TRADE, THE WoT AND GOLF...:

While officials said the gathering was not an "anti-China" meeting, Washington is clearly trying to exert its leadership in Southeast Asia through investment, analysts said.

"China's actions in the South China Sea have undermined its narrative of a peaceful rising and fostered new suspicions about its economic and geopolitical intentions in the region," said Kevin G. Nealer, a China expert and a partner with the Scowcroft Group, based in Washington. "America's most difficult relationships in the region are healthier and more high-functioning than China's best relations, and the deep and consistent American investment there has created habits of cooperation and shared goals with Asean that trade alone doesn't yield."

China has been Asean's largest trading partner since 2009, with two-way trade surpassing $366 billion in 2014, according to Asean trade data. The United States was fourth last year behind the European Union and Japan. Southeast Asia was also America's fourth-largest export market that year.

However, America's strategy has focused on direct investment, where it is far ahead of China. American companies poured $32.3 billion into Southeast Asia from 2012 to 2014, according to Asean data, compared with $21.3 billion from China.

From 2000 to 2014, the United States invested $226 billion in Southeast Asia, according to the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis, more than American investment in China, Japan and India combined.

Tweet   @brothersjudd