Abstract
After summarizing the major features of the ASEAN labor market and patterns of labor migration in Asia, the article describes the origins and current status of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and its main mechanism, the Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) Scheme. Projections are offered on the effects on regional trade after AFTA. Though the volume of intra-regional trade may be less significant than in the cases of Europe or North America, AFTA is likely to have a significant effect on promoting a regional division of labor. Although AFTA is limited to the manufacturing sector, in the future the Philippines may find a niche in services requiring “knowledge workers” such as accountants and computer analysts.
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