This aerial picture shows flooded streets and buildings in Thai Nguyen on September 10, 2024, a few days after Super Typhoon Yagi hit northern Vietnam.
Xuan Quang | Afp | Getty Images
Curtis S. Chin, a former U.S. ambassador to the Asian Development Bank, is managing director of advisory firm RiverPeak Group. Jose B. Collazo is an analyst focusing on the Indo-Pacific region. Follow them on X at @CurtisSChin and @JoseBCollazo.
Like the year before, 2024 seemingly offered up little to celebrate for many across the vast Indo-Pacific region. Amid uncertain economies and enduring geographic tensions, however, there was still hope and joy to be found.
Who had it bad and who had it good in Asia and the Pacific region in 2024?
As the region looks to the return of President Donald Trump to the White House in 2025 and to what might well be a tumultuous Year of the Snake in the lunar calendar, we take a look at the year that was.
now projected to hit $198 billion by 2030, according to a BusinessKorea report on a white paper released by TikTok and market research firm Kantar.
Best year: Moo Deng, Thailand’s viral sensation
To say that the female baby pygmy hippopotamus named Moo Deng — Thai for “bouncy pork” — took the world by storm in 2024 would be an understatement.
PATTAYA, THAILAND – NOVEMBER 26: Moo Deng is seen in her enclosure at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo on November 26, 2024 in Chonburi, Thailand.
Matt Jelonek | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Born this July at Thailand’s Khao Kheow Open Zoo, the “hyper-viral” baby pygmy has seen her memes, photos and videos go global.
Fan accounts on X, TikTok, and Facebook continue to proliferate. And even NBC’s long-running U.S. comedy show “Saturday Night Live” got in on the Moo Deng mania. Asian American star Bowen Yang impersonated the baby hippo on the show’s “Weekend Update” segment, lamenting the hazards of instant fame.
Adding to her fame, Moo Deng correctly predicted the winner of the 2024 U.S. presidential race, by selecting the fruit and vegetable plate bearing Trump’s name over that of rival Kamala Harris.
2024 might have been the Year of the Dragon in the lunar calendar, but it also was clearly the Year of the Hippo in the hearts and minds of Moo Deng fans in Asia and beyond. For bringing a bit of hope and joy to a region and world that could use a lot more good cheer, the designation of “Best Year in Asia” for 2024 goes to Moo Deng.
Here’s to a hopeful and joy-filled 2025.