ASEAN Trade: The bloc in the middle

Figuratively, and literally, the members of the ASEAN bloc are in the geo-political middle ground of the simmering trade war between China and the U.S.

The eleven nation ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) bloc figuratively and literally occupies the geo-political middle ground in the trade dispute between the U.S. and China. The Southeast Asian group composed of the nations of Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar are by proximity and history within China’s regional sphere and through trade and geo-politics within the United States’ long shadow. So, it is with no surprise that with a Trumpian tariff tweet or Sino cryptic sign, ASEAN share markets – like the rest of the world - rise and fall with roller coaster regularity. It’s the new normal.