Tokyo, Oct 12 (IANS): The economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region has slowed, according to the Asia and Pacific Regional Economic Outlook, released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Friday.

"For Asia as a whole, GDP growth fell to its lowest rate since the 2008 global financial crisis during the first half of 2012," said Anoop Singh, IMF Asia and Pacific Department Director.

The economic slowdown, bigger than previously projected, in Asia and Pacific region was caused by the euro area crises and fiscal shock through trade-channel effects, as the recovery in advanced economies suffered setbacks, reported Xinhua citing the report.

But looking forward, growth is projected to pick up very gradually, and Asia should remain the global growth leader, expanding over 2 percentage points faster than the world average next year, it added.

IMF's outlook on Asia-Pacific economy in near-term remains subdued, as the downside risks still remain, so the policymakers need to support stable non-inflationary growth, maintain financial stability and lay the foundations for sustained and shared prosperity over the medium term.