18 www.matrade.gov.my Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation |18 The AEC will make ASEAN more attractive to foreign direct investments, with a market larger than many other regional groupings and countries in the world The AEC is a significant stimulus to regional production, linkages and competitiveness Provides a platform for SMEs to venture into export market Stimulates expansion of intra-regional trade and intra-regional investment 18 ASEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY