Free trade agreements (FTAs) have proliferated in East Asia in recent years. As of December 2008, eight bilateral FTAs and one plurilateral FTA involving Japan have entered into force; additional negotiations are ongoing with several more countries. The proliferation of FTAs in Japan and other...

This paper reviews Thailand's structural changes, the 1997 crisis experience, and recovery and lessons from the crisis. The paper then discusses the impacts of the subprime crisis on the Thai economy and the policy responses to date. The paper ends by discussing strategies to rebalance growth by...

We used the United States (US) International Trade Commission's uniquely detailed 1995-2007 PRC customs data to better understand the pattern of trade between the People's Republic of China (PRC) and its two largest trading partners, Japan and the US. Our review finds that only a small share of...

In this paper we examine the changing nature of Japan's commercial policy over the last 25 years while reviewing Japan's changing structure of trade, FDI and economy that underlay policy changes. We argue that until the late 1990s Japan adopted a two-track approach of relying on multilateral...

The global economic crisis has affected the East Asian economies via trade and investment. The export-led model which had been responsible for the "East Asian Miracle " now must redirect the basis of growth from exports sent to the US and Europe to regional and domestic demand. Regional trade...

Although the overall economic performance of economies in South Asia in recent years has been impressive, there is concern that an aging and increasingly inadequate infrastructure may limit the potential for further growth and economic development. A critical infrastructure component is the...

This paper unveils a systematic pattern in the People's Republic of China's (PRC) processing trade. In a cross-section of the PRC's provinces, the average distance traveled by processing imports (import distance) is negatively correlated with the average distance traveled by processing exports...

This paper examines the export experience of East Asian economies in the aftermaths of the crisis against the backdrop of a systematic analysis of precrisis trade patterns. The analysis is motivated by the "decoupling" thesis, which was a popular theme in Asian policy circles in the lead-up to...

This paper conducts an in-depth analysis of the impacts of the global financial crisis on the People's Republic of China's (PRC's) small and medium enterprises (SMEs). It also provides relevant policy suggestions at the end. First, this paper reviews the impacts of the 1997 Asian financial...

"Open Skies," in general, refers to the liberalization of aviation markets that can be pursued on a bilateral, regional, or multilateral basis. At the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) level, liberalization of airfreight and passenger services is targeted by December 2008. This...