"Taken as a single entity, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) - which is made up of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam - would rival the more traditional BRIC emerging markets in terms of economic importance."
ASEAN Integration: What To Expect
http://www.businessmonitor.com/news-and-views/asean-integration-what-to-expect
"The International Monetary Fund forecasts growth at 5 per cent this year for the Asean-5, which consists of the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam - a figure that is in line with growth in the last few years."
"Genuine Asean economic integration - the free flow of goods, services, capital and people within the region - would deliver huge gains, not least from deeper integration into global supply chains."
"The bulk of intra-regional tariffs have been abolished. Partial progress has been achieved on simplifying and harmonising Customs procedures, cross-border infrastructure projects, and opening up Asean skies to low-cost airlines."
"(O)verall, the AEC is well behind its targets to reduce and abolish non-tariff and regulatory barriers in goods, services and investment."
Report card on Asean economic integration
http://www.straitstimes.com/news/opinion/eye-the-economy/story/report-card-asean-economic-integration-20140508
"Asean leaders in 2003 resolved to establish an Asean Economic Community (AEC) as a single production base and market by 2020. In 2007, this date was advanced to 2015."
"A 2013 study by the Asian Development Bank and Institute of Southeast Asian Studies cautions that: “Although the self-imposed deadline for the realization of the Asean Economic Community is 2015, it should not be viewed as a hard target. One should not expect 2015 to see Asean suddenly transformed, its nature and processes abruptly changed, its members’ interests substantially altered. Rather, 2015 should be viewed more as a milestone year—a measure of a work in progress—rather than as a hard target year.”"
Asean's elusive integration
