Integrating South and Southeast Asia through Services Value Chain: The Case of India and Thailand

The objective of this paper is to understand the prospects of enhancing services trade, investment and co-operation between South and Southeast Asia, taking the example of India and Thailand, by focusing on the development of services value chains through services sector liberalisation. Based on a primary survey and an analysis of the trade agreements involving India and Thailand, the paper finds that the present level of physical and people-to-people integration is low. This is due to the presence of certain market access barriers and regulatory bottlenecks in the two markets. The evidence suggests that these barriers can be addressed at the institutional level by means of a comprehensive trade agreement.