US COMPANIES FIND ASEAN MARKET INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 6 (Bernama) -- American companies expect the Asean
(Association of Southeast Asian Nations) market to become increasingly important
for their businesses, according to the findings of the ASEAN Business Outlook
Survey 2011.

The majority of companies or some 73 per cent of the survey respondents said
they expect Asean's importance to their business will increase over the next two
years, with 85 per cent of them planning to expand their business in ASEAN.

No company is planning on any cutback, it said.

The survey also revealed that the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement was vital for
U.S. businesses, with 80 per cent of respondents saying that their companies
used the tariff benefits of the FTAs ASEAN has completed with its trade
partners.

"The ASEAN-China FTA was also highly rated with 49 per cent of companies
using its benefits," the survey revealed.

The ASEAN Business Outlook survey, which is now in its 10th year, seeks to
understand the outlook on business growth and perceptions of doing business in
ASEAN.

It interviewed 327 senior executives from U.S. companies in Malaysia,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Singapore, The Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The survey was conducted by The American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore
(AmCham Singapore) in collaboration with many other related associations and
chambers.

Meanwhile, on Malaysia, the survey said Malaysia improved in a number of
local business factors, such as the availability of raw materials and low cost
labour in 2011.

"However, new concerns have appeared, including the availability of
trained personnel for some positions and problems with laws and regulations.

"Corruption, a long-standing issue, has greatly improved, with only 35 per
cent dissatisfaction this year compared to 63 per cent in 2010," the survey
said, adding that overall, 80 per cent of the respondents still predicted that
their business will expand in Malaysia.

The survey also revealed that all respondents had predicted an increase in
the housing cost as well as living cost and three quarters of the respondents
expect an increase in the interest rate.

Vice President of AmCham Malaysia, Tim Garland said the American
companies' positive business forecast and expansion in Malaysia were great
testaments to the effective implementation of Malaysia's Government
Transformation Program (GTP) and Economic Transformation Program (ETP).

"AmCham Malaysia is excited to be part of Malaysia corporate expansion in
ASEAN and we will be working closely with all key stakeholders towards
reducing regulatory barriers and improving the ease of doing business locally
and in ASEAN, for existing and potential American investors as they share in
ASEAN growth," he said.

The majority of respondents, he said, are satisfied or neutral towards the
government’s guidelines and the fairness of their applications, and with local
government institutions.