Why the MEA-ASEAN corridor matters for sustainable growth

Khalid Ahmed Al-Sada

Oct 05

Asean attracted a record US$243.9 billion ($311.67 billion) in FDIs in 2025, an increase of 9.7%. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is already Asean's seventh-largest trading partner.The global ...

Source Link

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

Most Discussed

{"basename":"","ssrTDKData":{"titleTemplate":"%s - Tiger Brokers","title":"Tiger Brokers HK | Online Trading in stocks, bonds & ETFS","description":"Discover Tiger Brokers HK, an online trading platform for stocks&ETFs, options&futures, bonds and crypto. Open an account to enjoy low commission trading today!","keywords":"tiger trading,tiger security,tiger broker hk,tigers co ltd,tiger trade hk,tiger brokers hk,stock broker,securities broker,online brokerage,hong kong broker,hk broker,online stock trading,online trading platform,stock trading platforms,trading application,stock trading,stock trading hong kong,buying stocks in hong kong,tiger brokers","social":{"ogDescription":"Discover Tiger Brokers HK, an online trading platform for stocks&ETFs, options&futures, bonds and crypto. Open an account to enjoy low commission trading today!","ogImage":"https://c1.itigergrowtha.com/portal5/static/media/og-logo.0a0bd8dc.png","ogUrl":"https://www.tigrgood.cn/news/2673086156"},"companyName":"Tiger Brokers"},"pageData":{"isMobile":false,"isTiger":false,"isTTM":true,"region":"HKG","license":"TBHK","edition":"fundamental"},"isCrawlerRequest":true,"__swrFallback__":{"@#url:\"https://stock-news.skytigris.cn/v3/news\",params:#id:\"2673086156\",edition:\"fundamental\",auth_exemption:1,,,undefined,":{"share":"https://ttm.financial/m/news/2673086156?lang=en_US&edition=fundamental","thumbnail":"","is_english":true,"pubTime":"2026-10-05 05:00","share_image_url":"https://static.laohu8.com/e9f99090a1c2ed51c021029395664489","id":"2673086156","market":"other","top_or_hot":-1,"title":"Why the MEA-ASEAN corridor matters for sustainable growth","media":"Khalid Ahmed Al-Sada","content":"<div>\n<p>Asean attracted a record US$243.9 billion ($311.67 billion) in FDIs in 2025, an increase of 9.7%. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is already Asean's seventh-largest trading partner.The global ...</p>\n\n<a href=\"https://www.theedgesingapore.com/news/special-feature/why-meaasean-corridor-matters-sustainable-growth?utm_source=Blog&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=Tiger_Brokers_app_RSS\">Source Link</a>\n\n</div>\n","source":"edge_highlight","html":"<!DOCTYPE html>\n<html>\n<head>\n<meta http-equiv=\"Content-Type\" content=\"text/html; charset=utf-8\" />\n<meta name=\"viewport\" content=\"width=device-width,initial-scale=1.0,minimum-scale=1.0,maximum-scale=1.0,user-scalable=no\"/>\n<meta name=\"format-detection\" content=\"telephone=no,email=no,address=no\" />\n<title>Why the MEA-ASEAN corridor matters for sustainable growth</title>\n<style type=\"text/css\">\na,abbr,acronym,address,applet,article,aside,audio,b,big,blockquote,body,canvas,caption,center,cite,code,dd,del,details,dfn,div,dl,dt,\nem,embed,fieldset,figcaption,figure,footer,form,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6,header,hgroup,html,i,iframe,img,ins,kbd,label,legend,li,mark,menu,nav,\nobject,ol,output,p,pre,q,ruby,s,samp,section,small,span,strike,strong,sub,summary,sup,table,tbody,td,tfoot,th,thead,time,tr,tt,u,ul,var,video{ font:inherit;margin:0;padding:0;vertical-align:baseline;border:0 }\nbody{ font-size:16px; line-height:1.5; color:#999; background:transparent; }\n.wrapper{ overflow:hidden;word-break:break-all;padding:10px; }\nh1,h2{ font-weight:normal; line-height:1.35; margin-bottom:.6em; }\nh3,h4,h5,h6{ line-height:1.35; margin-bottom:1em; }\nh1{ font-size:24px; }\nh2{ font-size:20px; }\nh3{ font-size:18px; }\nh4{ font-size:16px; }\nh5{ font-size:14px; }\nh6{ font-size:12px; }\np,ul,ol,blockquote,dl,table{ margin:1.2em 0; }\nul,ol{ margin-left:2em; }\nul{ list-style:disc; }\nol{ list-style:decimal; }\nli,li p{ margin:10px 0;}\nimg{ max-width:100%;display:block;margin:0 auto 1em; }\nblockquote{ color:#B5B2B1; border-left:3px solid #aaa; padding:1em; }\nstrong,b{font-weight:bold;}\nem,i{font-style:italic;}\ntable{ width:100%;border-collapse:collapse;border-spacing:1px;margin:1em 0;font-size:.9em; }\nth,td{ padding:5px;text-align:left;border:1px solid #aaa; }\nth{ font-weight:bold;background:#5d5d5d; }\n.symbol-link{font-weight:bold;}\n/* header{ border-bottom:1px solid #494756; } */\n.title{ margin:0 0 8px;line-height:1.3;color:#ddd; }\n.meta {color:#5e5c6d;font-size:13px;margin:0 0 .5em; }\na{text-decoration:none; color:#2a4b87;}\n.meta .head { display: inline-block; overflow: hidden}\n.head .h-thumb { width: 30px; height: 30px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border-radius: 50%; float: left;}\n.head .h-content { margin: 0; padding: 0 0 0 9px; float: left;}\n.head .h-name {font-size: 13px; color: #eee; margin: 0;}\n.head .h-time {font-size: 11px; color: #7E829C; margin: 0;line-height: 11px;}\n.small {font-size: 12.5px; display: inline-block; transform: scale(0.9); -webkit-transform: scale(0.9); transform-origin: left; -webkit-transform-origin: left;}\n.smaller {font-size: 12.5px; display: inline-block; transform: scale(0.8); -webkit-transform: scale(0.8); transform-origin: left; -webkit-transform-origin: left;}\n.bt-text {font-size: 12px;margin: 1.5em 0 0 0}\n.bt-text p {margin: 0}\n</style>\n</head>\n<body>\n<div class=\"wrapper\">\n<header>\n<h2 class=\"title\">\nWhy the MEA-ASEAN corridor matters for sustainable growth\n</h2>\n\n<h4 class=\"meta\">\n\n\n2026-10-05 05:00 GMT+8&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href=https://www.theedgesingapore.com/news/special-feature/why-meaasean-corridor-matters-sustainable-growth?utm_source=Blog&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=Tiger_Brokers_app_RSS><strong>Khalid Ahmed Al-Sada</strong></a>\n\n\n</h4>\n\n</header>\n<article>\n<div>\n<p>Asean attracted a record US$243.9 billion ($311.67 billion) in FDIs in 2025, an increase of 9.7%. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is already Asean's seventh-largest trading partner.The global ...</p>\n\n<a href=\"https://www.theedgesingapore.com/news/special-feature/why-meaasean-corridor-matters-sustainable-growth?utm_source=Blog&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=Tiger_Brokers_app_RSS\">Source Link</a>\n\n</div>\n\n\n</article>\n</div>\n</body>\n</html>\n","isBrief":false,"type":0,"news_type":1,"symbol":"GCC","symbol_name":"智慧树连续商品指数基金","start_time":0,"source_url":"https://www.theedgesingapore.com/news/special-feature/why-meaasean-corridor-matters-sustainable-growth?utm_source=Blog&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=Tiger_Brokers_app_RSS","article_id":"2673086156","we_media_id":null,"thumbnails":[],"rights":{"source":"edge_highlight","url":"https://www.theedgesingapore.com/news/special-feature/why-meaasean-corridor-matters-sustainable-growth?utm_source=Blog&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=Tiger_Brokers_app_RSS","rn_cache_url":null,"directOrigin":true},"url":"https://stock-news.laohu8.com/highlight/detail?id=2673086156","pubTimestamp":1791147600,"columns":[],"sourceInfo":{"source_id":"edge_highlight","name":"Edge"},"weMediaInfo":null,"summary":"Asean attracted a record US$243.9 billion ($311.67 billion) in FDIs in 2025, an increase of 9.7%. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is already Asean's seventh-largest trading partner.","collect":0,"end_time":0,"defaultTopTitle":"theedgesingapore.com","property":[],"viewcount":null,"language":"en","relate_stocks":{"GCC":"智慧树连续商品指数基金"},"translate_title":"为什么MEA-东盟走廊对可持续增长至关重要","themeId":null,"isJumpTheme":false,"ttsUrl":null,"symbols_score_info":{"GCC":1},"content_text":"Asean attracted a record US$243.9 billion ($311.67 billion) in FDIs in 2025, an increase of 9.7%. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is already Asean's seventh-largest trading partner.The global economy is being reshaped by new patterns of trade, investment and capital flows. One of the most significant developments is the strengthening connection between the Middle East and Africa (MEA) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).\nFor QNB Group, ASEAN is an important strategic focus within our broader international growth ambitions. The region brings together fast-growing markets with expanding consumer demand, increasing manufacturing capacity and significant infrastructure requirements. As economic ties between Asia and MEA deepen, we see a clear role for QNB in connecting businesses and investors across the two regions and helping to facilitate the trade and investment flows between them.\nASEAN attracted a record US$243.9 billion ($311.67 billion) in foreign direct investments (FDIs) in 2025, an increase of 9.7%, outpacing FDI growth globally and across developing economies. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is already ASEAN's seventh-largest trading partner, with two-way trade reaching US$130.7 billion, and the two regions are studying the establishment of a free trade agreement. The GCC has also set an ambition to increase trade with ASEAN to US$180 billion by 2032. Meanwhile, most tariffs on products traded within ASEAN have been eliminated under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, supporting deeper regional integration.