ASEAN Economic Integration: Quo Vadis?

Over the past five decades, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has made tremendous economic progress. While the continuous improvements in the region’s macroeconomic indicators might give the impression that this growth trend can be sustained smoothly in the long run, that might not necessarily be the case. In this paper, three imminent challenges are discussed — changing patterns of investment, slowing productivity, and the China factor. For the Association to cope with these risks and forge new development paths, structural reforms within, and deeper integration between its member states are imperative.