Increased trade within Asia-Pacific key to economic revival, says UN regional body

Taking measures to boost trade among Asia-Pacific nations will be critical for governments in the region to help their economies recover from the turmoil sparked by the financial crisis in the West, according to a new set of United Nations guidelines.

Policymakers from the Asia-Pacific region should focus on exports to drive economic growth and recovery, advised the publication from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

“South-South trade and investment has significant growth potential in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Director of the Trade and Investment Division of ESCAP Ravi Ratnayake.

“Although intraregional trade has been growing, many of the countries in the region still trade more with the United States and Europe than with each other,” added Mr. Ratnayake.

The new ESCAP publication, Navigating Out of the Crisis: A Trade-led Recovery – A practical guide for trade policymakers in Asia and the Pacific, provides policymakers with a number of trade and investment policy tools to reverse the economic and social impacts of the crisis.

The guide outlines several practical solutions for integrating markets to help boost intraregional trade, recommends steps to develop and maintain export competitiveness for industries, promotes improvements in national business and investment environments, and encourages the development and use of green technology.

A solution highlighted in the guide is the establishment of national crisis management committees, including relevant ministries -commerce, finance, industry, labour, social affairs - as well as representatives from business and civil society. The committees would enable swift crisis-related actions.