19 research outputs found
Is Pan-Asian Economic Integration Moving Forward? Evidence from Regional Trade Statistics
Asia is growing economically faster than any other region in the world that even led the shift of the center of gravity of global economy from West to East. However, it is not clear whether the Asian economy is integrating more regionally or globally. In the context of growing efforts of regional integration at pan-Asian as well as its sub-regional level, it is worthwhile to explore the pan-Asian trade flows regionally as well as globally. Thus, this paper examines the trend and determinants of economic integration in pan-Asia, and it’s sub-regions in terms of the trade intensity index (TII) and intra-regional trade share. ADB's ARIC database revealed that despite rapid increase in intra-Asian trade volume of all countries from 1990 to 2012, the trends of intra-regional trade share of different countries are different indicating that countries in the region are functioning independently and stronger economic tie is yet to build within the pan-Asia and its sub-regions. Furthermore, the dynamic panel data analysis resulted that FTAs/RTAs are one of the main determinants of growing intra-Asian trade share. Other determinants are countries' level of economic development, FDI stock, urban population growth and access to ICT. Thus, we argue that active participation in FTAs/RTAs, open FDI policy, urbanization and technological development of Asian countries create an enabling environment for pan-Asian economic integration
Patterns and views of China’s public diplomacy in ASEAN countries: focusing on Confucius Institutes
China’s public diplomacy in ASEAN countries started as part of strategic partnership both at the regional and bilateral levels since the mid-2000s. Focusing on Confucius Institute (CI) as one of the earliest means of China’s public diplomacy, this article aims to make a comparative review of establishing processes of CIs and examines features of the CI program, functions of the CI networking, and perceptions of the youth of host universities and local societies. Based on the empirical surveys, this article argues that China’s public diplomacy through CIs in the ASEAN countries is an institutional building process to develop young human resources with Mandarin proficiency, to promote business relations, and to disseminate China’s official ideas through CIs’ public forums to the extent that the CIs’ network has been utilized to promote the conceptual synergy of “One Belt One Road” “Maritime Silk Road in the 21st Century” with ASEAN Connectivity. In conclusion, this article argues that due to a wide gap particularly in terms of social pluralism and open access to multiple sources of information in the region, the rapid growth of China’s public diplomacy through CIs will have a double-edged effect, conducive to promoting relations with China and a centrifugal force to the ASEAN Centrality in the decade to come