M'SIA RANKED 6TH HIGHLY INTEGRATED ECONOMIES IN ASIA-PACIFIC

From Mikhail Raj Abdullah

LIMA (Peru), Nov 20 (Bernama) -- Malaysia ranked sixth most highly integrated
economies in the Asia-Pacific region, the Pacific Economic
Cooperation Council (PECC) said Wednesday.

Topping the list are Hong Kong, followed by Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea
and New Zealand, the PECC, which developed a new set of indicators to measure
the extent of integration in the region, said in a statement.

Indonesia is the least integrated economy among 17 members of the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) forum polled in computing the index
between 1990 and 2005, it said in its state of the region report to be released
at the Apec Leaders' Summit this weekend.

PECC, the only non-government official observer of Apec, is a unique
tripartite partnership of senior individuals from business and industry,
government and academic who discuss freely current and practical policy
issues of the Asia-Pacific region.

Currently, Malaysia's trade with Apec member economies is significant,
with
trade with the grouping last year amounting to RM851.1 billion, accounting for
76.7 percent of its total trade.

During the Jan-Sept 2008 period, Malaysia-Apec trade amounted to RM694.5
billion or 75.9 percent of total trade, according to figures provided by the
International Trade and Industry Ministry.

Apec is also a major source of foreign direct investment (FDI) to Malaysia,
with approved FDI from Apec in the 10-month period amounting to RM17.5 billion
(US$1=RM3.62) or 52.4 percent of total investments of RM25.8 billion approved.

PECC said the entire list of countries from most to least integrated to the
regional economy include Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, New Zealand,
Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, Chile, Japan, Mexico, Canada, the Philippines,
Vietnam, the United States, China and Indonesia.

"As Apec prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2009, members can
take some satisfaction in the finding that the region as a whole has become more
integrated," said Yuen Pau Woo, president of the Asia-Pacific Foundation of
Canada and co-author of the report issued by PECC.

He said there has been a steady upward trend in the economic integration of
the region from 1991 to 2000.

Following the bursting of the Information Technology (IT) bubble in 2001,
regional integration declined or was flat for the next three years, but picked
up again in 2004 and 2005.

"The effects of the current economic crisis on the integration index
remains
to be seen," he said.

However, PECC took to task the grouping for achieving limited progress on
region-wide liberalisation, saying "concerted unilateral liberalisation" and
"open regionalism" have turned out to be largely empty slogans.

The proliferation of free trade agreements seem to suggest that while Apec
members are keen in greater market access, "they are selective in their choice
of trade and investment partners."

"They are quite ready to exercise discrimination against fellow Apec
members
as well as non-Apec members," PECC said.

Still, PECC said given that the index shows growing economic integration in
the region, "the very least that one can say is that the Apec project -- in its
broadest ambition -- has not been in vain."

-- BERNAMA