ABSTRACT
The surge in foreign trade and investment over the 1980s occurred in response to a combination of forces. Most importantly, the ASEAN countries (excluding the Philippines) had set in place by the mid-1980s market-driven, private-sector-led economic policy regimes with special attention to improving the foreign trade and investment business environment. The Plaza Accord realignment of exchange rates made Southeast Asian labor-intensive manufacturing very competitive relative to Japan, Korea and Taiwan. As well, the world economy, especially world trade, grew steadily following the 19821983 recession, which when combined with generally open market access to most developed countries, provided strong demand for Southeast Asian exports.
