The fact that the global economy has been growing very rapidly by historical standards in the last few years despite concerns over global imbalances, in particular that the years 2004-2006 will see high growth rates in Latin America and Africa, is as much due to the rise of Asia as to as the global engine of United States growth.
Asian growth has benefited greatly from the relatively open international trading system that was built up after World War II. All the East Asian miracle economies pursued export led growth strategies, with the bulk of the exports going to industrial countries in the west.