Jakarta. ASEAN's economy is forecast to expand 4.6 percent this year as the regional grouping works to upgrade its free trade agreements, according to the Southeast Asian bloc's deputy secretary-general.

ASEAN reported that its combined gross domestic product (GDP) totaled $3.6 trillion in 2022. This positions ASEAN as the world's fifth-largest economy.

"[ASEAN's] economic performance over the past years … has outpaced many other regions in the world. Our GDP is expected to grow by an impressive 4.6 percent in 2023," Satvinder Singh, the deputy secretary-general at the ASEAN Economic Community, said in recorded remarks at a conference in Jakarta on Friday.

The region is also projected to witness a 4.9 percent growth in 2024. 

Last year, ASEAN’s trade amounted to $3.8 trillion. ASEAN also attracted $224 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2022, Singh told the forum.

The bloc today is currently upgrading its existing trade deals, among others, the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA). The ATIGA reduces intra-ASEAN trade tariffs to zero for almost all types of goods. Over 98 percent of all tariff lines have zero rates.

"An ATIGA upgrade is in progress. Hopefully, the upgraded version will incorporate the new generation of critical enhancements that will help us further integrate the region into the global economy in a much more competitive way," Singh said.

Similar upgrades are underway for ASEAN’s trade deals with its partners. For instance, the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA), aims to eliminate at least 90 percent of all tariff lines within specified timelines. Singh said ASEAN economic ministers would endorse the upgraded AANZFTA next month. 

“While the rest of the world and many global economies are pursuing deglobalization, ASEAN is showing the world the tangible benefits of global open markets,” Singh said.