FILIPINO exporters are encouraged to sell more products as economic power shifts from America to Asia, especially Southeast Asia.

Ronilo Balbieran, vice president of Research, Education and Institutional Development Foundation Inc., said China, India and the economies of so-called Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean)-5 are expected to drive the economy of the world.

Asean-5 is composed of Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines.

“In economics growth and size, we have more to sell to. So not just US, Europe, China; we have even in our neighbors Asean, we can sell more to them. We have the economics, we have the population. They have the population, we can sell more to them,” he said.

Balbieran pointed out that selling should not be a problem to exporters targeting the right countries and the right products.

“When we combined economic size, economics of networks and technology and people, then you have a strong prospect for your export products and services,” he said.

Balbieran also urged exporters to sell more products catering to the ageing population, which he considered “very, very rich.” (Philexport News and Features)