According to a report from the ANZ Bank, “South East Asia will eventually displace China as The World’s Factory, due to the growing number of manufacturers setting up operations in the region because of its abundance of “cheap young labour”. The report says that, by 2030, more than half of the 650 million inhabitants of South East Asia will be under the age of 30.
ANZ economist Glenn Maguire said: “There is a connection between low-cost labour in places such as Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, cost-effective manufacturers in Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines, and advanced manufacturers in Singapore and Malaysia. In addition, South East Asian nations have committed to establishing an ASEAN Community by the end of this year, with goods, services, capital and labour able to move freely between the member states.”
Together, the South East Asian nations could increase intra-regional trade to $1 trillion by 2025, Mr Maguire estimates.
“Foreign direct investment in the region from the major economies could reach $106 billion in 2025, having eclipsed investment in China for the first time in 2013.”