Goods across border within ASEAN faces barriers: WEF report

HANOI (Xinhua) — Inefficient border administration and inadequate infrastructure are major barriers to trade in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), World Economic Forum (WEF) report said on Thursday.

The report, titled Enabling Trade in the Greater ASEAN Region, studied four indicators including market access, border administration, transport and communication infrastructure, and business environment.

“Generally speaking, moving goods across border within ASEAN remains costly and time consuming,” said Thierry Geiger, WEF economist and co-author of the report. “It affects the competitiveness of ASEAN’s exports by increasing costs and shipping times.”

The study drew on the results of the Enabling Trade Index (ETI) 2010. The index was compiled by World Economic Forum in collaboration with some companies and experts, covering 125 economies worldwide.

The ASEAN countries covered by the ETI study span the entire ETI ranking. Singapore ranks first overall, followed by Malaysia in 30th place, Thailand in 60th place, Indonesia in 68th place, Vietnam in 71st place, the Philippines in 92nd place and Cambodia in 102nd place. The study did not cover three other ASEAN countries namely Brunei Darussalam, Laos and Myanmar.

The report highlights a “single window” practice in custom clearance. It is a “one-stop for all” procedure being pushed in the ASEAN.

So far, only Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand are operating a single window while other members are in the process of establishing it. ASEAN plans to have all members operating such a facility by 2012.

Thailand was a pilot in implementing the ASEAN Single Window Initiative. In just four years, the cost to import has been cut by 25 percent, the number of documents required was trimmed down from 12 to three, and the time necessary to clear customs was shortened from 22 days to 13, according to the report.