Is a regional trading bloc forming in southeast Asia? New evidence for ASEAN countries

Abstract

Abstract This article studies the impact of ASEA N on the bilateral exports of its 10 member countries. It reports the results of applying the gravity model to a data set covering 50 partner countries from 1967 to 2008. The study’s empirical findings show that on average ASEA N regionalism significantly increases bilateral exports. However, the results are country-specific and indicate that ASEA N seems to benefit only large economies with a long history of membership, while smaller more recent members do not show significant expansion of exports.