Obama's visit to Asia flawed by lack of trade incentives

It may well have been the best sushi of his life. But when US President Barack Obama rose from the table of Sukiyabashi Jiro after dining with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the American leader left some food for thought.

His challenge was great: countering a widespread perception that US influence in the region had diminished - even though many of its leaders doubt that Washington has much interest in maintaining the region's security.

Some analysts said Obama scored points on the political and security fronts - a 10-year military pact with the Philippines, for one.

But the US president committed a fatal flaw, some of them said: He failed to strengthen his Asia policy - the so-called rebalancing or pivot - with enough trade initiatives to enhance US economic power in the region. "It's definitely a mixed bag," said Michael Auslin, the director of Japanese studies at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington think tank. Obama used the four-nation tour to try to convince Asian allies that he is serious about anchoring the US - economically, politically and militarily in a continent increasingly overshadowed by an aggressive China.

Watch: Anti-US protest in Manila as Obama's visit ends