Editor profile
Managing Editor, ASEAN Briefing
Budi Santoso coordinates regional news flows and economic summaries across the 10 ASEAN nations. He specializes in providing high-level briefings on the bloc's political and economic integration.
budi.santoso@aseaninsight.orgIn the context of global economic fragmentation and increasing climate risks, how can ASEAN reshape the regional economic community and long-term development landscape by strengthening diplomatic ties, optimizing supply chain resilience, and addressing decarbonization challenges?
In-depth analysis of several mega-infrastructure projects being advanced in China, including cross-regional hydropower development and long-distance railway construction in the Himalayas, exploring their profound impact on regional logistics, engineering technology, and national strategy, and examining them within the context of the global engineering paradigm.
In-depth analysis of Treasure Global's user growth on the ZCITY platform and its driving role in the ASEAN digital economy, exploring its long-term impact on regional industries in the fields of cross-border digital business and fintech (OXI Wallet).
In-depth analysis of how the Thai economy is reshaping its industrial positioning and global competitiveness in ASEAN by transforming towards high-potential sectors such as data centers, artificial intelligence, and the low-carbon economy.
In-depth analysis of the deepening economic cooperation between Vietnam and China in the Red River Basin, exploring how to build a more resilient regional supply chain ecosystem through infrastructure connectivity, digital trade, and the RCEP framework, and providing lessons for ASEAN regional integration.
In-depth analysis of the investment layout of Chinese enterprises in overseas industrial parks, revealing how they reshape the global economic landscape through industrial chains and logistics networks, and have a profound impact on ASEAN's regional economic collaboration.
In-depth analysis of the trillion-dollar potential of ASEAN's digital economy, focusing on how e-commerce can become the core growth driver, and exploring the long-term impact of population structure, policy architecture, and platform competition on regional collaborative development.
Based on Deloitte research, analyze the macro trends of the global economy in 2026, including geopolitical impacts, technological competition, and economic recovery paths in specific regions, to provide insights for policymakers and investors.
In-depth analysis of how Vietnam is leveraging its strong manufacturing base to accelerate its transformation towards mid-to-high-end links in the global value chain. The article discusses the profound impact of FDI inflows, industrial structure upgrading, policy incentives, and technological innovation on the regional supply chain.
Based on data from the first half of 2026, deeply analyze the driving forces behind the recovery of Vietnam's manufacturing sector, examine the structural adjustments of regional supply chains through the 'China+1' strategy, and explore ASEAN's long-term strategic layout in industrial division of labor and industrial chain upgrading.
In-depth analysis of the 2026 global economic outlook, exploring how major economies are reshaping their growth paths under macroeconomic policy adjustments and geopolitical influences. Focus on the long-term evolution of resource industries, technological innovation, and regional supply chains.
This article examines Treasure Global's latest financial report, and in the context of ASEAN's digital payment ecosystem, regional economic integration, and fintech trends, interprets how Malaysian tech companies are participating in Southeast Asia's digital economy transformation.
The Veerixa business service platform launched in August 2026, incorporating AI Visibility and Search Visibility into global communication resource selection, reflecting how enterprise information discovery is extending from traditional media exposure to AI search and the digital information ecosystem.
Strategic supply chains now account for over one-fifth of Southeast Asia's exports and half of its foreign investment projects. Yet US-China geoeconomic competition is pushing this "connector" region toward a crossroads. Drawing on the Lowy Institute's latest report, this article dissects the real value across four key sectors—semiconductors, electric vehicles, critical minerals, and solar photovoltaics—and proposes directions for regional coordination and targeted industrial policy.
The 2025 Global Innovation Index shows that several ASEAN countries have risen significantly in the rankings, with Singapore firmly in the top five, the Philippines entering the top fifty for the first time, and Vietnam and Indonesia continuing to climb. This reflects ASEAN's transformation from a low-cost manufacturing base to an innovation-driven knowledge economy. Based on the latest WIPO data, this article analyzes ASEAN's innovation landscape and new trends in regional economic integration.
Starting from the perspective of the ASEAN region, this article analyzes how Southeast Asia has become a key node in the restructuring of global supply chains, explores how integrated logistics, automation investment, and regional economic integration jointly shape a new trade landscape, and looks ahead to long-term development trends.
Analyze how China's industrial overcapacity reshapes ASEAN trade patterns through four major trends, and how ASEAN countries seek a balance between deepening economic ties with China and coping with global de-risking pressures.
In early 2026, the global trade landscape faced pressure, but China-ASEAN economic cooperation grew against the trend, with trade volume increasing by 7.4% and the CAFTA 3.0 upgrade agreement taking effect. This article analyzes the structural transformation of cooperation from the perspective of the ASEAN region: from traditional trade liberalization to institutional integration, new frontiers of digital economy and green cooperation, and the shift in China's investment model from cost-driven to industrial chain collaborative layout. These trends are reshaping the East Asia-Southeast Asia manufacturing network and promoting ASEAN's evolution into a high-value-added manufacturing and service hub.
Cambodia's SME policy implementation faces multiple bottlenecks such as financing, bureaucracy, and infrastructure. As an emerging manufacturing hub in ASEAN, its policy difficulties not only constrain domestic industrial upgrading but also affect the resilience and integration of regional supply chains. This article, from the perspective of the ASEAN Economic Community, analyzes the long-term impact of Cambodia's SME challenges on cross-border investment and regional division of labor.
Vietnam's industrial real estate market has entered a new growth phase, with high-quality foreign investment and green park development becoming key competitive factors. The influx of electronics, logistics, and AI data centers is reshaping the regional industrial division of labor.