Six economies in ASEAN - Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam - are expected to grow 4.2 per cent this year, outpacing the projected global GDP growth of 2 per cent, according to Mr. Khairussaleh Ramli, President and CEO of Maybank, one of Southeast Asia’s largest commercial banks.

Speaking at the Invest ASEAN 2023 forum in Singapore on June 20-21, he said ASEAN is “most definitely back and open for business” after the pandemic.

FDI flows into the region increased once again in 2021, to $174 billion, a year-on-year increase of 42 per cent, proving the attractiveness of regional economies among global investors, the forum heard.

Participants said investments in renewable energies and green technology in ASEAN are expected to continue rising this year and into the future.

Digitalization is considered an important sector for economies in the region, particularly in financial services. However, the digital economy at present accounts for just 7 per cent of ASEAN’s GDP; much lower than in the US (35 per cent) and China (16 per cent).