A recent survey from A.T. Kearney, a global management consulting firm, indicates corporations around the world are increasing their foreign direct investment plans as they acknowledge more stable global economic conditions. Demand for wireless services in the affected regions is expected to strengthen. Gartner Group and the Strategis Group predict strong growth for the Asia-Pacific region in the months and years to come. Ho believes growth in the affected regions will increase rapidly in the latter half of 1999 as the economy begins to recover. As the economies recover, there is going to be a demand for service in the short term.
Wireless technology has the advantage to be deployed much more rapidly than wireline technology.
The Strategis Group indicates South Korea was one of the world leaders in wireless-phone growth during the first quarter, adding 3.4 million subscribers. The carrier's growth correlated with economic growth, though big handset subsidies also played a role. GDP increased by an annual rate of 4.6 percent in the first quarter, after contracting by 5.8 percent for all of 1998. In Southeast Asia, Gartner Group indicates prepaid services fueled the growth engine during recent quarters. The Indonesian market grew 29.4 percent in the first quarter though the country's troubled economy only slightly improved.