Come AEC December 2015, it will no longer be a game of tariffs. After all, tariff barriers have long been eliminated. Since January 2010, the Asean-6 member states Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have eliminated import duties on 99.65% of trade tariff lines, while the Asean-4 member states (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Viet Nam) have 98.86% of their traded tariff lines reduced to 0-5%.

The real battle this time will be in the area of quality, of compliance, of standards, and of being able to meet the requirements of the global market. Exporters must hurdle non–tariff measures to be able to compete internationally. In the same vein, our local retailers must be able to compete with imported goods.

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