Economists call for better use of trade deals instead of new bloc

Free Malaysia Today

A new regional grouping might not be a shield against trade shocks if companies in the region continue to depend heavily on trade with the US.  Read More: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2025/04/20/economists-call-for-better-use-of-trade-deals-instead-of-new-bloc   Laporan Lanjut: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/bahasa/tempatan/2025/04/20/manfaat-perjanjian-perdagangan-sedia-ada-daripada-sertai-blok-baharu-kata-pakar  Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com Follow FMT on Facebook: https://bit.ly/49JJoo5 Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM Follow FMT on X: https://bit.ly/48zARSW  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/48Cq76h Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3uKuQFp Follow FMT Berita on TikTok: https://bit.ly/48vpnQG  Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/42VyzMX Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/42YytEb Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/42WrsUj Follow FMT on WhatsApp: https://bit.ly/49GMbxW  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Download FMT News App: Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46 App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP  #FMTNews #Asean #US #Trade #Tariff

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00:00Two economists say Malaysia and its ASEAN partners should make fuller use of existing free trade agreements

00:09rather than enter a new economic grouping as a buffer against the US-China trade war.

00:15Afzanizam Rashid of Bank Mwamalat said entering into too many trade agreements could confuse businesses and countries involved.

00:23Nazari Ismail of University Malaya said a new regional block would not shield the region from trade shocks if companies in the region continued to depend heavily on US trade.

00:34He said if the US continues to impose high tariffs on countries in the region, the sudden drop in exports and earnings could still be severe, potentially leading to a regional recession.

00:46Their comments came after economist Wu Wing Tai recently proposed an East Asian buffer bloc backed by the European Union to shield its members from unpredictable tariff policies, particularly from US President Donald Trump.

01:00Afzanizam suggested focusing on existing agreements such as the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement and the Asia-Pacific Regional Pact known as RCEP involving ASEAN, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

01:16Afzanizam also said there must be more outreach programs to help small and medium enterprises tap into these existing trade agreements to access overseas markets.

01:26af

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