Implications of Asean Integration on Philippine Economy

ABSTRACT

The ASEAN regional integration visualizes the conversion of economies in Southeast Asia into a unified market and manufacturing base by promoting the unobstructed flow of goods and services. It signifies better chances of more market entries, lesser input costs, lower discharge expenditures, greater inflows of foreign investments, and wider options for quality commodities and services at reasonable prices. This research examines issues as to whether the benefits outweigh the costs of trade liberalization, its impacts on national economic growth, and the Philippines’ preparedness to overcome the impediments posed by the integration. Overall, the outcomes of the interviews show that the Philippines is not yet fully adapted to aligning domestic benchmarks with international standards although it has accomplished vital progress in certain sectors. The study also reveals that member affiliates and the Philippine economy can reap the benefits of the liberalization so long as they prevail upon their commitments to forge ahead with achieving the goals of the ASEAN Economic Community. Elimination of cross-border taxes, compliance with harmonized regulatory policies, and leaders’ steadfastness to attain the goals of the integration are the key factors for the success of the liberalization. Since the research deals more on the qualitative aspects, the authors recommend more statistical data gathering and in-depth quantitative analysis to obtain a more accurate gauge of the overall impacts of the regional integration.

I. Introduction

The advent of regional trade alliances during the past several decades has received considerable attention because of the necessity for mutual cooperation among countries to attain economic progress(Austria,2004). There is also much evidence documented on the importance of trade pacts, most notable of which is the European Union trade consolidation that fared well internationally(Capannelli,2014).Consequently, the ASEAN...