\nThese figures demonstrate the scale of the opportunity. However, I believe the next phase of growth between MEA and ASEAN will not be defined simply by higher trade volumes. It will depend on whether businesses can convert greater regional connectivity into practical commercial opportunities and whether financial institutions can provide the capital, infrastructure and local expertise needed to make that possible.\nA corridor built on complementary strengths\nThe MEA and ASEAN regions bring complementary strengths to this emerging corridor. ASEAN offers extensive manufacturing capabilities, large consumer markets and rapidly developing technology sectors. The Middle East provides significant pools of capital, expanding logistics infrastructure and access to markets across Africa and Europe.\nHowever, ambition alone is not enough. Companies operating across this corridor must navigate different regulatory systems, currencies and market practices. They must decide where to establish operations, how to structure supply chains, where to hold liquidity and how to manage cross-border financial risks.\n\nKhalid Ahmed Al-Sada, senior executive vice president - group corporate and institutional banking, QNB Group. Photo: QNB Group\nThis is where international banking networks create real strategic value. Banks must do more than finance individual transactions. They need to understand a client's broader commercial objectives and connect those objectives with the right markets, expertise and financial infrastructure.\nAt QNB Group, our role is to help clients translate regional ambitions into practical execution. This means working with them early in their decision-making process and providing continuity as they establish operations, manage liquidity, finance trade and mobilise capital for future growth.\nTurning connectivity into commercial value\nTrade finance remains particularly important to the development of the MEA-ASEAN corridor. The Asian Development Bank estimates that the global trade finance gap stood at US$2.5 trillion in 2025, restricting the ability of many businesses to fulfil orders, expand supplier relationships or enter new markets.\nThrough our work with clients, we are already seeing how changing trade and investment patterns are translating into financing needs. In Indonesia, QNB supported a US$1 billion syndicated facility for one of the world's largest pulp and paper companies, a US$350 million petrochemicals financing and a US$151.5 million facility for a Southeast Asian conglomerate. Corporate lending increased by 17% during the year, supported by syndicated and bilateral transactions.\nASEAN's continued development will also require sustained investment in transport, logistics, digital infrastructure, energy and industrial capacity. These projects are capital-intensive, involve multiple stakeholders and often extend across several years.\nDelivering our international strategy\nIncreasing the contribution from our international network is one of the cornerstones of QNB Group's strategy for 2030. ASEAN's role within this strategy reflects both the region's growth potential and its increasing connectivity with our core markets across the GCC and wider MEA region.\nOur Asian network spans Singapore, Hong Kong, India and Indonesia, supported by representative offices in mainland China and Vietnam. This presence, combined with our extensive network across the Middle East and Africa, enables us to connect clients with opportunities, capital and expertise across the corridor.\nOur ambition is not simply to expand our geographic reach. It is to increase the value our network creates for clients by strengthening relationships, deepening our capabilities and connecting markets more effectively.\nAs trade and investment continue to evolve, the most successful businesses will be those that can operate confidently across regions while responding to local realities. I believe the MEA-ASEAN corridor will play an increasingly important role in this next phase of global growth and banks with the right network, expertise and strategic commitment will be essential to unlocking its full potential.\nKhalid Ahmed Al-Sada, is the senior executive vice president - group corporate and institutional banking of QNB Group.","kind":"highlight","is_publish_news":true,"is_publish_highlight":false,"is_publish_live":false,"is_publish_wemedia":false,"editions":null,"column":"","sentiment":"0","news_tag":"","news_rank":0,"isVideo":false,"video":null,"symbols":[],"gpt_button":0,"need_auth":false,"need_login_tip":false,"code":"91000000","status":"200"}}}