This paper distills some policy lessons from the financial services integration program in the European Union for East Asia. Focusing on the improved cross-border facilitation of financial flows rather than on general macroeconomic factors related to optimal currency area formation, the paper...

The growth rebalancing model, which places the nontradable services sector on center stage, is important to spur on faster growth in this sector and tap its potential to become another engine of growth for ASEAN economies. While ASEAN countries have allocated the bulk of their fiscal stimulus...

The paper analyzes how various preferential trading arrangements deal with agriculture liberalization and examines a few case studies highlighting the provisions on agriculture. It assesses the effect of preferential trade agreements on agriculture trade flows in the case of ASEAN. It finds that...

The study tries to shed some light on this linkage in the Philippine case.

The paper provides a background for services trade negotiations with Japan. It summarizes various discussions on international trade in services, the challenge of further services trade liberalization, and the rise of regional trade agreements. It discusses the different modalities of services...

This paper attempts to examine the performances of Asian AMCs. Our analysis reveals that the AMCs vary significantly in their design and performances. We claim that AMCs can trigger moral hazard-inspired bank lending, especially when the mode of NPL transfer from banks to AMC entails little cost...

In a democratic country, economic policies succeed or fail depending on its political support. Open trade policies that were initiated and accepted years ago, in particular, can be reversed, within the limits of the country's international commitments, depending on the government's conviction as...

The paper discusses the ASEAN + 3 integration in the context of the literature on hub-and-spoke regionalism. It argues that, provided proper rules of origin are incorporated, the different bilateral arrangements between ASEAN countries and each of the three East Asian economies are building...

This paper focuses on the legal environment, particularly the insolvency system, that would influence the success of Philippine Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs), also known as asset management companies (AMCs) in other countries. Since SPVs will have to operate under a given insolvency regime...