A conceptual study on the economic integration of the new ASEAN Economic Community.The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is building a single market and production base called the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), in order to fully integrate itself into the global economy. This book discusses the economic importance and intricacies of the AEC and how the AEC will affect global businesses and policy makers.The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is building a single market and production base called the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), in order to fully integrate itself into the global economy. This book discusses the economic importance and intricacies of the AEC and how the AEC will affect global businesses and policy makers.The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has experienced rapid economic growth for many years. Although the population of ASEAN is larger than the EU-28, the emerging ASEAN market, called the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), is still little understood by policy makers in many parts of the world, by business professionals and students, as well as by scholars in economics, business, politics and economic law. This book provides, for the first time, a rigorous analytical approach of the new AEC and its intricacies. It sets out its ambition, scrutinises its economic integration logic and detects its deficits. Besides a detailed analysis of the AEC Roadmap, the book also elaborates on its achievements. Several strategic economic options for the AEC, in particular as an instrument to accelerate the economic development of the region, are explored.General editors' preface; 1. Introduction and purpose; 2. Foundations of economic integration fundamentals, stages and credibility; 3. Conceptual foundation of the ASEAN Economic Community?; 4. Implementation of the AEC: progress in adopting instruments from the Roadmap; 5. A reality check: comparing the AEC and NAFTA on substance; 6. Options for the AEC and their practical impllÓ€