haslinda: the shimmering skyline of singapore, home to asean's financial hub, and one of the most expensive cities in the world. singapore is a place where fervent enterprise meets money. >> a large part of the story is driven by private enterprise. haslinda: singaporean banks are up to 16% of all project related finance in asean. >> the private sector wants something clearly. the public sector wants something. you must make sure there is the right match. >> if we can combine them, then we are behind this balance sheet necessary to make these projects happen.

haslinda: striking a balance and infrastructure is one of the great challenges confronting asean: the next generation. ♪ haslinda: hello, i'm haslinda on in singapore, a country just under 6 million people accounting for less than 1% of asean's population, but about 12% of its combined gdp. singapore is a financial and infrastructure hub of southeast asia. nowhere else in the region is there anything quite like singapore. a small island connected to the world by the region's biggest airport and global trade by the world's second business as biggest container port, with highly advanced financial

market, education, and expertise. >> who are small. relatively less developed. on the other end of the the spectrum, we have countries like singapore, who are first world countries. 2 completely different parts of the spectrum. to say it is one market, one third of behavior, or opportunity, is not obvious. we spoke to investors around the world. there responses, decision to invest into china would be very different. haslinda: dbs is southeast asia's biggest bank, most of the business is done in singapore,

with half of its revenue coming from institutional banking. >> a large part of the asean story is driven by private enterprise. people say it grows at night when the government is asleep. the private sector will be at the forefront. the businesses collaborate across borders. it is the consumer who is willing to work. i think it will be slowly driven by the individual. i would think the government sector and for a long extent. >> most governments have the same goal, they want to make the population more happy. they need to provide infrastructure to do this. there are different countries, different approaches. some countries are dependent on the private sector. some are more dependent on the state owned enterprises. >> we have investment

opportunities and facilities. i'm a great believer that private sector engagement, particularly with the balance sheet and private companies growing, there is an accountability and serious threat that comes with private sector engagement in traditionally public funded projects. >> the key thing is to look at it from the eyes of the private sector. they want to mobileye -- they will not mobilize their capital unless they think it is necessary and they will get return. once you look at it through that lens, you have to understand it needs to be treated properly. also, the framework and regulations. the investment in an environment is key.

haslinda: the asian involvement, asean needs to spend 3.1 trillion dollars over the next 10 years to meet its infrastructure needs. singapore has set up what effectively is a one-stop shop called infrastructure asia. >> capacity building in countries is important. if there is a project and proposal for how to structure it, the people within the country who are assessing the project must have the capability, the ability to assess it well. it is not just about the project. you also want employment, capability transfer, know-how transfer, and you want the benefits that come from the projects. >> you have to have a collaboration between the public. public sector and public policy has to be informed. not just from a policy standpoint, but an

infrastructure standpoint. if you want to build, i think the public sector has a lot of play. if you want to create policies around capital markets, public sector. it is a good thing, the private sector would take the lead. >> singapore is the role model for a lot of countries we would imagine. perhaps not only imagine, but the rest of -- perhaps not only in asean, but the rest of the world. making sure the public sector policy is truly in line with the trend within the economy where it is going. haslinda: science cement group is one of thailand's biggest conglomerates. infrastructure company that has been doing business with countries in what is now asean for more than 100 years. from the window of its headquarters, you can see the main station that will connect

fast trains from singapore all the way to china. >> highline is doing a lot of the investment in infrastructure. countries like vietnam across indonesia are doing a lot of investment in infrastructure. there's also the trend trying to link infrastructure between the countries in asean with china. the expectation is the next 10 years, the line turns out the investment, at least from a government standpoint, it will be on infrastructure. with a rising middle class, growth, countries are wanting to build cities. they need the overall layout and plans and how to put it all together. waste, sanitation, water, telecoms, electrification. these are some of the key ones we have encountered in our conversations around singapore. >> if we can combine them, then you start to harness the kind of balance sheet necessary to make these projects happen. most asian countries are a few years behind where they should be. that is a very positive thing, the growth that has taken place. urbanization taking place in manila, jakarta, bangkok, the big asian cities, have really led to the birth of the forward-looking infrastructure that is needed. >> you really need the approach for every country. you have singapore, which is extremely developed.

totally different challenges and opportunities compared to myanmar, laos, or cambodia. we have invested our approach and strategy for each of these countries. we are looking at what they need to develop and making sure we bring a good solution. haslinda: the first light in the philippines, 130 years ago. up next, finding the right kind of power to supply asean for the next generation. >> we have 65 million people.

