A World Economic Forum (WEF) report released Friday called on Asian companies to prepare to fight AIDS now, while infection rates are well below 1 percent on most of the continent.

Of the 1,300 firms in 15 nations polled, 37 percent said they expect AIDS to affect their operations in the next five years.

"This is the quiet time. Now is the time to act to push back the tide of HIV in Asia," said the report's main author, David Bloom. A professor of economics and demography at Harvard's School of Public Health, Bloom called AIDS a "dark cloud hanging over the regional economy."

"If you wait till it's in your face, it's too late: You'll have an Africa-style epidemic," Bloom said in Beijing at a WEF conference. He encouraged countries to follow the example of Thailand, where quick action by authorities helped curb the spread of HIV and avert a huge shock to the economy.

To lessen the effects of the epidemic, Bloom said, businesses need better information on AIDS and its impact. In addition, they should partner with governments and nongovernmental organizations and work to fight AIDS discrimination.

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