The Economy of Southeast Asia

Agriculture Fertile River Valleys ½ of all arable land is used for rice Thailand and Vietnam are worlds top rice exporters Rice paddies- flooded fields irrigated by rivers

Agriculture: Other Crops Yams Corn Bananas Cassava Edible Root Alternative subsistence crop Rubber Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia lead the world in Natural Rubber production

Agriculture: Fish farming 2x world’s average fish consumption Small operations competing with commercial fishing Over fishing a concern

Forestry and Mining Logging important but leads to deforestation Mountainous regions have rich mineral deposits Brunei: Large Oil reserves Indonesia-only Asian country in OPEC Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia are three of the worlds leading producers of Tin

Industry Rapid Industrialization Singapore has most developed economy Major port with international trading links Malaysia major producer of rubber and palm oil. Electronics Manufacturer Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia have vast resources but lack technology to exploit them

Transportation Water is used for most transportation Major ocean trade routs Cambodia lacks highway system Industrializing countries are building more and more roads

Communications Industrialization determines level of communications Singapore most developed Use of Cell phones now widespread even in rural areas In cities, most people own or have access to a TV or Radio Government owns or controls TV and Radio

Trade and Interdependence Association of Southeast Asian Nations Promote regional development, trade, and economic stability Alternative to foreign investment Working to form a single trading market