Asean leaders warn against trade protectionism

Hanoi: Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on Wednesday stressed on the need to strengthen ties between countries in the region to survive the “Fourth Industrial Revolution” and warned against growing trade protectionism during a session at the regional World Economic Forum (WEF) summit. Indonesian President Joko Widodo said trade wars had been a reality through the ages and the region was capable of combating another — an indirect reference to the ongoing tariff disputes between China and the US, Efe news reported. (IANS)