The shifting global trade landscape, driven by higher US tariffs and tensions between Washington and Beijing, presents ASEAN with an opportunity to attract investment and strengthen its role in global supply chains, but countries must first make it easier for businesses to operate across borders, Ayala Corp. chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala said.
Speaking at the “ASEAN in a Challenging World” panel of the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit 2026, Zobel said changing geopolitical and economic relationships are prompting countries to seek new partners, creating openings for Southeast Asian economies.
“The relationships are not what they used to be. I see that disruption as an opportunity,” he said.
However, businesses seeking to expand within ASEAN still face differing investment requirements, approval procedures and technical standards that make cross-border operations more complicated and costly.
“The first order of the day I think would be ideally to have a fairly seamless process that would allow us to move easily between the countries and make putting up an investment as easy as possible,” Zobel said.
He pointed to the region’s complementary strengths, including Singapore’s financial and technology capabilities, the manufacturing bases of Thailand and Vietnam, and Indonesia’s large domestic market.
Realizing ASEAN’s potential requires governments and businesses to move beyond competing for investments and develop stronger regional partnerships.
“We’ve all been taught to compete,” he said. “But I think more than ever before, we need to find the tools to cooperate successfully.”
On artificial intelligence, Zobel cited Malaysia’s investments in data centers, digital banking and software systems as developments the Philippines could learn from, particularly in building the infrastructure needed to support wider AI adoption.
“We have not yet done that in the Philippines,” he said, calling for greater regional discussion on the investments and capabilities needed to develop the technology.
Ayala’s own investments reflect the opportunities and challenges of regional integration. Zobel said the group has business interests in Indonesia and Vietnam, as well as markets outside ASEAN, including Australia and India.
He recalled how an earlier wave of intra-ASEAN investments was disrupted by the Asian financial crisis, constraining regional capital flows for about a decade. Investment activity has since regained momentum, reinforcing the case for simpler rules and deeper cooperation to help businesses tap opportunities across the region.
