Inside ASEAN’s push to reshape its economy

Free Malaysia Today

ASEAN is making bold economic moves — from modernising trade rules and building a regional semiconductor supply chain to doubling its digital economy by 2030. Here’s a breakdown of the big deliverables set to reshape the region.  Read More:  https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2025/12/09/how-asean-is-keeping-up-with-a-changing-global-economy  Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com Follow FMT on Facebook: https://bit.ly/49JJoo5 Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM Follow FMT on X: https://bit.ly/48zARSW  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/48Cq76h Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3uKuQFp Follow FMT Berita on TikTok: https://bit.ly/48vpnQG  Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/42VyzMX Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/42YytEb Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/42WrsUj Follow FMT on WhatsApp: https://bit.ly/49GMbxW  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Download FMT News App: Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46 App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP  #FMTExplainer

Transcript

00:00Trade, high-tech production, digitalization.

00:05These are the building blocks of a value-driven economy.

00:10And this is what ASEAN's latest economic push is about.

00:14Faster trade, building its own chip industry,

00:17and doubling its digital economy,

00:19all within the next five years.

00:21Earlier this year at the ASEAN Economic Minister's retreat,

00:3218 priority economic deliverables were adopted to drive these goals.

00:37Here are the highlights.

00:39First up, the upgrade of ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, or ATIGA.

00:44This is the backbone of regional trade,

00:47the rulebook that governs how goods move seamlessly across Southeast Asia.

00:52The upgrade introduces forward-looking provisions on remanufactured goods,

00:57green trade, and even trade in humanitarian crisis situations.

01:02The aim is clear,

01:05to keep ASEAN's supply chains resilient and efficient under any circumstances,

01:10and to make ASEAN more integrated, sustainable,

01:13and future-ready in navigating global trade challenges.

01:16Next, the Digital Economy Framework Agreement.

01:21This is a first-of-its-kind pact across ASEAN,

01:25which boldly promises to double the region's digital economy to $2 trillion by 2030.

01:31How? By creating a single digital rulebook,

01:35from payments and e-commerce to data privacy,

01:38identity systems, and even AI regulation.

01:41Crucially, it's designed to bring small businesses into the fold,

01:46not just the big players.

01:48In practice, that means a company can scale across ASEAN without navigating 11 different sets of rules.

01:56On to semiconductors.

01:58ASEAN is aiming to become a serious player in chips,

02:02which power everything from smartphones to electric vehicles to AI.

02:07But supply chains today are fragile, concentrated in just a few countries.

02:12We saw the consequences during the pandemic.

02:15Factories stalled.

02:16Car production froze.

02:18Prices spiked.

02:19That's why ASEAN is rolling out the ASEAN framework for an integrated semiconductor supply chain.

02:25Six countries, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia,

02:32already have the capacity to anchor it.

02:35Others can contribute minerals, assembly, or industrial clusters.

02:39The idea is simple.

02:41Stitch these strengths together into a coordinated regional supply chain.

02:46ASEAN has also upgraded trade with China through the ASEAN-China FTA 3.0 Upgrade Protocol.

02:55China is ASEAN's largest trading partner, with two-way trade topping US$772 billion in 2024.

03:04The ASEAN-China FTA 3.0 aims to enhance economic cooperation through new areas such as the digital economy,

03:11green economy, supply chain resilience, competition, and consumer protection,

03:16and support for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises.

03:20Next, we have the block's first electric vehicle roadmap.

03:25The priorities are clear.

03:27Building charging infrastructure, unlocking finance,

03:31and setting up a regional coordinating mechanism.

03:34In short, it's about laying the foundation for a region-wide EV ecosystem.

03:40Other deliverables are also moving forward,

03:44from a minerals development vision to regional energy cooperation and instant payment connectivity.

03:51So, what does all this mean?

03:53If ASEAN can deliver, it won't just be catching up with global trends.

03:58It could place the region at the forefront of digital trade, semiconductors, and clean tech,

04:04and make ASEAN the fourth-largest economic bloc by 2030.

04:08That's our shoppiece FMT.

04:11That's our shoppiece FMT.

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