At the start of 2020, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) – potentially the world’s largest free trade deal – seemed on track to be signed by the end of the year. However, the coronavirus pandemic has slowed that process, raising some questions about when the agreement will be formalised.
In the Southeast Asian region, the Philippines is one of the countries that has been affected the most by the COVID-19 pandemic. The country is estimated to lose between three percent and four percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) this year.
Indonesia’s retail sales index shrank by 20.6 percent in May, the biggest reduction since 2008, mostly due to plunging clothes sales and cultural and recreational spending, according to a survey by the Bank Indonesia (BI).
Vietnam is serving as an important bridge between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the US, said Director of Stimson's Southeast Asia programme Brian Eyler.
About eight million Filipinos would go jobless as the pandemic rages and while the Philippine economy reels from the most stringent lockdown in the region, slow disease containment and an influx of returning migrant workers, according to Malaysian financial giant Maybank.
The coronavirus crisis has severely affected livelihoods, local industries and the economy in general.
Thailand's cross-border trade fell by 9.7% year-on-year in the first five months of 2020 as the coronavirus ravaged the global economy and led neighbouring countries to close nearly all border checkpoints.
The Thai government has issued stimulus packages worth 22.4 billion baht (US$718 million) to revitalize its tourism industry. The packages are aimed at boosting domestic travel by subsidizing hotel accommodation, airline tickets, and facilities in tourist destinations around the country. International visitors contribute some US$64 billion to the economy annualy but foreign arrivals could tumble by 65 percent in 2020 because of the pandemic.
<p>Time: November 2025<br /> By: WTO and International Trade Group, Legal Department – VCCI</p>
