Trade and Investment Linkages and Policy Coordination: Lessons from Case Studies in Asian Developing Countries
Asia has undoubtedly benefited greatly from globalization, with many countries of the region relying to a significant extent on international trade and investment as their main engine for economic growth and development. As the economies of the region continue to grow at the fastest pace of any other regions in the world, however, some have begun to question how well the gains are shared within the countries themselves. Indeed, there is some evidence that higher economic growth has led to increases in inequality in the countries of the region. This in turn has led to the realization that trade, investment and related domestic policies, which are de facto developed and implemented independently by various government bodies, need to be made more coherent if one is to achieve a more sustainable and inclusive growth, as well to maintain a country or a region’s competitiveness in the global economy.