A look into various examples of modern tiger economies and their economic outlook going forward.
Image credit: Shutterstock / tamim ridlo
A Tiger Economy refers to a country that undergoes significant and rapid economic growth.
As a nod to the importance of tigers in Asian culture and mythology, the term originally referred to the economies of South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore in the 1960s to 1990s.
It went on to describe numerous other markets in various regions, including Southeast Asia, the Baltics, the Arabian Gulf, certain cities in Anatolia, and more.
Similar to the BRICS countries, these are economies that are regarded with high levels of optimism and interest for foreign investors looking to break into new markets.
More recently, the term ‘Tiger Cub Economies’ has come about to describe the up-and-coming markets of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines, which together represented roughly 83% of the nominal GDP of ASEAN countries in 2023 (Singapore alone added another 13%).
These countries have been exhibiting strong economic growth in recent years, driven by factors such as technological advancements, export-oriented industrialization strategies, increased foreign investment, and a focus on education and infrastructure development.
Additionally, these economies have diversified their industries, moving beyond simple manufacturing to include value-added services and high-tech sectors, which help to sustain their growth and resilience in the global marketplace.
In fact, all five of these countries were listed in HSBC’s list of top 50 economies in 2050.
Here’s how they stack up as we enter the year 2025:
Indonesia
Southeast Asia largest economy, Indonesia, is a newly industrialized country.
With a robust mix of both private businesses and nationalized government services, Indonesia has a highly diversified market that is classified as emerging or developing. In 2023, the nominal GDP reached nearly USD1.4 trillion in 2023, representing the world’s 16th largest economy by GDP (nominal) and the 7th largest in terms of GDP (PPP).
With abundant natural resources, a rich history, and a diverse culture spanning its thousands of islands, tourism is one of Indonesia’s strongest sectors and a major source of foreign exchange.
Agriculture is also key, employing roughly 41% of the nearly-300-million-strong population, especially in palm oil, for which Indonesia produces roughly half the world’s supply.
The country has also been enhancing its industrial capabilities with increased value-added production in the manufacturing sector, focusing on infrastructure development and economic reforms to attract FDI and sustain economic growth.
In 2022, the internet economy of Indonesia reached USD77 billion, and if the current course maintained, this is expected to nearly double by 2025.
By 2045, the country is predicted to be the world’s fourth largest economy, growing at a rate of 5%-6% per year and eventually reaching a GDP of over USD9 trillion.
Malaysia
Much like its southern neighbor, Malaysia possesses a mixed economy that is considered emerging or developing.
The country itself is highly industrialized and rapidly being considered regional hub for the high-tech sector, especially in cloud computing, data centers, and hyperscale construction.
In 2022, the export value of high-tech products reached approximately USD66 billion—third highest in ASEAN.
And in 2024, The Global Innovation Index ranked Malaysia as the 33rd most innovative nation globally.
Indeed, in 2024, the country attracted a significant amount of FDI centered around artificial intelligence—over USD6 billion from Google, Microsoft, and ByteDance alone, which is expected to consolidate Malaysia’s position as a cloud computing hub for the wider Asian region.
Tech isn’t the only thing Malaysia excels in—it is also known for its services sector, particularly in tourism and finance, as well as agriculture, all contributing to make Malaysia a well-diversified and highly dynamic market.
Thailand
Thailand, a global middle power and a founding member of ASEAN, currently boasts ASEAN’s second-largest economy and the 23rd-largest worldwide by PPP.
Though its political situation is one fraught with frequent juntas and power struggles between the monarchy, the military, and various opposition parties, Thailand is still considered a newly industrialized, emerging market.
It remains rather stable, no matter who is in charge. Its economy is heavily dependent on exports, which make up nearly two-thirds of the country’s GDP.
Manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism are the key sectors of this tiger economy, with the government introducing policies to attract FDI and promote economic diversification, aiming to transition the country towards a more knowledge-based economy.
The country struggles with poverty and inequality, and its informal and shadow economies are much larger than typically seen in similarly-developed nations, but Thailand’s strength lies in its position as an “anchor economy” to neighboring Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar, from which it hosts a significant migrant workforce population.
Vietnam
Vietnam boasts one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, a remarkable success story of the country’s mixed socialist-oriented market policies.
Over the past few decades, the country has transitioned from a centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented one, resulting in significant economic growth.
Careful planning by the central government has seen poverty and inequality decline significantly since the turn of the century, with Vietnam ranking above countries like China, India, and the Philippines in terms of relative poverty.
As in other countries in the region, agriculture is an important part of Viet Nam’s economy, notably in terms of employment.
Tourism also thrives across the country, growing significantly in the last decade thanks to more relaxed visa policies.
Manufacturing is another key sector, particularly for electronics as companies look to diversify their supply chains away from neighboring China. In 2017, accounting firm PwC forecasted an annual GDP growth rate of about 5.1% for Vietnam, which would make the country the 10th-largest economy by 2050.
The Vietnamese government continues to focus on economic reforms, infrastructure development, and improving the business environment to sustain this growth and further enhance the country’s position in the global economy.
The Philippines
An annual growth rate of around 6% since 2010 has made the Philippines one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Another Southeast Asian emerging tiger market, the economy of the Philippines was estimated at USD471.5 billion in 2024, making it the world’s 32nd largest by nominal GDP and 13th largest in Asia according to the International Monetary Fund.
The country is in the process of transitioning from an agriculture-based economy to one based more on services and manufacturing.
Already the country is a major destination for companies outsourcing workers, especially hose from the US, given the high level of English fluency possessed by a large number of Filipinos.
Challenges are largely related to alleviating the wide income and growth disparities between the country’s different regions and socioeconomic classes, as well as reducing corruption, but the country has been on an upward trajectory since the early-2010s and is projected to become the world’s 22nd-largest economy by 2035.
