Zulhas Calls ASEAN Needs To Be One Market As A Center For Economic Growth

Minister of Trade Zulhas (Photo: dock. Antara)

JAKARTA - Minister of Trade (Mendag) Zulkifli Hasan said that Indonesia wants ASEAN to become one market. This is in order to play a role as the center of economic growth.

"We want ASEAN to become one market," said Zulkifli Hasan quoting Antara, Saturday, August 12.

Zulhas hopes that by becoming one market, ASEAN's trading volume can double from before.

Zulkifli plans to discuss this at the 55th ASEAN Economic Ministers Meeting and the Association of Other Meetings (55th ASEAN Economic Ministers).

"ASEAN has strong and extraordinary economic growth, we want to be much higher, so ASEAN is the center of economic growth," he said again.

The 55th ASEAN Economic Ministers Meeting and Other Meetings (55th ASEAN Economic Ministers) will be held in Semarang, Central Java, 17-22 August 2023.

The Southeast Asian Nations Association (ASEAN) is currently in the top five positions in the world, after the United States, China, India, and Germany.

The ASEAN economy has increased very significantly since ASEAN was founded in 1967. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per ASEAN capita in 2021 amounted to 5,248 United States (US) dollars, an increase compared to 1967, namely 122 US dollars, foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2021 reached 168.2 billion US dollars, an increase compared to 1967, which was 3.04 billion US dollars.

As for total trading, ASEAN reached 2,591 billion US dollars in 2021, an increase compared to 1967, which was 10 billion US dollars.

The population of ASEAN from 185 million people in 1967, rose to 673.8 million people in 2021. Internet users in 1967 were zero percent, and in 2021 it rose to 61.4 percent.

ASEAN change is currently a combination of the influence of ASEAN and from each ASEAN member country. This is because ASEAN countries do study each other. ASEAN is a kind of learning medium for its member countries in cooperation, in this case trade cooperation.