Liberalisation
Progressive liberalisation of ASEAN Member Countries’ investment regime to achieve free
and open investment by 2015.
Actions:
i. Extend non-discriminatory treatment, including national treatment and most-favoured
nation treatment, to investors in ASEAN with limited exceptions; minimise and where
possible, eliminate such exceptions;
ii. Reduce and where possible, eliminate restrictions to entry for investments in the Priority
Integration Sectors covering goods; and
iii. Reduce and where possible, eliminate restrictive investment measures and other
impediments, including performance requirements.
A4. Freer flow of capital
31. Strengthening ASEAN Capital Market Development and Integration.
Actions:
i. Achieve greater harmonisation in capital market standards in ASEAN in the areas of
offering rules for debt securities, disclosure requirements and distribution rules;
ii. Facilitate mutual recognition arrangement or agreement for the cross recognition of
qualification and education and experience of market professionals;
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iii. Achieve greater flexibility in language and governing law requirements for securities
issuance;
iv. Enhance withholding tax structure, where possible, to promote the broadening of
investor base in ASEAN debt issuance; and
v. Facilitate market driven efforts to establish exchange and debt market linkages, including
cross-border capital raising activities.
32. Allowing Greater Capital Mobility.
The liberalisation of capital movements is to be guided by the following principles:
a) Ensuring an orderly capital account liberalisation consistent with member countries’
national agenda and readiness of the economy;
b) Allowing adequate safeguard against potential macroeconomic instability and systemic
risk that may arise from the liberalisation process, including the right to adopt necessary
measures to ensure macroeconomic stability; and
c) Ensuring the benefits of liberalisation to be shared by all ASEAN countries.
Actions:
i. Remove or relax restrictions, where appropriate and possible, to facilitate the flows of
payments and transfers for current account transactions;
ii. Remove or relax restrictions on capital flows, where appropriate and possible, to support
foreign direct investment and initiatives to promote capital market development