The empirical analysis shows that, as its number of RTAs increases, a country’s exports
grow and that the spaghetti bowl phenomenon does not exist in Central Asian countries.
The spaghetti bowl phenomenon is caused mainly by the strict rules of origin (ROO) in
member countries while they are subject to different RTAs. In Central Asia, the customs
control among these countries is soft and loose, as are the ROO. Thus, the spaghetti bowl
effect naturally does not exist.