Why the logistics sector?

The ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC), the ASEAN Expert Group on Competition, the OECD and the UK Government agreed that the project should focus on the logistics sector.

Firstly, the focus on one sector has the benefit of potentially harmonising regulations and thus promoting a more integrated logistics market. Secondly, logistics is among the twelve priority integration sectors identified in the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint.

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 their exporters and importers, and satisfy the needs of regionally integrated production facilities for reliable just-in-time delivery of inputs/outputs.

How to address these challenges?

The OECD has built on its significant work on competitive neutrality, which is well suited to achieve these ambitious objectives. This work is specifically designed to identify shortcomings in national regulations and policies that hinder the efficient functioning of markets to the detriment of businesses and consumers.

Objectives and outcomes

Government’s support to SOEs can take many forms, including selective subsidies, explicit or implicit loan guarantees, preferential purchasing, preferential standards, support for unnecessary new capacity, and regulatory or tax favouritism. Such advantages granted to commercially oriented SOEs by virtue of their nature can result in competitive distortions.

The project aims at promoting a level playing field between SOEs and private entities in the logistics sector. The report aims at helping ASEAN governments to detect special rights and privileges granted to SOEs that may hinder the efficient functioning of the logistics sector and affect long-term growth and competitiveness.

Moreover, it provides recommendations on how to mitigate distortionary effects, avoid undue restrictions to competition, and promote fair competition. The goal is also to support the development of a pro-competitive regulatory environment by making recommendations for pro-competitive reforms of special rights and privileges that go beyond their intended policy objectives.

Beyond its immediate impact on competition policy, the project helps lay the foundations for reducing inequality, lower non-tariff barriers to trade, and improving the business environment and ease of doing business in ASEAN. A rule-based, predictable environment based on international best practices will ensure a competitive and open economy. This in turn will allow businesses seeking access to ASEAN to enter, operate and invest effectively.

Reports by country

	Brunei Darussalam
	Cambodia
	Indonesia
	Lao PDR (forthcoming)
‌	Malaysia
	Myanmar  (forthcoming)
	Philippines
	Singapore
	Thailand
	Viet Nam

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