Respondents believe Indonesia (61 per cent) is the most promising market for their organisation in terms of growth potential within ASEAN, followed by Vietnam (49 per cent), Malaysia, and Singapore (46 per cent each).

Surveyed Indian companies expect their business to increase production in ASEAN, while 93 per cent of these firms project growth in revenues over the next 12 months.

Access to the large and growing ASEAN consumer market (90 per cent), availability of an abundant and skilled workforce (51 per cent), and access to a global market enabled by a network of free trade agreements (44 per cent) are regarded as the most important drivers for expansion into the region by senior executives of the respondent Indian companies.

Around 63 per cent of respondents indicated their company will increase investments into ASEAN over the next three to five years on the back of the ratification of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, Standard Chartered said in a press release.

However, the poll revealed that Indian corporations are well aware of the vast spectrum of hazards that exist in Southeast Asia. The pandemic and other health catastrophes (which received 85 per cent of the vote), delayed recovery of the economy, and a decline in consumer spending (which received 73 per cent of the vote), as well as geopolitical instability and trade tensions (54 per cent) were the top three dangers cited.

More than three-fifths of the respondents agreed that the most significant challenges they will face in the next 6-12 months will be adapting their business model to industry practices and conditions in ASEAN, understanding regional regulations, payment methods, and infrastructure, as well as building relationships with suppliers and adapting supply chain logistics.

To mitigate these risks and drive resilient and rebalanced growth in ASEAN, the survey respondents consider entering new partnerships to increase market presence (73 per cent), investing in leadership and talent development (59 per cent), and driving sustainability and ESG (environmental, social, governance) initiatives (41 per cent) as the most important areas for their companies to focus on.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)