ASEAN, US establish comprehensive strategic partnership

[Viet]

US President Joe Biden (L) shakes hands with Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summits in Phnom Penh on November 12, 2022. Photo by AFP

ASEAN and the U.S. agreed to establish a comprehensive strategic partnership during a high-level summit in Phnom Penh on Saturday.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen announced the official launch of the ASEAN-U.S. comprehensive strategic partnership at the ASEAN-U.S. Summit.

"ASEAN is the heart of the Indo-Pacific strategy during my tenure," said Biden.
"Today we have taken a new step forward, starting a new era of cooperation by kicking off the U.S.-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership."

In a statement at the U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit in Washington in May, both sides agreed to upgrade their relationship from a strategic to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Also on Saturday, ASEAN established comprehensive strategic partnership with India at the 19th ASEAN - India Summit.
Indian Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar emphasized that ASEAN is "an important pillar of India's Act East policy and is at the heart of India's Indo-Pacific initiative.

Attending the summit, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh suggested ASEAN and India strengthen coordination, ensure regional order, respect the rule of law, behave equally, respect each other and cooperate for mutual development.
Chinh also led a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation to attend the ASEAN+3 Summit with Chinese, Korean and Japanese partners.

The leaders of ASEAN+3 agreed to soon fully resume trade, promote trade liberalization, increase cooperation towards sustainable development and green growth.

Chinh said that ASEAN+3 leaders should focus on total trade resumption and economic reopening, boosting cooperation for green and sustainable growth.

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Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attends the ASEAN+3 Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on November 12, 2022. Photo courtesy of Vietnam Government Portal

At the second ASEAN-Australia Summit, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese emphasized his commitment to strengthening ties with ASEAN, supporting ASEAN's central role in the region and working with ASEAN to implement substantive cooperation.

According to Australian data, two-way trade turnover between ASEAN and Australia in 2021 grew by more than 26%, reaching $95.51 billion.

Australia's total foreign direct investment in ASEAN in 2021 reached $20.57 billion.
Chinh said that in order for the ASEAN-Australia relationship to be elevated to comprehensive strategic partnership, the two sides should soon fully restore and promote trade and investment exchanges, including accelerating the upgrade of the Agreement Establishing ASEAN - Australia - New Zealand Free Trade Area.

He further proposed Australia to open up its market more widely for ASEAN agricultural products, as well as speed up quarantine and customs clearance activities.

Chinh is joining the leaders of ASEAN countries to attend the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summits and related meetings in Phnom Penh from November 10 to 13.

Leaders of ASEAN countries and 10 partners will discuss issues related to developing the ASEAN community, cooperation between ASEAN and partners as well as sharing views on solutions to regional and international problems.

ASEAN, US establish comprehensive strategic partnership - VnExpress International

ASEAN and the U.S. agreed to establish a comprehensive strategic partnership during a high-level summit in Phnom Penh on Saturday.

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ASEAN is trying to be everything to everybody.

 

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Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)​

The United States has a robust trade and investment relationship with the ten countries that comprise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). These countries -- Brunei Darussalam, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam -- collectively the United States’ fourth-largest goods trading partner and together represent a market with a GDP of more than $3 trillion and a population of 667 million people. The United States and ASEAN meet regularly on trade and investment issues, including under our 2006 Trade and Investment Framework Agreement.

Economic and Trade Statistics
U.S. goods and services trade with ASEAN totaled an estimated $362.2 billion in 2020. Exports were $111.9 billion; imports were $250.3 billion. The U.S. goods and services trade deficit with ASEAN was $138.4 billion in 2020.
U.S. Goods trade (exports plus imports) with ASEAN totaled $307.7 billion in 2020. Goods exports totaled $76.4 billion; goods imports totaled $231.3 billion. The U.S. goods trade deficit with ASEAN was $154.9 billion in 2020.
Trade in services with ASEAN (exports and imports) totaled an estimated $54.5 billion in 2020. Services exports were $35.5 billion; services imports were $19.0 billion. The U.S. services trade surplus with ASEAN was $16.6 billion in 2020.
According to the Department of Commerce, U.S. exports of goods and services to ASEAN supported an estimated 656 thousand jobs in 2019 (latest data available) (358 thousand supported by goods exports and 299 thousand supported by services exports).

