AEC stands for ASEAN Economic Community which comprises 10 nations in Southeast Asia. The goal of establishing AEC is to transform the region into a single market and production base with a highly competitive advantage to make it a stable and prosperous region. The 10 ASEAN member countries comprise Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,Myanmar, The Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam. At the 12th ASEAN Summit in January 2007, the Leaders of the 10 ASEAN member countries agreed to hasten the establishment of the AEC by 2015. The ASEAN Leaders adopted the ASEAN Economic Blueprint at the 13th ASEAN Summit on 20 November 2007 in Singapore to serve as a master plan.
The characteristics and elements of AEC :