In the 1950s, the Philippines was way ahead of its original ASEAN-5 counterparts — Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. The Philippines then had the second highest per capita GDP in Asia. Today, all its ASEAN-5 neighbors have surpassed the Philippines; Singapore has assumed first-world status. The latter has been replaced by emerging Vietnam in the ASEAN-5 group of countries. But by now, ASEAN-5’s newest member should have an economic status approximately equal to, or may even be slightly better than, the Philippines. Read the rest of this entry »

European banks have large presence in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, including the Philippines, which could affect the region’s credit market in case of a spillover from the European debt problem. Read the rest of this entry »

JAPAN HAS agreed to begin funding economic cooperation initiatives with the ASEAN early next year as both parties finalized guidelines of project selection and management, a local trade official said on Friday. Read the rest of this entry »

HONG KONG  – The Asian Development Bank on Tuesday trimmed its 2012 growth forecast for emerging East Asian economies including China, as the eurozone turmoil threatens to drag the global economy back into crisis. Read the rest of this entry »

A network of Southeast Asian fisheries organizations has expressed dismay at the results of the recently concluded Asean Summit 2011 in Bali, Indonesia. Read the rest of this entry »

Four Filipina activists were detained by Bali police and are facing possible deportation for participating in a protest against the Asean Summit attended by the world’s leaders, including US President Barack Obama, in Indonesia. Read the rest of this entry »

BALI — The Philippines on Thursday called on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to sit down and finally tackle the adoption of a legally-binding agreement on the protection of migrant workers. Read the rest of this entry »

“GUARDED optimism” was the reply of Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory Domingo when asked by reporters about his sentiment on Asean integration by 2015. And this is how it is proceeding despite the euro experience. In a recent article by Esther Samboh of The Jakarta Post, the World Bank (WB) says that Asean should learn from the mistakes of the crisis-stricken European Union (EU). The WB’s managing director, who happens to be Indonesia’s former finance minister, said that Asean integration was still a relevant plan despite the EU’s current troubles. Here’s the rest of that article: Read the rest of this entry »

TOKYO — Asia could be as wealthy as Europe by mid-century, but only if it tackles key challenges from inequality and corruption to climate change, an Asian Development Bank (ADB) study said. Read the rest of this entry »

Tourism operators say they will suffer and their expenses will rise by as much as 50% if they have to raise minimum wages to 300 baht a day in January. Read the rest of this entry »