KUALA LUMPUR: The increasingly divided international economy offers a golden opportunity for Asean to position the regional bloc as a key player in the world, says Asean Business Advisory Council (BAC) Malaysia chairman Tan Sri Nazir Razak.
“The global decoupling is an opportunity for Asean. We must be ambitious and set the right priorities with specific deliverables. What we want to deliver, must create value.
“We must get proper partnership engagement between the government, the private sector and the Asean secretariat, working as a cohesive team,” Nazir said at the Asean Economic Opinion Leaders Conference: Outlook for 2025.
Nazir was speaking during a panel session titled “Reinforcing Regional Economic Integration for a Resilient Asean”.
The global decoupling refers to reducing interdependence between nations, and an example is the ongoing efforts by the United States and China to separate their economies in sensitive sectors.
Nazir said BAC Malaysia has outlined 12 initiatives to enhance integration among Asean members including a proposed Asean prospectus.
He said this will allow companies seeking listings on the stock exchange to choose between a Malaysian prospectus to raise funds from investors in Malaysia, or an Asean prospectus to raise capitals across countries in the region.
“This initiative will bring our markets closer together, and I believe it can be very productive,” he added.
Nazir said Asean economies must attain economies of scale for their businesses to compete with global giants like China, suggesting that the path forward lies in increased collaboration and integration, such as establishing a specific category of Asean business entities.
By qualifying as an Asean business entity, Nazir said companies can benefit from the free movement of people and business operations across the region.
He added that he is optimistic that Asean will achieve its objectives under Malaysia’s chairmanship of the regional bloc this year.
Asean Economic Community deputy secretary-general Satvinder Singh said Chinese companies, both private and state-owned, are beginning to put effective foreign direct investment into Asean.
“It is not just the Western ecosystem that is now beginning to look outside of China and into our region (and) trying to establish their global supply chains,” he said.
“Now the reverse is happening. We are beginning to see the Chinese companies bringing effective FDI with technologies, partnering with partners on the ground.”
