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A conversation with a taxi driver during a trip to Europe early this year caught me a bit off guard. I asked if people were suffering because of the economic crisis, and, to my surprise, the answer was ‘not really.’ At a time when we in the U.S. were reeling from a constant stream of news of ‘the worst economic crisis in a generation,’ the Dutch economy was doing just fine, thank you.
As it turns out, the recession truly is a global phenomenon, but its impact has varied around the world. Two good indicators of economic health are gross domestic product (GDP) and unemployment.

GDP is picking up in parts of Europe and Asia; China recovers
There are signs of recovery on the horizon. France, Germany, Japan and South Korea all saw slight GDP growth in the second quarter, hinting that they may be moving out of recession.
Those lagging behind include the US and the UK with slight declines, reflecting both economies’ greater exposure to the banking and real estate crises.

Contrast this with China. As if on another planet, GDP there rose 7.9 percent in the second quarter. This growth reflects the government’s investments in infrastructure, and increased access to credit. Most pundits are claiming the recovery is well underway in China.

Unemployment hits Europe, U.S. and Japan hard
Europe and the U.S. have seen significant rises in unemployment. But the increase has been particularly fast in the U.S. due to much looser employment laws and the sheer number of high profile bankruptcies.

Japan recorded the highest rate of unemployment since records began in 1953, something that may have contributed to the historical change of government there.

Although Chinese unemployment data is notoriously unreliable, they have felt the pinch of the downturn, as government officials have stated that unemployment jumped at the end of 2008.

South Korea is a notable exception, showing only a slight increase in unemployment over last year.

Case for optimism, but proceed cautiously
Lots of statistics—but what to make of all this data?

Clearly, the recession is a global phenomenon that has affected almost every economy. The impact has been felt differently in different countries. The Asian economies, and China in particular, continue to be export driven, with increasing trade within the region. Europe is showing signs of recovery in some markets, but unemployment is chronic and growth stagnant.

There are early signs of a recovery, not only in the GDP data but also business sentiment, credit loosening and fairly robust recovery of most stock markets.

For businesses considering expansion into other markets, there is a clear indication that it may be time to have a peek overseas for opportunity. While it may take several more quarters for the U.S. to emerge from its deeper recession, several European and Asian markets could be fertile ground for new products and services.