Exports
• U.S. goods exports to ASEAN in 2020 were $76.4 billion, down 11.2 percent ($9.7 billion) from 2019 but up 8 percent from 2010. U.S. exports to ASEAN account for 5.4 percent of overall U.S. exports in 2020.
• The top export markets in the region for 2020 were: Singapore ($26.9 billion), Malaysia ($12.3 billion), Thailand ($11.3 billion), Vietnam ($9.9 billion), and Philippines ($7.7. billion).
• The top export categories (2-digit HS) in 2020 were: electrical machinery ($15.0 billion), machinery ($9.2 billion), mineral fuels ($5.8 billion), optical and medical instruments ($5.2 billion), and aircraft ($5.2 billion).
• U.S. total exports (domestic exports plus re-exports) of agricultural products to ASEAN totaled $13.6 billion in 2020. Leading domestic export categories include: soybeans ($2.2 billion), cotton ($1.6 billion), wheat ($1.5 billion), dairy products ($1.3 billion), and soybean meal ($1.2 billion).
• U.S. exports of services to ASEAN were an estimated $35.5 billion in 2020, 13.2 percent ($5.4 billion) less than 2019, but 77 percent greater than 2010 levels. Leading services exports from the U.S. to ASEAN were in the research and development services, professional and management services, and intellectual property (licenses for the use of research and development) sectors.

Imports
• U.S. goods imports from ASEAN totaled $231.3 billion in 2020, up 12.3 percent ($25.4 billion) from 2019, and up 115 percent from 2010. U.S. imports from ASEAN account for 9.9 percent of overall U.S. imports in 2020.
• The top import markets in the region for 2020 were: Vietnam ($79.6 billion), Malaysia $44.1 billion), Thailand ($37.6 billion), Singapore ($30.8 billion), and Indonesia ($20.2 billion).
• The top import categories (2-digit HS) in 2020 were: electrical machinery ($72.9 billion), machinery ($29.9 billion), furniture and bedding ($15.0 billion), knit apparel ($12.3 billion), and rubber ($9.6 billion).
• U.S. total imports (general definition) of agricultural products from ASEAN totaled $12.6 billion in 2020. Leading categories include: sugars, sweeteners, beverages bases ($3.4 billion), vegetable oils ($1.8 billion), tree nuts ($1.3 billion), processed fruit and vegetables ($827 million), and rice ($725 million).
• U.S. imports of services from ASEAN were an estimated $19.0 billion in 2020, 20.5 percent ($4.9 billion) less than 2019, but 58 percent greater than 2010 levels. Leading services imports from ASEAN to the U.S. were in the professional and management services, research and development, and financial services sectors.

Trade Balance
• The U.S. goods trade deficit with ASEAN was $154.9 billion in 2020, a 29.2 percent increase ($35.1 billion) over 2019.
• The United States has a services trade surplus of an estimated $16.6 billion with ASEAN in 2020, down 3.1 percent from 2019.

Investment
• U.S. foreign direct investment (FDI) in ASEAN (stock) was $328.5 billion in 2020, a 3.2 percent increase from 2019. U.S. direct investment in ASEAN is led by nonbank holding companies, manufacturing, and wholesale trade.
• ASEAN's FDI in the United States (stock) was $30.7 billion in 2020, up 3.2 percent from 2019. ASEAN's direct investment in the U.S. is led by manufacturing, wholesale trade, and depository institutions.
• Sales of services in ASEAN by majority U.S.-owned affiliates were $118.3 billion in 2018 (latest data available), while sales of services in the United States by majority ASEAN-owned firms were $43.5 billion.
NOTE: Services trade data includes all ASEAN countries except Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, and Laos.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

The United States has a robust trade and investment relationship with the ten countries that comprise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). These countries -- Brunei Darussalam, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam --...

ustr.gov