BOOMING ECONOMY – FDI INFLOWS IN ASEAN INCREASE

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has released its latest economic updates, Thursday, as the ASEAN Economic Ministers Meeting capped off in the capital. ASEAN’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth was at 5.1% in 2013, while international merchandise trade and foreign direct investments showed a 1.4% and 7.1% increase respectively. Nominal GDP in 2013 has slightly increased as well. Indonesia remains to be the biggest economy in the region, followed by Thailand and Malaysia. International merchandise trade was at 2.5 trillion US dollars. Intra-regional trade represented over 24% of the total trade. China is still the biggest trade partner, followed by EU, Japan, and the US. Inflow of FDI in the bloc rose by 8 billion US dollars. Since 2011, highest FDIs in ASEAN are from the EU and Japan, accounting for almost 40% of FDI inflows.