Covid-19 and ASEAN: Facilitating Trade in Perishable Goods
Sithanonxay Suvannaphakdy
Fulfilling their WTO obligations will expedite perishable goods trade among ASEAN member states.
Sithanonxay Suvannaphakdy
Fulfilling their WTO obligations will expedite perishable goods trade among ASEAN member states.
Shankaran Nambiar
ASEAN Centrality would not be very meaningful if intra-ASEAN trade remains shallow.
Sithanonxay Suvannaphakdy
The development of ASEAN Single Window in the past 15 years has demonstrated the importance of digitalizing trade procedures to reduce trade costs and boost competitiveness in ASEAN. The enlargement of the ASEAN Single Window to include the grouping’s dialogue partners will reduce trade costs further.
Sithanonxay Suvannaphakdy
The formation of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a lengthy process. Signing the RCEP in 2020 is not impossible although it can be undermined by the persistent spread of Covid-19.
Gloria Pasadilla
E-commerce is seen as a panacea for the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but it should be seen as one part of a larger and more complex system, involving other elements such as manufacturing and logistics. An ASEAN initiative to address bottlenecks in such systems should be lauded and supported.
Sithanonxay Suvannaphakdy
Tariff cuts under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership will generate import gains for ASEAN as it will reverse the negative trade-diversion effects caused by the existing bilateral and ASEAN+1 free trade agreements. But there will be firms in ASEAN that have to compete with their counterparts from RCEP countries.
Sithanonxay Suvannaphakdy
Exporters in ASEAN are likely to face lower demand for their goods under the 15-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, as three ASEAN dialogue partners – China, Japan and the Republic of Korea – are likely to intensify trade flows among them. This does not mean there is no room for ASEAN to accrue gains from the trade deal.
Jayant Menon
The effects of COVID-19 are hitting ASEAN economies at a time when other risk factors such as a global growth slowdown were already rising. Any assessment of impacts must recognise that the spread of the virus is evolving in unpredictable ways
Tham Siew Yean
The ongoing coronavirus crisis in China highlights how dependence on foreign inputs can affect export-dependent countries such as Malaysia.