ASEAN

Since its establishment of a field office in Manila in 1910, Marubeni has engaged in trade and investment throughout the ASEAN region. Its activities in the region have not suffered despite its growing focus on China since the 1990s, and the Group continues to maintain strong relationships with its trading partners that are built on nearly a century of mutual trust and business expansion. In specific terms, we are active in the export, import and third-country trade of such industrial and consumer goods as textiles, chemicals, metals, agri-marine products, forest products, general merchandise and pulp and paper. We also participate in power, plant, bridge, airport, railway and other infrastructure development projects. In addition to expanding the scope of our trading area, we are contributing to the region’s economic growth.

Currently, Marubeni maintains five local subsidiaries, eight branches, five field offices and 59 operating companies in the ASEAN region. In addition, the Group has dispatched 121 representative officers from Japan to the region, making it the Group’s third largest such area of focus, after the United States and China. We are particularly active in three core strategic fields: the production and trade of consumer goods; resource and energy-related businesses; and infrastructure-related businesses. In the production and trade of consumer goods, Marubeni engages in third-country transactions of livestock feed, fodder and grain. Focusing mainly on Singapore, we also take part in the import, export and offshore trade of a variety of chemicals. In resource-related businesses, the Group participates in acacia tree-planting activities in Indonesia as well as the manufacture and sale of pulp used in paper production. We are also active in the export of coal to Japan from Vietnam. In infrastructure-related businesses, Marubeni has built a strong track record in hydroelectric, geothermal and other power generation operations in the Philippines.

Faced with a drop in its overall population due to demographic aging and declining birthrate, Japan is finding it imperative to collaborate closely with dynamic East Asian countries, particularly the ASEAN countries, and to build a value chain that encompasses production, distribution and consumption in order to maintain a viable level of economic growth. To promote a unified strategy, Marubeni has established the position of General Manager for ASEAN. Based in Singapore, the General Manager is responsible for coordinating efforts throughout the region and adjusting Marubeni’s product and regional strategies to ensure that the Group remains active across a variety of projects and fields. Moving forward, Marubeni will accelerate efforts to promote regional trade, including that with Japan, China, India and other regions.