World Bank warns of AI concentration risks as it lifts East Asia and Pacific growth outlook to 4.5%

South Korea has found increased attempts to disguise foreign products as Korean exports, primarily from China, to avoid U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, its customs agency said on Monday.Insung Jeon | Moment | Getty ImagesThe World Bank has raised its growth forecast for the East Asia and Pacific region on the back of artificial intelligence-related exports, while warning that its reliance on the AI boom leaves it vulnerable to a potential global tech spending reversal. The region includes 23 economies, including China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. The EAP economy is expected to expand 4.5% this year, 0.3 percentage point more than the bank projected in April, according to its latest report released Tuesday. Growth is forecast to ease to 4.4% in 2027 and 4.3% in 2028. Vietnam received the biggest forecast upgrade among major economies of the region, up 1.1 percentage point to 7.4%.The region's strength, however, is highly dependent on AI-related manufacturing and exports. Trade growth, excluding AI-related goods, has been "weak or negative," the bank said. Those products accounted for more than half of the export growth in most of the region's economies...