2017 Annual Competitiveness Analysis And Impact Of Exchange Rates On Foreign Direct Investment Inflows To Asean Economies

This book titled 2017 Annual Competitiveness Analysis and Impact of Exchange Rates on Foreign Direct Investment Inflows to ASEAN Economies recount the development experience of ASEAN over the past 50 years, describe the long-term mega-trends which will shape ASEAN's development trajectory, and propose a development vision with actionable policy recommendations for ASEAN to become the fourth-largest economy in the world by 2030.Into its fifth edition, the book updates the annual economic competitive analysis for ASEAN-10 conducted by the Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI). It also introduces an innovation to the institute's methodological framework which is the use of Shapley values to come up with objective weights for indicators, sub-environments and environments in the competitiveness index. This methodological innovation not only adds an element of objectivity in terms of the assignment of weights, but also validates the robustness of results obtained from the competitiveness studies over the past years.Recognising the importance of foreign direct investment (FDI) to growth and development in the region, the book also presents an empirical investigation of the drivers of FDI inflows, with specific focus on the effects of exchange rate and its volatility. For a group of economies looking to leverage on FDI and trade to transform themselves into the fourth-largest economy in the world, it is important for ASEAN to achieve high external competitiveness, especially in terms of the member states' real effective exchange rates (REER). These research findings make important academic and policy contributions by teasing out the relationship between REER levels, volatility and FDI in the ASEAN context.Finally, the book collates speeches by academics and policy-makers on issues of key interests to the future development of ASEAN. It contains the reflection on the ASEAN Charter by Professor Tommy Koh, Ambassador-at-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore. Moreover, the discussions on the One Belt One Road initiative and its implication for the region by Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law of Singapore; and Professor Liew Mun Leong, Chairman of Surbana Jurong and Changi Airport Group as well as Provost Chair and Professor of NUS make this book a valuable compendium for policy-makers, thinkers, and anyone who has an interest in Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific.

This book entitled 2017 Annual Competitiveness Analysis and Impact of Exchange Rates on Foreign Direct Investment Inflows to Sub-National Economies of India is the fifth edition of the Asia Competitiveness Institute's flagship analysis of competitiveness covering the sub-national economies of India. The research in this study comes from an effort to recognise the heterogeneity of India and how the variations in the dynamics of competitiveness pan out at the sub-national level.Based on rigorous methodological foundations, the competitiveness study possesses several distinguishing features. First, the competitiveness index is constructed from a holistic set of 75 indicators spanning four different dimensions encompassing (1) macroeconomic stability, (2) government and institutional setting, (3) financial, business and manpower conditions, and (4) quality of life and infrastructure development, which carry equal weights. Second, the Shapley Values approach is used to construct alternative weights for the competitiveness index. Such approach measures the marginal contribution of a particular indicator used in the analysis and is embedded in solid mathematical and theoretical foundations. This serves as a robustness check to the Equal Weights approach. Third, the analysis includes a What-if competitiveness simulation exercise to identify the specific policy areas that each sub-national economy must focus on to improve its rankings.Intrinsically tied to the notion of competitiveness is the issue of maintaining a competitive exchange rate. Using real effective exchange rates as a proxy for competitiveness, this book also undertakes an empirical investigation of the impact of real exchange rates on foreign direct investment inflows at the sub-national level in India.This edition is recommended for academics, undergraduate and graduate students, and professionals interested in India's economic development.

This book is the fifth annual project of the Asia Competitiveness Institute studying competitiveness at the sub-national level of Greater China. ACI's flagship competitiveness study adopts a comprehensive framework to measure competitiveness by incorporating 102 indicators under four environments and 11 sub-environments. By undertaking the study at the sub-national level, it accounts for the considerable disparities within a large economy like Greater China. The study's unique methodology incorporates comparative strengths and weaknesses, and what-if policy simulations aimed at policy suggestions for each sub-national economy and region.A new feature of this competitiveness study introduces the concept of Shapley value for the assignment of weights to the various indicators that constitute competitiveness. This methodological innovation not only adds an element of objectivity in terms of the assignment of weights, but also validates the robustness of results obtained from the competitiveness studies over the past years.Moreover, the empirical research featured in this book attempts to understand the drivers of FDI inflows to Mainland China, with a specific focus on exchange rate movements and volatility. Nowadays with the international flows of goods and capital becoming ubiquitous and comprising an important aspect of national competitiveness, the role of exchange rate is drawing much more policy attention. In view of this, the research findings presented in this book make an important academic and policy contribution by empirically examining the relationship between FDI inflows and exchange rate.Finally, the timing of this publication makes it indispensable to include the interpretation and reconciliation of policy development of China after the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in October 2017. With the growing prosperity of its people and the improvement of its international status, China would 'realise the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation and see the people realise their aspirations for a better life.' As such, China has achieved the transformation from regaining dignity to becoming prosperous and growing strong to be a great modern socialist country visualised by President Xi Jinping. This book attempts to investigate the vision of 'growing strong to be a great modern socialist country' from different aspects.

