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LATEST COMMENTARY
Got an opinion? Please write to editor@cariasean.org
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Liberal Banking Regime: Pot Calling the Kettle Black
By Manissa van Geyzel | 8 May 2012
When Indonesia announced that it will limit foreign ownership of local banks from almost 100 per cent to just 50 per cent in 2011, it took no time at all for ASEAN co-members to cry foul.
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A Closer Look at Myanmar's New Foreign Investment Law Draft
By Sóley Ómarsdóttir | 20 Mar 2012
The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) released a draft of the new foreign investment laws, to media on Friday. Deputy Railways minister Lwin Thaung announced the revision of the law in January, claiming that the government would seek advice from foreign consultants to make investment in Myanmar more attractive than investing in neighbouring countries. The previous investment law was promulgated in 1988 and has not been revised until now.
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The Promise and Perils of ASEAN's Economic Growth
By Phar Kim Beng | 12 Mar 2012
The strength and robustness of an economy hinges on its ability to recover from recession, if not to avoid it altogether. ASEAN has achieved both. It has recovered from the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997-1998, and a decade later, has come out unscathed by the global credit crunch.
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Breaking the Tariff and Non-Tariff Barriers in ASEAN: Taking That Quantum Leap
By Phar Kim Beng | 15 Feb 2012
The litmus test of free trade lies in the depth and sweep by which tariffs and non-tariff barriers (NTBs) are removed. On the former, the track record of ASEAN is nothing short of phenomenal. Close to 99 per cent of the products in ASEAN have had their tariffs reduced to a band of zero to five per cent.
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Can ASEAN Still Learn from the European Union?
By Phar Kim Beng
It is clear that the European Union is still mired in various fiscal and financial difficulties while ASEAN and East Asia are not. There is no reason for hubris, however, because perturbations in the EU affect other regions.
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Impacts and Challenges of Hosting 2030 World Cup for ASEAN
By Ay San Harjono | 21st - 25th Feb, 2011
Politicians very much like to deride expensive programmes. DI may be the least discussed and most muddled. The programme is severely strained. The number of awards has spiked in the downturn, rising 28% since 2007. This surge follows decades of growth...
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Going By the Numbers of ASEAN
By Phar Kim Beng
Numbers alone cannot tell a full story. The United States (US) has the world's largest federal debt, yet it is not expected to default. Japan's national debt is equally damning, at more than 120 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP). Yet, it too is not expected to collapse...
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Assessing Asia: The Perils and Promise of Asian Credit Ratings
By Phar Kim Beng
Money is the best coward. It goes to places with the least risk. Notwithstanding such a simple formula, credit ratings have yet to achieve the status of a science. Opaque accounting systems, and fiscal spending, have all put paid to a fully credible system of assessment...
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Political Humour of Driving ASEAN Carries Important Driving Lessons
By Phar Kim Beng
No one knows when the metaphor of ASEAN "driving the region" was first conceptualised. That however does not stop senior officials and policy makers alike from affirming its importance...
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Should ASEAN even consider a single currency?
By Sóley Ómarsdóttir
Joseph Stiglitz recently said in an interview that when the euro was created, there was general recognition that it would be difficult if one part of Europe ever faced greater shocks than other parts...
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Retaking our Position
By Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz
These days it is vogue to say that the economic and financial difficulties of the US and Europe have given Asia a golden opportunity to take its position as leaders of the world economy ...
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The Meaning of ASEAN Jamborees
By PHAR Kim Beng
The ASEAN Charter affirms that leaders from the member states will meet twice a year. When they do meet, they have many bilateral meetings at the side. This is a reflection of the growing connectivity of the region, which was put on display at the 19th ASEAN Summit in Bali. ASEAN jamborees are also held back-to-back with the ASEAN Plus Three (APT) Summit and the East Asian Summit (EAS)...
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High activity in Southeast Asia, not ASEAN
By Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz
November 2011 is proving to be a busy month for Southeast Asia's political and diplomatic offices. This is in contrast to the end of October, which saw private sector-led initiatives like the CIMB ASEAN Conference and the launch of the ASEAN Business Club in Kuala Lumpur...
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South China Sea as the Second "Persian Gulf": ASEAN Vision of One Community Can Be Affected
By PHAR Kim Beng
The tensions in South China Sea have ebbed and flowed for several centuries. But after US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton declared in July 2010 that the US had a 'national interest' in the South China Sea issue, followed by US-Vietnam naval exercises in the Sea one month later, the mercury went up...
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The Banking Industry in ASEAN on the Verge of Higher Growth
By PHAR Kim Beng
ASEAN's combined GDP is USD$ 2 trillion, which is larger than India's and Russia's...
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Keeping ASEAN Economic Community Relevant after the 19th ASEAN Summits
By Phar Kim Beng
In spite of the beehive of activity that took place in the region, the ASEAN Summit ended not so much on what Indonesia – the outgoing chair of ASEAN – had achieved in 2011, but whether ASEAN could retain its strategic relevance, now that the East Asian Summit (EAS) has included the United States and Russia.
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ASEAN's Growing Importance after Bali Concord III
By PHAR Kim Beng
No one can dispute that the seriousness about ASEAN has gone up appreciably after the 19th ASEAN Summit in Bali.
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Increasing ASEAN's democratic legitimacy
By Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz
In my last article, I concluded that most people living in ASEAN countries are not likely to have paid close attention to the high-level meetings that took place in November: namely the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC), the 19th ASEAN Summit and the sixth East Asia Summit (EAS).
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ASEAN's Three Pillared Community Must Continue To Look Outward, Not Inward
By PHAR Kim Beng
ASEAN will soon potentially have more than 650 million people under its fold, and collectively close to USD 1.9 trillion in GDP. They are but large, generic numbers.
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The Strengths and Future of ASEAN In Light of the Global Financial Maelstrom
Phar Kim Beng
The 19th ASEAN Summit in Bali began on an optimistic note to make ASEAN part of the Global Community of Nations.
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