PART III

Trading Partners

CHAPTER 11-1. ASIA AND OCEANIA

FDM 471 Youngjin Bahng

OBJECTIVES

Comprehend the magnitude of Asia as a political and economic

trading bloc

Appreciate the economic and political positions of individual

countries within Asia

Examine the status of the textile and apparel business in

selected Asian and Oceania countries

Project textile and apparel trading trends for Asian countries into

the period following the phase-out of the quota system

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INTRODUCTION

Asia is the largest continent;

countries range from fully

developed to least developed

Contains the world’s two

most populous nations, China

and India

Half of the Asian continent’s

countries have populations

smaller than New York City

Oceania consists primarily of

two developed island

countries, Australia and New

Zealand

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POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC OVERVIEW

Asia and Oceania have been subdivided into the following four groups of nations:

East Asia: China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan

Southeast Asia: Hong Kong and eight of the ten ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries

South Asia: Pakistan to Bangladesh

Oceania: Australia and New Zealand

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ASIAN REGIONAL COLLABORATION

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC),

established in 1989 as a forum for facilitating

economic growth, cooperation, trade, and

investment in the Asia-Pacific region

Across-the-border connectivity in the form of

regional and bilateral trade agreements is

already in place, with many more on the horizon

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9

ECONOMIC AND

INDUSTRIAL

STANDING OF

COUNTRIES IN

REGIONS OF

ASIA AND

OCEANIA

China has the largest population; India is

second

East Asia and Oceania have longer life

expectancies and higher literacy rates than do

Southeast Asia and South Asia

Based on GDP, China has the second largest

economy in the world, followed by Japan,

Germany, and India

Japan, Australia, and New Zealand rank

among the most fully developed nations in the

world

Overall, Oceania is rich; East Asia is relatively

rich, except for China; Southeast Asia is

relatively poor, except for Singapore; and South

Asia is poor

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OVERVIEW OF ASIAN TEXTILE AND APPAREL

TRADEMigration of textile and apparel

production to Asia began over 60

years ago

At peak in the early 1980s, Hong

Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea (the

“big three”) supplied almost 30

percent of world exports of textile

and apparel

China exports tripled to nearly

$120 billion, overtaking the EU,

with “only” $112 billion

Developed countries Australia and

New Zealand both have increasing

textile and apparel imports13