Indonesia's diverse economic landscape and growing importance in the global and regional stages warrant deeper understanding of the economy at sub-national levels. This book by the Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI) is an update of ACI's annual study of the competitiveness landscape of 34 Indonesian provinces. With 100 indicators covering four environments and 12 sub-environments of competitiveness, the study's unique methodology incorporates comparative strengths and weaknesses, and 'what-if' policy simulations aimed at policy suggestions for each province.This fifth instalment will continue to feature a structure and graphical presentation that offer investors an overview of each province's competitiveness landscape. A novel addition to this update is the chapter co-authored by academics from Indonesian provinces, which details recent developments in 34 provinces of Indonesia. This latest edition also introduces a novel approach of weights assignment in the form of Shapley values as a robustness test to our findings. Additionally, a new appendix has been included which provides a richer visual representation of each province's competitiveness profile. Finally, our study on the impact of exchange rates on foreign direct investment inflows to the provinces of Indonesia is also featured as a chapter in this book.Coupled with practical insights and policy implications, this book is a recommended read for policymakers, researchers, and the general audience interested in Indonesia's economic development.

In the midst of turbulence in the international trade, this book titled Annual Competitiveness Analysis and Impact Estimation of Exchange Rates on Trade in Value-Added of ASEAN Economies provides a comprehensive overview on recent developments and policy initiatives in ASEAN, highlighting its strengths and weaknesses in facing the trade disruption from global events such as the US-China trade dispute, the rise of protectionist sentiments, and the expansion of China's Belt and Road Initiative.This sixth instalment features an update on ACI's annual competitiveness index for ASEAN-10 economies. Using a total of 121 indicators, the study analyses the competitiveness of the 10 ASEAN countries across four environments namely (i) Macroeconomic Stability, (ii) Government and Institutional Setting, (iii) Financial, Businesses and Manpower Conditions, and (iv) Quality of Life and Infrastructure Development.Also in this book is an in-depth coverage on trade, a key component of the ASEAN economy, and the integration of ASEAN into wider value chains. This phenomenon heavily features ongoing efforts to develop ASEAN and creates the need for a deeper understanding of the impact of these global value chains on trade in ASEAN. This book examines and provides empirical insights on the impact of real effective exchange rates on exports in ASEAN economies within the context of increased participation in global value chains. The findings have direct policy implications in the management of monetary policy.Additionally, this book provides an extensive discussion on the impact of the US-China Trade War on ASEAN, presenting the background analysis on the annals of the dispute as well as examining determining factors that may positively or negatively affect the trade and investment landscape in ASEAN. This latest edition also features a compilation of speeches and writings by academics and policymakers on key issues and development of ASEAN. It includes a speech by Minister Lawrence Wong, Minister for National Development and Second Minister for Finance on the importance of infrastructure development for economic competitiveness. On top of that, this book also features an essay by Mr Bilahari Kausikan, Chairman of the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore, and former Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore, which addresses the impact of the US-China trade war on ASEAN.

Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI) at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP), National University of Singapore (NUS) started producing its flagship analysis of competitiveness covering the sub-national economies of India on an annual basis since 2013. A unique feature of ACI's research comes from an effort to recognise the heterogeneity of India and how the variations in the dynamics of competitiveness pan out at the sub-national level. This book entitled Annual Competitiveness Analysis and Impact Estimation of Exchange Rates on Exports from Sub-National Economies of India not only undertakes a comprehensive and robust analysis of competitiveness in India's 36 sub-national economies but also features an empirical analysis of the impact of exchange rate movements and volatility on exports from sub-national economies of India.Overall, the analysis we provide in this book relating to different dimensions of competitiveness of India's sub-national economies can not only stand up to academic scrutiny as it is grounded in rigorous methodological foundations but also remains accessible and appealing to policymakers as we offer tailored policy recommendations based on our analysis that will enable them to take appropriate policy interventions in their sub-national economies to improve their overall competitiveness.