Future options for the UK-ASEAN economic relationship

The purpose of this report is to inform the UK’s private sector of the possible options Her Majesty’s Government (HMG) may wish to pursue in its future economic relationship with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) post-Brexit. It provides an overview of the current political and economic relations between the United Kingdom (UK) and Southeast Asia, as well as the European Union (EU) and ASEAN. Four potential options for a formal UK-ASEAN partnership agreement are presented, in addition to three options for UK trade liberalisation with Southeast Asia. While HMG maintains bilateral diplomatic relations with all Southeast Asian countries, its current relationship with ASEAN is mediated through the EU. Despite being ASEAN’s second largest trading partner and accounting for almost a quarter of total FDI to the ASEAN region, the EU does not currently have a free trade agreement (FTA) with ASEAN. Negotiations for a region-to-region FTA were launched in 2007 but were paused in 2009 due to the heterogeneity of ASEAN member states. In 2017, the EU and ASEAN agreed to take new steps to resume these talks. In terms of bilateral FTAs (seen partly as a stepping stone for a regional-level FTA), the EU has concluded negotiations with Singapore and Vietnam (neither of these FTAs have entered into force) in addition to conducting negotiations with Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines and Indonesia..