There is no doubt that this change is a challenge to the Bretton Woods institutions. For instance, it so happens that no advanced industrialised country has borrowed from the Fund for more than 20 years, and yet these countries tend to dominate decision-making.
Growth in these cases is therefore expected to remain modest and, as a result, these economies are likely to be characterised by a lot of spare capacity and ongoing high unemployment. So the historic shift in the centre of economic gravity to the Asian region is continuing, and if anything it has been highlighted by the different performances during the crisis and initial recovery.