Trade and investment patterns in Asia: implications for multilateralizing regionalism

Abstract

This paper documents and analyzes emerging patterns of trade and foreign direct investment in Asia with a view to informing the contemporary policy debate on multilateralizing regionalism. The key theme running through the paper is the pivotal role of global production sharing in transforming trade patterns. The findings make a strong case for a global, rather than a regional, approach to trade and investment policy making. Global production sharing has strengthened economic interdependence among the countries in the region, but the dynamism of the regional cross-border production networks depends inexorably on trade with the rest of the world, particularly with North America and the European Union.