Pacific Money

Why Hasn’t the ASEAN Economic Community Benefited From the US-China Trade War?

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Pacific Money

Why Hasn’t the ASEAN Economic Community Benefited From the US-China Trade War?

The AEC has missed a golden opportunity to accelerate its stated ambitions.

Why Hasn’t the ASEAN Economic Community Benefited From the US-China Trade War?
Credit: Wikimedia Commons / Gunawan Kartapranata

The trade war between the United States and China has generated discussion in Southeast Asia about which countries will benefit from multinational companies moving production out of China, yet there has been a strange silence on the opportunities for the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).

With a population of 662 million, a median age of 28.8 years as opposed to China’s 37, as well as member states whose growth is dependent on international trade and finance, the trade war should have been a golden opportunity for the AEC, launched in 2015, to realize its ambitions as a regional production base. The trade war also should have provided a catalyst to drive greater integration. 

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