U.S. Investment Position in ASEAN + 3 and India, 1997-2006
Figures in US$ millions


1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Indonesia 6,729 8,104 8,402 8,904 10,511 7,546 10,387 - 9,847 10,585
Malaysia 6,530 5,629 6,222 7,910 7,489 6,954 7,580 8,690 10,344 12,450
Philippines 3,219 3,931 3,517 3,638 3,279 4,642 4,700 6,338 6,377 7,034
Singapore 18,026 17,550 20,665 24,133 26,749 52,449 57,589 56,900 54,500 60,147
Thailand 4,332 5,209 5,500 5,824 6,444 7,608 7,393 7,747 6,573 8,217
China 5,150 6,350 9,401 11,140 11,387 10,294 11,877 15,430 17,033 22,228
Japan 33,854 41,423 55,120 57,091 55,651 10,499 73,435 80,246 79,280 91,769
South Korea 6,467 7,365 7,474 8,968 9,977 12,178 13,318 17,332 18,188 22,280
India 1,563 1,592 2,390 2,379 2,496 3,283 3,609 6,203 6,634 8,852

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce
-- : data not available

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U.S. investment in ASEAN at the end of 2003 stood at slightly over US$88 billion, according to figures from the U.S. Department of Commerce. It is widely believed, however, that this figure significantly understates the actual level of U.S. investment in the region. Figures from National Boards of Investment indicate that in terms of investment approvals, the U.S. is consistently one of the top investors in most ASEAN countries. In any case, as the table indicates, U.S. investment in the region has grown rapidly.

Along with this rapid growth has been an increasing diversification of U.S. investment in the region. In the mid-1980s, much of the American investment in ASEAN was in the oil and gas sector; in the early and mid-1980s, for example, such investment accounted for more than half of the total U.S. investment presence in the region. This has changed steadily since then, and manufacturing and services now account for the largest share of U.S. investment activity in ASEAN.  The Commerce Department data for year-end 1999 shows that 36% of U.S. investment in the region is concentrated in the manufacturing sector, while an equal amount is in services and other related industries. The remaining 28% of U.S. investment  in the region is in the petroleum sector.