(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) East Asian nations are expected to lead in world economic expansion by maintaining relatively high growth rates in coming years compared to developed countries, according to an advisor at a regional business council.
Azman Hashim, professional banker and East Asia Business Council advisor, told reporters Monday on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Economic Ministers Meeting that cooperation between the region's countries has been moving forward, resulting in stronger bonding and resilience.
"Our 13 countries, which are geographically close, economically complementary and culturally connected have a tremendous ability to shape the future," he said, referring to countries represented in the Council - the 10 ASEAN member states, Japan, China and South Korea.
"We are home to some of the world's most innovative thinkers and most efficient manufacturers, thanks in part to our investments in each other and our tight financial and supply chain links," he added.
The East Asian grouping covers 48 percent of the world's population and accounts for 27 percent of the global gross domestic product (GDP), also making up 30 percent of world trade.
China, Japan and Korea are the biggest trade and investment partners of the ASEAN bloc, which consists of Malaysia, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Hashim also expressed Monday the Council's full support for the China-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) - seen as a rival to the United States-led Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement.
Hashim said the RCEP will streamline all the different trade and investment liberalization and facilitation measures found in bilateral free trade pacts among the 16 participating countries.
He described RCEP as a game changer in global trade, as the pact will bring together 45 percent of the world population and have a combined GDP of around $17.23 trillion - a third of the current annual global economy.
The RCEP involves the 10 ASEAN member countries and its free trade pact partners - namely China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand.
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