Asean could be world’s 4th-largest economy

manila — The 10 countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) could form the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2030 though work is needed to help small companies and reduce trade barriers, Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Friday.

Najib told a business forum on the sidelines of a summit of Asean leaders meeting in Manila that the combined size of the group’s economies will grow to $9.2 trillion by 2050.

He said more optimistic forecasts see that happening as early as 2030, turning the region into the world’s fourth-biggest economy after the United States, European Union and China.

As of November 2015, the region’s combined economy was nearly $2.7 trillion, ranking seventh-largest in the world, Najib said.

Growth is crucial to ensure prosperity can be shared, Najib said. Some Asean members, like Singapore, are already affluent, but others, such as Myanmar and Laos, lag far behind.

“We do not want our citizens to be marginalised,” he said. “In the age of extremism and radicalisation, there is a practical reason for that — we know that those who see no hope in their own societies are more prone to the silent calls of terrorists who exploit their vulnerability, and lure them with their lies, giving them a false sense of purpose and achievement.” —