A slowing economy needs smarter, not more, regulations

AS Asean countries seek closer economic integration by eliminating tariffs and boosting trade, some member nations have come up with more regulation that can slow down cooperation. There has been a four-fold increase in the number of non-tariff measures (NTMs) in Asean - from 1,634 to 5,975 - between 2000 and 2015.

Some of these NTMs are unnecessarily bureaucratic. For example, Indonesia demands that imported fresh fruit must be refrigerated for 17 days, at 2.8° Centigrade, before the supplies can make their way into local markets. This arbitrary provision imposes additional costs on foreign suppliers and makes their products less fresh and appealing compared to local produce.

In Thailand, it is mandatory for all imported goods to be labelled in the Thai language. This raises the cost of doing business from other Asean countries because they have to redesign their packaging ju…