1. CHOI, Byung-il:
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Disagree with Mahathir that countries need protectionism. Economic
nationalism is unsustainable.
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Many people in Korea complain of imported fish, other food, that we should be
self sufficient, but forcing self-sufficiency in food, only few countries can
survive.
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How to attain econ prosperity, invest in education, liberalize the economy.
Good political leadership is also important.
2. Pham Chi LAN:
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Protectionist measures rose recently via technical barriers to trade (TBT).
Tariffs are going down but various measures like health concerns, environment
restrict trade.
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Vietnam been a member of the ASEAN since 1995, we experience trade deficit
with Asean members plus North Asia, but trade surplus with EU.
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FDI about 80 percent coming from East Asia and South East Asia. But mainly
for low cost, low tech industries, plus environmental problems.
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Asean initiative is good but not enough, E Asian countries need to open up
their economies more for Vietnam exports.
3. LIU, Junning:
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Economic nationalism is a body of policies that protect certain local
interests, requires the imposition of tariffs, restrictions of free trade, Intervention
in the name of protecting “national interest”.
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Nationalism forces consumers to buy only local producers, trade protectionism,
even nationalization of some foreign companies.
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Nowadays nationalism is omnipresent especially in dictatorships, currency
control. It is costly to consumers because supply of capital, consumer goods becomes
higher and costly.
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It appeals to national pride, suspicion, fear of foreign goods, but consumers
lose. Case of high tariff on foreign made milk. Consumers endure high prices,
low or bad, harmful product quality.
4. Tricia YEOH:
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Recent growth of Malaysia not at par with neighbors, cost of business is high
due to corruption, bureaucracies
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1971 New Economic Policy (NEP) to eradicate poverty, noble, but was meant to
protect the Bumiputera, the local elites, the princess of the Earth. It
engendered a culture of patronage and cronyism.
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Mahathir this morning said the need to protect automotive industry. Such
protectionism actually is a waste of government money to protect local
industries, bail out of around 69-70 billion Ringgit were lost.
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Government role has in the economy has been rising. Previously, private
investments was high but since 1998 private investment was less than government
investment.
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Government-linked corporations(GLCs) account for “approximately 36% and 54%
respectively of the market capitalisation of Bursa Malaysia and the Kuala
Lumpur Composite Index”. GLCs and GLICs are the major players in the economy.
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Malaysian economy is heavily dominated by government, in the areas which are
privatised, select individuals are chosen to receive lucrative tenders and
contracts.
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Cronyism results if government is dominant, give only to friends, monopolies
in electricity, telecoms. There is need to remove barriers to trade, make the
economy more competitive, control corruption.
5. FENG, Xingyuan:
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Trade benefits both players, allows efficient distribution of factors of
production. The “infant industry” argument, we should not protect, we will
only protect underdevelopment.
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Open markets and protection of property rights are key. Also stable
currencies to protect foreign investors.
- Trade benefits even between unequal
economies. President Obama was asking for “balance of trade” with China,
meaning China should export less to the US. This is wrong. Trade surplus by
China is used to invest and spend by citizens in the US, so deficit is
compensated.
- US should ask instead that China should open
up market in services.
- Trade ban campaign of Japanese goods last
year, means banning our own development. Like manyJapanese companies are thinking
of moving their investments out of China and go somewhere.
- Free trade is beneficial to all sides, both
buyers and sellers, not only one side.
6. Barun MITRA:
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People trade, companies trade, governments don’t, but governments negotiate
trade, and negotiations take many
years.
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India is not known for manufacturing, more for IT. Perhaps the only country
manufacturing automobiles in the 40s after Japan, yet how many Indian car
brands do we hear now.
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Today local car manufacturers survive only because of government support. The
infant industry argument only resulted in cronyism.
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India believes industrialization inside, not export orientation, cronyism
resulted and it hurts our own poor
people much more than other people
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IT not protected or subsidized, even completely neglected, and they
prospered. About 80 percent of our IT products are for exports.
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Free trade is fair trade. Two sides agree, a win win situation, benefits both
buyers and sellers. Economic nationalism is used by politicians to secure
themselves. Losers are the people.
Sam Rainsy Reactions:
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If an economy is poor, unprepared, free trade is destructive. Need for a
transitional period to produce positive effects first, before we open up the
economy to free trade.
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Consider the social and political environment first, control corruption, farmers
becoming landless under the name of trade liberalism.
Questions
1:
Cambodia, how to develop it?
2:
What is your vision for prosperity in Cambodia?
Sam
Raimsy Answer:
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First, good leadership and second is education. Cambodia leadership is a
mafia, a gang it can destroy a country using liberalism. From communism to
democracy, become worse under a mafia.
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China and Vietnam, they are socialist but they have developed. They uphold
national interest, they have long-term vision. Even non-democrats like
Mahathir and Lee Kuan Yew but they have vision.
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Education, the war and dictatorships, 3 generations were lost, only low tech
investments come. We need to catch up.
Barun
Answer:
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Free trade to be effective and powerful, it has to be unilateral, nothing to
negotiate. The most protected industries are also most inefficient, like
agriculture.
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Pure unilateralism in trade allowed Indian IT to develop, without
any government protection.
Xingyuan
answer.
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Look also at HK, low taxes, free trade, there is economic prosperity
Choi
answer
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Protectionism is understandable, to protect the weak, but consider the
political economy.
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Beneficiaries of nationalism and protectionism are incumbent players.
Closing Remarks by German Ambassador
to Korea, Rolf Mafael
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Building an internal market for asia will build prosperity.
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Germany case, global competitiveness, open economy allowed us to survive the recent
global financial crisis
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Services sector need more liberalization in the EU. We have the same discussion
and debate in Europe as you have here on economic nationalism.
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Our prosperity depends largely also to our trade with Asia.
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Priority is the WTO, multilateral negotiation.
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There are indeed social consequences to liberalization, like ensuring labor
standards, but this was heavily opposed by many developing countries.
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If you step back, 1996-97 vs today, Asia has made big progress.
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When the EU-Korea FTA was negotiated, german car industry opposed, but who
benefitted later? German car industry, they were able to enter Korean market
better. Another beneficiary was the Korean car industry.
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Ultimately, customers won in both Korea and Germany. Liberalization will lead
to more prosperity
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