Southeast Asian countries, collectively known as the ASEAN, have shown the ability to adapt prosper amid economic uncertainty.

With booming manufacturing sector, rising consumer goods demand, and increasing urbanization, the region’s plastics manufacturing sector has leveraged its strategic position within global supply chains and its diversified industrial base, including automotive, bio-plastics, medical devices, packaging, and chemicals.

According to Mordor Intelligence, preliminary growth reports suggest that Southeast Asia’s plastics sector will register a turnover of 32 million tons this year and grow by 4% to almost 39 million tons by 2030.

Regional EV growth accelerates

In recent years, Southeast Asia has intensified its efforts to ramp up policies for the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), in response to the growing global take on carbon emissions reductions.

With strong growth potential in production and natural resources, Southeast Asia’s EV market is set to grow from US$1.5 billion in 2025 to US$6 billion by 2030, with a 32% CAGR, according to Mordor Intelligence.

Thailand, known as the "Detroit of Asia", is pushing ahead, aiming for 30% production by 2030 (725,000 cars, 675,000 motorcycles). The country has also significantly reduced excise tax for electric cars from 8% to 2% and offers import duty reductions of up to 40%, attracting manufacturers like China’s BYD, which recently opened its first Southeast Asian EV plant there.

Malaysia – Thailand’s neighbor – recently launched its first locally produced battery electric vehicle, called e-Mas, manufactured by national car brand Proton in collaboration with Chinese automaker Geely. Proton has also established a new R&D center in China to accelerate EV development.

Proton’s e.MAS 7 EV. (Source: Proton)

As the world’s top nickel producer, Indonesia is focusing on battery production. In 2023, the country produced 55 million tons of nickel, which was 42% of the global supply. It is staying on track to produce 140 gigawatt hours (GWh) of batteries by 2030, and last year, launched its first US$1 billion EV battery plant in Karawang, West Java, capable of powering 150,000 EVs annually.

See also: Indonesia targets 15 million EVs on the road by 2030

Meanwhile, the Philippines remains in the early planning stages. This is despite the transport sector contributing over 50% of outdoor air pollution in urban areas like Metro Manila. The shift to EVs is seen as a critical solution for improving urban air quality.

Despite strong growth potential, the Malaysian Investment Development Authority stated that Southeast Asia’s EV industry still faces key challenges, including high costs of EV batteries, shortages of parts, lack of EV experts and skills programs, electricity grid challenges and inconsistencies in EV charging standards and installation guidelines.

The US-ASEAN Business Council highlights foreign direct investment as crucial for overcoming these barriers and accelerating EV adoption in Southeast Asia.

Rapidly expanding medical sector

Southeast Asia’s medical devices sector is expanding rapidly, driven by rising healthcare demand, an aging population, and technological advancements. Data from Statista showed that the market is projected to reach US$12 billion by 2025 and US$16 billion by 2029 (+7.5% CAGR).

Malaysia is emerging as the fastest-growing market, focusing on ultrasound machines, MRI machines, in-vitro diagnostics, as well as orthopaedic and dental implants, according to Fitch Solutions. 

Vietnam is strengthening its position by investing in facilities that manufacture plastic-based medical consumables, while the Philippines and Indonesia are focusing on domestic demand for PPEs and medical supplies.

In Singapore, the market for medical devices is experiencing rapid growth due to the government's focus on enhancing healthcare infrastructure and promoting innovation in the medical technology sector.

However, the market faces regulatory hurdles, such as the recently introduced Cybersecurity Labelling Scheme for Medical Devices, which may increase compliance costs for manufacturers and limit market access to unlabeled products.