Fitch Ratings, a world leading credit rating agency dual-headquartered in New York and London, forecasts Tuesday that the economic growth in Asia is to slow down moderately in the second half of this year as the American economy eases.

According to Channel NewsAsia report, analysts at Fitch Ratings expect the economic growth in the region, which "is highly leveraged to global growth and to U.S. growth," to drop half a percentage point this year from 7.5 percent last year.

They were quoted as saying at Fitch's Asian Sovereign Hot Spots conference held Tuesday in Singapore that higher interest rates in the mid to long-term and a turning in the housing market in the United States will hurt its domestic consumption.

Analysts also said that emerging markets worldwide, especially in Asia, are attracting longer-term investors and widening the region's investor base to include insurance and pension funds companies.

"It's good for emerging market sovereigns. They can issue debt at better spreads, lower prices and finance through their fiscal deficits accordingly," James McCormack, Senior Director and Head of Fitch's Asia-Pacific Sovereign rating group, was quoted as saying.

The half-day meeting, the first of its kind held by Fitch in Asia, also examined key sovereign developments in credit markets such as China, India and Southeast Asian countries.

Source: Xinhua