How will the US shutdown affect ASEAN?
So far, it is not entirely clear how far the shutdown of US government services will affect travel and trade between ASEAN and the US.
As per October 2, the US government said that passport inspectors, security officers, air-traffic controllers and customs officers will continue working. Also, US embassies will remain open and process visa requests, according to the State Department. Mail in the US will continue to be delivered, as the US Postal Service is an independent agency.
However, passport offices in the US, in case they are located in a government building, may close down. Likewise, government contractors may be impacted if they work in a federal building or need federal worker assistance, or if they need additional funding to continue.
The Department of Homeland Security will no longer operate its E-Verify programme, which means that businesses will not be able to check on the legal immigration status of prospective employees during the shutdown. Other fee-based immigration services should continue.
For expats waiting abroad for a US passport, how long they wait will depend on where the passport agency in the US is located that is supposed to issue the document. Passport services, because they are funded by other revenue, are “generally unaffected” by a government shutdown, according to a State Department spokesperson.
Trade impacts are not clear yet. Most employees of the Transportation and Security Administration and Customs and Border Protection will remain on duty, but countries that export goods to the US are bracing for possible delays at the border and a drop in demand from US customers. Countries that sell to US government agencies could face delays in payments or a halt in new orders.
A shutdown that lasts at least a month could cause 1 to 2 percentage points being knocked off of fourth-quarter GDP growth in the US, which would impact demand from Asia in particular. Asian economies that are most export-intensive and have the biggest share of exports going directly to the US such as Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and South Korea would be most affected.
For example, both the US Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration have shut their websites which could eventually cause problems for food exporters. Most USDA food inspectors, who inspect meat, poultry and red meat, are still working, though the number of workers could decrease if the shutdown lasts longer than two days.
FDA food inspectors, who inspect seafood and dairy products, are not working. The department has ceased, among others, its routine inspections and import monitoring.
So far, it is not entirely clear how far the shutdown of US government services will affect travel and trade between ASEAN and the US. As per October 2, the US government said that passport inspectors, security officers, air-traffic controllers and customs officers will continue working. Also, US embassies will remain open and process visa requests, according to the State Department. Mail in the US will continue to be delivered, as the US Postal Service is an independent agency. However, passport offices in the US, in case they are located in a government building, may close down. Likewise, government contractors...
So far, it is not entirely clear how far the shutdown of US government services will affect travel and trade between ASEAN and the US.
As per October 2, the US government said that passport inspectors, security officers, air-traffic controllers and customs officers will continue working. Also, US embassies will remain open and process visa requests, according to the State Department. Mail in the US will continue to be delivered, as the US Postal Service is an independent agency.
However, passport offices in the US, in case they are located in a government building, may close down. Likewise, government contractors may be impacted if they work in a federal building or need federal worker assistance, or if they need additional funding to continue.
The Department of Homeland Security will no longer operate its E-Verify programme, which means that businesses will not be able to check on the legal immigration status of prospective employees during the shutdown. Other fee-based immigration services should continue.
For expats waiting abroad for a US passport, how long they wait will depend on where the passport agency in the US is located that is supposed to issue the document. Passport services, because they are funded by other revenue, are “generally unaffected” by a government shutdown, according to a State Department spokesperson.
Trade impacts are not clear yet. Most employees of the Transportation and Security Administration and Customs and Border Protection will remain on duty, but countries that export goods to the US are bracing for possible delays at the border and a drop in demand from US customers. Countries that sell to US government agencies could face delays in payments or a halt in new orders.
A shutdown that lasts at least a month could cause 1 to 2 percentage points being knocked off of fourth-quarter GDP growth in the US, which would impact demand from Asia in particular. Asian economies that are most export-intensive and have the biggest share of exports going directly to the US such as Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and South Korea would be most affected.
For example, both the US Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration have shut their websites which could eventually cause problems for food exporters. Most USDA food inspectors, who inspect meat, poultry and red meat, are still working, though the number of workers could decrease if the shutdown lasts longer than two days.
FDA food inspectors, who inspect seafood and dairy products, are not working. The department has ceased, among others, its routine inspections and import monitoring.
