The latest regional economic block to be formed is

Among the listed regional economic groupings, NAFTA is the most recently formed. APEC was established in 1989 as a Pacific‑rim regional forum [1], while NAFTA came into force later, implemented on January 1, 1994, making it chronologically later than APEC. ASEAN is a longstanding Southeast Asian association with established regional instruments and cooperation predating both APEC and NAFTA, as reflected in its accumulated agreements by the early 2000s [2]. Because NAFTA’s 1994 implementation postdates APEC’s 1989 founding and ASEAN’s earlier formation, NAFTA is the latest-formed bloc among the options provided.

Sources

1. [1] Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 18: International Economic Institutions > Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) > p. 550
2. [2] Contemporary World Politics, Textbook in political science for Class XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 2: Contemporary Centres of Power > Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) > p. 21