tens of them don't have access. some countries have electrification rates of 30%. ♪

haslinda: within asean, there is a shift. not just towards conductivity and inclusion, but also towards sustainability. in a region where coal is king, energy demand has grown by more than 60% over the past 15 years. >> we have 65 million people, some don't have access to electricity. some countries have an electrification rate of 30%. singapore is 100%. power duration is the key piece that needs to be grown. we are focusing on that market.

we have the advantage of a food portfolio, the renewable technologies, wind, solar, energy storage. also, the thermal technologies in gas and coal. every country has specific situations, specific resources, some have no resources. we really need to look at customized solutions for each of them. haslinda: for a country to reach their potential, the demand for power needs to be met. what other challenges our meeting that demand? >> the challenge is power has really come from very traditional fossil based fuels in the past. issues of climate change and sustainability have become big, rightly so. how to balance the energy needs on one hand with a higher cry for sustainable solutions is a

challenge. we are looking at the price differential and cost effectiveness of renewable energy has come down. there is an opportunity to start thinking of a percentage of renewable energy in the energy equation. haslinda: this is the oldest and one of the biggest conglomerates in the philippines. it's energy arm is working on renewable products worth around $1 billion in the philippines, indonesia, and vietnam. asean has set the target for renewables to make up 23% by 2025. >> most governments have become far more enlightened, in the philippines there is a big move towards renewables. the challenge for us as the

private sector is to adjust portfolios and participate in those areas. that is the challenge, really addressing energy needs in a renewable way. that's the challenge i think governments face, that sector groups face. >> the world has had a view that you need a balance on the agenda. climate change is a big issue. it has been the biggest issue. it is like everything in one issue. one extreme view would be to stop everything to do with popular -- fossil energy today. there is massive demand for energy over the next 15 years in asia. there are no alternatives to fossil fuels. >> we have the likes of dbs and the aiib saying they will not lend unless a project is green and sustainable. is it in a mistake in a region that is looking for cheap power, which is coal, and it remains king? >> i think they are doing the right thing. there are moving the equation towards a renewable space. we have set a goal of having 50% of our energy production in our own portfolio to be renewable in

the long-term. i believe there is always a balance. i'm not an extremist in my views. we should have a direction towards renewables. there are cases, depending on the energy needs, where fossil based solutions are still the most efficient. >> we had to figure how to continue support, while at the same time recognizing you cannot keep going down this path. this will create a very dark future. we try to balance them and see how to start calibrating down our energy finances. banks have an important role to play. we have to figure out alternatives at the same time. we are doing a lot more solar, more wind, more biofuel to be

able to help finance it. haslinda: the u.s. giant general electric, southeast asia represents a massive growth opportunity. its annual revenue for the region has doubled to $7 billion in eight years. across the region, it employs 10,000 people. >> the main growth opportunity for the future is having these countries worked even closer together. i worked in laos laos week. in the north, it is generating energy, exporting to vietnam and thailand. in the south, they are importing from the south and thailand. from an energy perspective, the grid system is to have electricity at the right place. that is where the region can do better in generating more relationships between the countries, in terms of the physical infrastructure. haslinda: what is key in inclusive growth, inclusive development? for countries like indonesia, where they have 17,000 islands, what do you bring to the table to help bridge differences?

>> in indonesia it is interesting. they need both. the big power generation plants for the densely populated area. then we have smaller systems, more engine solutions to bring to the remote areas. we did bring a lot of electricity to remote islands by bringing these standalone solutions, trade amounts. it is easy to install. that has been a great achievement on the side of the government to bring power to places where there was no power before. haslinda:haslinda: almost every country has a infrastructuren plan that ranges from $100 billion to $300 billion, yet here we are talking about the death of infrastructure in southeast asia.

why is that the case? if there is one action to be taken, what will it be? >> the growth has been scioscia menace that everyone is playing -- so tremendous, that everyone is playing catch-up. i'm very much in favor of planning ahead and over weighting infrastructure, particularly in economic sectors. that would keep economic growth going. governments have to do balancing with political issues, social issues. it doesn't always happen perfectly. haslinda: up next, from hanoi to ho chi minh, how vietnam is out racing change. plus, asean through the eyes. ♪

