Tag / ASEAN

by Mike Poverello

New Issue of the World Customs Journal

The latest edition of the World Customs Journal (March 2012) comprises what appears to be a disparate array of topics. Professor David Widdowson invites your attention to the underlying theme of contrasting approaches to universal imperatives which permeates several of the contributions, which includes, for example,

  • a comparative analysis of excise taxation across the ASEAN region and identifies the need for standardisation in readiness for the impending introduction of the ASEAN Economic Community. It’s nice, for a change to have articles which deal with Excise.
  • a research paper concerning the diversity of de minimis arrangements in the APEC region, highlighting their impact on economic benefits and costs.
  • a review of a variety of regional approaches to coordinated border management, and
  • the introduction of the EU’s electronic customs environment as a means of achieving regional standardisation.

The underlying commonality of border management imperatives is also reflected in this edition’s Special Report. In his insightful article ‘Lines and Flows: the Beginning and End of Borders’ Alan Bersin (former Commissioner of the CBP) challenges the traditional concept of international borders, and introduces a paradigm that views global cooperation as a fundamental requirement for effective border management. The next edition of the Journal will focus on excise policy and practice, and will include papers presented at the World Customs Organization’s Global Excise Summit which will be held on 2-3 July at the WCO Headquarters in Brussels. Source: The World Customs Journal.

by Mike Poverello

Open Borders and Integrated Supply Chains break down Global Trade Barriers

East Asian economies have recorded marked improvements in their ability to enable trade, while traditional frontrunners Singapore and Hong Kong retain a clear lead at the top of the global rankings, according to the Global Enabling Trade Report 2012, released today by the World Economic Forum.

The report, which is published every two years, also confirms strong showings for Europe’s major economies, with Finland and the United Kingdom both advancing six places to 6th and 11th, respectively, and Germany and France remaining stable at 13th and 20. Other large economies fare less well: the US continues its decline to 23rd, as does China (56th) and India (100th). Among emerging economies, Turkey (62nd) and Mexico (65th) remain stable while Chile (14th), Saudi Arabia (27th) and South Africa (63rd) climb in the ranking. ASEAN members Thailand (57th), Indonesia (58th) and the Philippines (72nd) also improve. Perhaps the proponents of OSBPs and a BMA in South Africa have not read this or have deeper insight into the matter.

As well as ranking nations’ trade openness, the report finds that traditional notions of trade are increasingly outdated as global value chains require new measurements, policies and cooperation. The report also finds that security, quality and trade can be mutually reinforcing through supply chain integrity efforts, but a knowledge gap in identifying buyers remains an important barrier. The biennial report, covering 132 economies worldwide, measures the abilities of economies to enable trade and highlights areas where improvements are most needed. A widely used reference, it helps countries integrate global value chains and companies with their investment decisions.

At the core of the report is the Enabling Trade Index, which measures institutions, policies and services facilitating the free flow of goods over borders and to destination. It breaks the enablers into four issue areas: market access, border administration, transport and communications infrastructure, and business environment. The Index uses a combination of data from publicly available sources, as well as the results of the Executive Opinion Survey, a comprehensive annual survey conducted by the World Economic Forum with its network of partner research institutes and business organizations in the countries included in the report. The 2012 results demonstrate that the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement has facilitated trade since its entry into force in 2010. This year, the report also directly captures the most important obstacles to exporting and importing in each country, and notes the strong links between import and export success. Source: AllAfrica.com / WEF

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