When debating the pros and cons of economic regionalism, have we focused more on trade in goods at the expense of services? This article argues that regionalism is certainly a building block not a stumbling block to a multilateral trading system, using the service liberalization scheme of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a case study. At the same time, it is critical to set out a proper institutional arrangement to ensure that regional service liberalization initiatives reinforce the global service regime. This article proposes an amendment of the current Article V of the General Agreements on Trade in Services (GATS) to define the appropriate relationship between multilateralism and regionalism in the context of services.
Journal of World Trade