Businesses focus on more growth, productivity: PwC

Businesses in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) are looking for ways to drive faster growth and greater productivity as they navigate through increasingly complex challenges and technological advances, says PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
The region, which celebrated its 50-year anniversary just last month, is the world’s seventh largest economy with a combined population of 620 million. It has seen growth of 4.8 per cent over the past year.
Despite economic and political headwinds, the business outlook for the burgeoning region remains buoyant as it is well positioned to take advantage of disruption, said Sundara Raj Ramamurthy, incoming CEO and markets leader for PwC’s South East Asian Consulting (SEAC) services.
Emerging technologies are having a significant impact on Asean just like other parts of the world, Raj said.
“In our region, digital disruption is further intensified by factors such as rising urbanisation and strides toward smart cities, leading to growing expectations for services like accessible healthcare, education, improved infrastructure and ubiquitous Internet access.
“While challenging, this dynamic landscape provides Asean businesses with substantial opportunities,” said Raj.
“We find that while our clients are in different stages of maturity across the region, they’re all looking for ways to drive faster growth and greater productivity.”