Impact of Regional Trade Liberalization on Emerging Economies: The Case of Vietnam

This study provides an appraisal of Vietnam's regionalist integration strategy of trade liberalization. Trade liberalization through participation in regional free trade agreement (FTAs), such as the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and the planned ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA), have also provided Vietnam with useful lessons and experience to succeed in its domestic economic reforms. Using computable general equilibrium models, the quantitative impact of different configurations of regional free trade areas on Vietnam is made. The results indicate that further participation in the expansion of FTAs beyond AFTA could bring greater economic advantage and lower adjustment costs for Vietnam's efforts in industrialization and fostering structural economic change.