>> it is a judicious cost of everything. the event it of technology, it

is fundamentally deflationary. you have faster access. the ability to underrate customers. if you assume the cost burden comes down, even developed countries can get it efficient. there is only a positive. i don't see a negative. >> the countries are trying to make an improvement, in terms of making it easier to do business. but also trying to make sure that the companies invest in the countries. it is not easy to operate not only in different countries, but also in different tax law regulations and processes. that is something that at this point is the challenge. >> the face of asean, in terms of the cities, they should get more modern. cities will adapt to what they need to be in the future. more sustainable, more environmentally friendly, less traffic jams. there is a lot of work to be

done in the region. i think there will be drastic change in the way that cities operate, especially the way that they are powered, over the next years to come. depending on the way they are structured, but if they address real public sector needs, particularly in transportation, basic infrastructure, that brings people more formally into the economy, it becomes a very inclusive way. people from all walks of life, particularly lower income groups. you take a major transportation project in a major urban city. there are -- it is tough for people to move around the major cities.

haslinda: the housing economy is forecast to grow by almost 7% in 2019, making it the fastest growing among the asean side. outside the region's biggest economy, vietnam is on a similar course. >> i have not been in -- i have not been involved for 20 years. the restrictions are clear. moving from a complete demand and controlled environment to letting the market forces and private cap take their own. i think the shift is tangible. at the same time, they have a long way to go. relative to many of the other

more macedonian economies in asean, vietnam can still be more difficult from a market standpoint. haslinda: you are scaling up your investments in renewable,s why vietnam -- renewables, why vietnam? >> they were offering interesting tariffs for investors to come into the pipe frame. you can say i put my capital here, put it there, they are very welcoming. than capital starts to move toward that. vietnam has been welcoming. the specific projects in the renewable space. in our case, we had expertise, a management team, financial ability to tackle the project at this point in time. we said why not? asean is an exciting place. vietnam is being generous with their investment offerings. move quickly in that direction.

>> the major projects, one that comes first is our investment in petrochemical complex in the southern part of the and him -- of vietnam. that's roughly about $4 billion. right now, we started the construction already. it is about 10%. we expect it to take another 3.5, four years before we can commercialize. that is supposedly the first such a chemical complex within the vietnam. haslinda: what is the biggest challenge for the asean region? >> let me start with the positive. the challenges -- these are all positive challenges, the region has been doing well. if you look at global growth, southeast asia, asia in general, has been a shining light. i think it will continue to be. the challenge comes from how to make the growth sustainable, predictable, and continue over the medium and long-term. there are some fascinating trends taking place, urbanization is becoming massive.

with that, comes the infrastructure needs of an urban environment. that's a big challenge. you can see it traveling through any main city in southeast asia. >> there are now about 1800 aircraft flying around asia. over the next 10 years, it will be 2200 additional that come onto the market. more than doubling. the same 260 megawatts, gigawatts installed. another 200 gigawatts to be ordered over the next 10 years. health care is the same. health care has very steady growth over the last years, about 10%. there are thousands of hospitals planned, new hospitals across the region. >> people are also more connected. technology allows us to be able to move through and understand the difference, in terms of the culture and language. i said this is the most advanced improvement i have seen between the countries for the last four to five years. >> one big difference is the proliferation of wonton banks. i think relatively new phenomenon, whether it is gab,

project. the go around the space and we have not seen those before. that is a big shift. i think there is a desire and steady steps to integrating the market. especially on the trade side. tariffs are low, but even non-tariff have been reducing. what needs to happen is greater market integration. we need greater people integration, the mobility of labor. haslinda: public policy and private enterprise within borders and beyond. power to the people, partnership, and shared preferred it. from manila, thanks for watching asean: the next generation. ♪ tom: i am bloomberg's tom mackenzie outside of bloomberg's -- the people's bank of china headquarters in beijing. president xi jinping says the chinese economy is resulted in a haslinda: public policy and

private enterprise within borders and beyond. power to the people, partnership, and shared from manila, thanks for watching prosperity. asean: the next generation. ♪

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jonathan: from new york city for our audience worldwide, i am jonathan ferro. bloomberg "real yield" starts right now. coming up, global central banks gearing up to deliver more stimulus, taking the poll of negative yielding assets through $13 trillion and driving high-yield credit spreads to the lows of 2019. so let's begin with the big issue. who wants to fight the fed? >> it is certainly not something you want to fight in the short-term. >> don't fight the fed. >> the market really likes the fact the fed is saying they are dovish. >> in the near term, i think we are going to s