EAST Asian economies will slow in 2009 as demand for exports, trade and investment eases, the World Bank said.

East Asia excluding China, Japan and the Indian subcontinent, will expand 4 percent next year, from 5.3 per cent in 2008, the World Bank said on its website, according to a Bloomberg news report on Wednesday.

China's economy will grow 7.5 per cent in 2009, it predicts.

The Washington-based lender in its annual Global Economic Prospects report on Tuesday said international trade will shrink in 2009 for the first time in more than 25 years as growth slows and commodity prices slide.