Semiconductor industry seen as key to escaping middle-income trap
Among the 11 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, only Singapore and Brunei are categorized as “high-income countries” by the World Bank. © Reuters
YUKI FUJITA, YUJI NITTA and TOMOYOSHI OSHIKIRI
August 18, 2026 06:52 JST
MANILA/HANOI/JAKARTA — The growth of the semiconductor industry in Southeast Asia has reconfigured economic development in the region, putting Vietnam and the Philippines on course toward the sought-after status of “high-income countries.”