Research Seminar with Associate Professor Atsushi Kobayashi of the University of Tokyo

On October 21, 2026, the Faculty of International Liberal Arts (FILA) and the Center for Malaysian Studies (CMS) hosted a research seminar featuring Associate Professor Atsushi Kobayashi of the Graduate School of Economics, the University of Tokyo. More than 40 undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty members attended. The seminar was also honored by the presence of Ms. NYANG Bing Pei, First Secretary of the Embassy of the Republic of Singapore in Japan.

 

The lecture was titled “Interconnectedness and Regional Autonomy in the Nineteenth-Century Global Economy: The Case of Singapore and Southeast Asia.” Following opening remarks and an introduction by Professor Ichiro Sugimoto, Dean of FILA, Associate Professor Kobayashi examined the development of Singapore-centered intra-regional trade in Southeast Asia from the perspective of global economic history.

 

Associate Professor Kobayashi emphasized the importance of examining pre-existing regional trading networks and the activities of Asian merchants, rather than explaining Southeast Asia’s nineteenth-century economic transformation solely through its incorporation into a Western-centered global economy. He illustrated how Singapore developed as an entrepôt—a commercial hub for collecting and redistributing goods—and strengthened economic connections across the region through commodity markets, including rice, as well as monetary and financial linkages.

 

The lecture also explored how expanding exports of commodities such as tin generated employment and income, increasing demand for food and everyday necessities and supporting production and trade in neighboring regions. These developments demonstrated how global economic connections and intra-regional economic activity reinforced one another. Associate Professor Kobayashi further discussed why regional integration produced different patterns of economic development, highlighting differences in labor supply, land availability, and institutions.

 

Drawing on historical sources and trade and price data, the seminar offered participants an opportunity to explore the relationship between global and regional economies from multiple perspectives and to deepen their understanding of globalization and economic development—issues that remain relevant today.

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