A STUDY of 90 countries by Nomura International rates Singapore as the most vulnerable to economic damage to a pandemic.

Most vulnerable economies - Singapore - Hong Kong, China - Bangladesh -Madagascar - Angola

Asia is likely even more vulnerable than other parts of the world because it relies far more on international trade and tourism for growth, and because of its population density, it included.

The Nomura study, which was reported by the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, also states that Asia is more vulnerable to the recent influenza A (H1N1) because many countries in the region devote less spending to health care, potentially leaving them less prepared for a surge in patients if one breaks out, raising the economic cost of an outbreak further.

Nomura economists found that nine of the world's 20 most vulnerable economies are in Asia, with Singapore and Hong Kong by far the two most at-risk.

Nomura's chief Asia economist Robert Subbaraman as quoted by WSJ as saying that the outbreak of the flu adds on to the already dismal economy and that he does not foresee a sustainable economic recovery in Asia until 2010 'at the earliest'.

So far, the impact on economic activity in Asia has been minimal. But there are signs that companies and consumers are altering their behavior to avoid public gatherings and cancel trips and meetings, which in turn could result in less spending and weaker growth if it snowballs, WSJ reported.

Asia has detected only a handful of H1N1 flu cases and many scientists and economists are hopeful the region will escape a wider problem, in part because of the rapid response from governments, including quarantines of people believed to have the flu and stepped-up medical screening of travelers arriving from affected areas.

There also is evidence that the virus may be less virulent than initially thought and may be peaking, doctors say.

But the biggest concern, economists said, it is that consumers will decide to stay in their homes rather than venture out to cinemas and restaurants, even though there seems to be little or no risk of contracting the virus in public areas.