Southeast Asia has seen the fastest growing investment destination in recent years, according to the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN). Private investors poured nearly US$1 billion into the region from 2007 to 2017 while development finance institutions (DFIs) deployed US$11.2 billion, GIIN’s said as quoted by The Edge Markets. On top of capital market investment, the 10-economy ASEAN bloc is also seen as a natural magnet for new factories amid the US-China trade war, thanks to low production costs and improving infrastructure. Growth projections for the region look bright but accelerating economic integration is the only way to meet challenges on the horizon, particularly competition in manufacturing from China, says HSBC’s chief ASEAN economist, Joseph Incalcaterra.