Asia will need to brace for sharply reduced consumption in the United States over an extended period following the global financial crisis, and change the export-dependent structure of its economies and create more regional demand to drive their growth, experts told a recent symposium in Tokyo.

While the global crisis was initially thought to have spared Asia's financial systems, its serious impact on the real economy has rapidly spread among countries in the region, they said, calling for more coordinated actions by Asian economies to deal with the ongoing turmoil.

Five experts from the region's think tanks took part in the Feb. 18 symposium organized by the Keizai Koho Center to discuss what is required of Asia and Japan amid the global financial crisis. Akira Kojima, a senior fellow of the Japan Center for Economic Research, served as moderator.