Trade in goods with the 10 Asean member countries has expanded by 55 per cent during US President Barack Obama’s administration, according to statistics provided by the White House’s Office of the Press Secretary.

The figures were released just ahead of the US-Asean Summit which takes place here on Monday and Tuesday. US and Asean leaders are set to discuss ways to deepen cooperation in economic affairs, security issues and environmental protection.

US companies have been the leading source of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Asean. With a stock of over US$226 billion, US FDI in Asean has nearly doubled since 2008. Meanwhile, FDI from Aseancountries in the United States was US$24.2 billion in 2014.

Asean countries are collectively the United States’ fourth largest trading partner, with gross domestic product (GDP) growth that has exceeded the global average every year for the past 15 years.