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Competition

Achieving more pro-competitive regulation in ASEAN

 

In order to increase awareness of the benefits and role of competition in ASEAN, the ACAP 2016-2025 provides for an assessment to be conducted on the impact of non-tariff barriers on competition in the markets of ASEAN Member States followed by recommendations.

Within this framework and in co-operation with the UK Government, from 2018 to 2021, the OECD has undertaken ten Competition Assessments of Laws and Regulations in the logistics sector in ASEAN (one assessment of the logistics sector in each individual Member State).

Using the OECD Competition Assessment Toolkit, the project aimed to help governments identify shortcomings in the regulatory or policy environment that hinder the efficient functioning of markets and damage long-term growth. Moreover, it provided recommendations for beneficial reforms aimed at avoiding unnecessary regulatory restrictions on competition, thus making laws and regulations more competitive.

How to address these challenges

The OECD Competition Assessment Toolkit is well suited to achieve these outcomes as it is specifically designed to identify shortcomings in the national regulatory and policy environment that hinder the efficient functioning of markets in selected sectors to the detriment of businesses and consumers.

 

Why the Logistics Sector

The AEC Blueprint listed logistics services among its twelve priority integration sectors. The ASEAN Expert Group on Competition, the ASEAN Secretariat, the OECD and UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) agreed that this would be the focus of the Project. The focus on one sector had the potential benefit of making the rules consistent and thus helping promote a more integrated logistics market.

Efficient logistics can play a significant role in increasing a country’s economic development by facilitating international trade and improving its competitiveness. By developing an efficient logistics system, a country can enhance its connectivity to better serve its importers and exporters, and satisfy the needs of regionally integrated production facilities for reliable just-in-time delivery of inputs and outputs.

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Objectives and outcomes

The Project aimed to support the development of pro-competitive reforms by identifying recommendations to improve shortcomings in the regulatory or policy environment that hinder the efficient functioning of markets, thus damaging long-term growth.

As a first step, the project screened the most important laws and regulations in the logistics sector of each member state in order to identify unnecessary regulatory restrictions to competition. Based on this analysis, it then proposed changes to improve the regulatory environment and stimulate growth.

Beyond its immediate impact on competition policy, the project aimed at laying the foundations for reducing poverty and inequality, lowering non-tariff barriers to trade, and improving the business environment and ease of doing business in ASEAN. A rule-based, predictable environment in line with international best practices was to ensure a competitive and open economy and a level playing field for all competitors. This in turn would allow businesses seeking access to ASEAN to enter, operate and invest effectively.

 

Key Elements

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A review of the logistics sector in each member state.

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A review of key concerns from stakeholders that have been validated by regulatory review.

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Assessment of the competitive harm resulting from assessed regulations, and the likely benefits from removing them.
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Prioritised recommendations proposing specific alternative and less competition-restricting means to achieve the same policy objectives.

 

Project Stages

Launched in 2018, the project team:

1

Provided a sector overview for ASEAN as a whole as well as individual ASEAN Member States (including all types of regulations potentially affecting competition in the logistics sector).

2

Identified the priority laws and regulations for the analysis and undertook interviews with local stakeholders.

3 Conducted an in-depth analysis of the selected regulations.
4 Formulated recommendations for redesigning regulations, or parts of regulations. This includes an assessment of alternatives to existing regulations, taking into account the purpose of the regulation.
All country analyses were individually launched in the respective Member State as they were finalised.

 

DOCUMENTS & LINKS

Competition Primers for ASEAN Judges

Competition Law in Asia-Pacific: A Guide to Selected Jurisdictions 

OECD Competition and Macroeconomic outcomes

More OECD work on competition

OECD WORK ON ASIA

Fostering Competition in ASEAN

OECD Project on Fostering Competition in ASEAN

Towards a level playing field in the logistics sector in ASEAN

ASEAN Competition Action Plan (2016-2025)

ASEAN Experts Group on Competition (AEGC)

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

WHAT'S NEW?

09/09/2021

Fostering Competition in ASEAN

The two regional reports with key findings of the project were launched during the 53rd ASEAN Economic Ministers' Meeting on 9 September 2021.

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Access the reports and highlights

Read more about the project

Access all reports by country 

ASEAN Brunei flag

Brunei Darussalam

Country Cambodia Flag

Cambodia

Indonesia

Indonesia

Lao PDR Flag  Lao PDR
Malaysia flag Malaysia
Myanmar flag Myanmar
Philippines flag  Philippines
Singapore Singapore
ASEAN Thailand flag Thailand 
VietNam flag Viet Nam

 

OECD COMPETITION ASSESSMENT TOOLKIT

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 asean.competition.policy@oecd.org  |  @OECD_BizFin  |  #OECDcomp

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