Services is an increasingly important sector throughout the world, and ASEAN is of no exception. By 2016, the services sector had accounted for 53.1 percent of ASEAN’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In terms of trade, ASEAN’s export reached US$ 326.8 billion in 2016 or almost 2.5 times the level just a decade earlier, while ASEAN’s import reached US$ 316.5 billion in 2016 or almost doubled within the same period. The services sector is also a major recipient of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows into the region.
ASEAN recognised the growing role of services, not just as a key economic sector by itself, but also as the critical link in both up- and down-stream of production networks and supply chain processes. ASEAN Member States have made significant efforts in opening up and improving the efficiency and competitiveness of their services sectors. With the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2015 and the launch of the AEC Blueprint 2025, ASEAN remains committed to further integrating and improving the competitiveness of its services sector.
This ASEAN Services Report (ASR) is a new initiative to highlight the development of the services sector in the region throughout the years, and more importantly, the efforts and evolving policies of ASEAN and its Member States, collectively and individually, to improve the competitiveness of their services sectors. As ASEAN celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2017, this Report comes out timely as a good and useful source of information for reference.
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