He served as senior trade development representative in the Africa, Near East, South Asia (ANESA) region during the Reagan Administration.

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The fall of the dollar against the yen after the Plaza Accord of 1985 led to a surge in Japanese investment in South-East Asia, and in exports from the region.

ECONOMIST: South-East Asian currencies

Since South-East Asia was the world's fastest-growing region throughout much of the 1980s and 1990s, it was particularly susceptible to an Islamic renaissance.

ECONOMIST: Islam in South-East Asia

The vast region that makes up East, South, and Southeast Asia is quickly developing into a mobile social powerhouse due to its enormous (and increasingly developed) population.

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The turmoil in South-East Asia and the consequent dampening of demand there means that exports to the region will fall and imports from there rise, but that may well be balanced by more exports to the United States, politically charged though these may be.

ECONOMIST: Japan: New tricks | The

On Wednesday it agreed on timetables for liberalising trade and investment with Japan, already a major presence in the region, and with India, whose commercial links with South-East Asia have sadly atrophied since the 10th century.

ECONOMIST: Noodle soup

Asset prices and currencies may have stabilised, but South-East Asia's economic hardship will continue for several years, putting ever more strain on the region's voters.

ECONOMIST: Thailand

After visiting Burma, Mr Obama headed to Cambodia to join a meeting of the Association of South East Asian Nations, in a trip that underlines the shift in US foreign policy focus to the Asia-Pacific region.

BBC: US President Obama hails Burma's 'remarkable journey'