic forecast by financial services group Ernst & Young.

However, SA and Egypt, both included among the four African countries in the 25 rapid growth markets, are likely to be the most affected in Africa by the global crisis due to their integration with the global economy.

Qatar, with annualised growth of 13 percent in 2000-2010, stands out from the crowd over the longer term, but Ghana is the fastest growing economy in the world in the past year at a rate of 13.6 percent. Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt and SA make the list from Africa, while China, Kazakhstan, India and Vietnam complete the top five, with Qatar.

Michael Lalor, Ernst & Young Africa Business Center Leader, says rapid growth markets are set to grow by 6.2 percent this year and by 5.9 percent in 2012 compared with 1.6 percent for the eurozone in 2010 falling to 1.1 percent in 2011. The quarterly survey includes a forecast of the 25 rapid growth markets which are becoming increasingly important in terms of both their overall weight in the world economy and their global influence.

"Many of the economies are fairly advanced in their own right," he said during a briefing on Monday.

He said the fact that four African countries appeared in the survey was "a sign of the increased attractiveness of African markets".

"We need to be benchmarking African markets against other rapid growth markets and then go head-to-head with those markets to attract capital," said Lalor.

The rapid growth markets are expected to grow collectively by 6.2 percent this year, almost four times more than the anemic growth expected in the eurozone.

The rapid growth markets have grown on average by 5.8 percent per year over the last decade, more than three times as fast as the advanced economies combined and this rapid pace of expansion is set to continue with growth outpacing the advanced economies by more than 3.5 percent per annum over the next decade.

"This is presuming they deal with inflationary pressures and have sufficient infrastructure in place to secure long term growth," says the report.