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Sep 7, 2006 China-Asean FTA 'On Track For 2010 Deadline' Smooth progress has given bilateral trade a boost, says Chinese minister By China Bureau Chief, Chua Chin Hon Straits Times IN BEIJING - FREE trade negotiations between China and Asean are 'right on schedule' for completion by 2010, a senior Chinese official said yesterday. Vice-Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng also told reporters that talks are already in the 'substantive phase', where negotiators are focused on cooperation in 10 key areas, among them agriculture, IT, tourism, energy and transportation. 'We believe that with the joint efforts of China and Asean, we can establish the free trade area by 2010,' he said. Talks for a China-Asean Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was initiated in November 2002. Officials expect tariffs to be abolished by 2010 for the six most advanced Asean countries - Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand - while the other four underdeveloped countries - Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar - will have until 2015 to comply. But both China and Asean have already introduced two rounds of tariff reductions in January 2004 and July last year as part of an 'early harvest' programme to reap the benefits of the FTA ahead of its completion. Mr Gao said the smooth progress in FTA talks not only helped boost China-Asean trade, which grew 22 per cent between July last year and July this year, but it had also helped move bilateral trade up the value chain. He said: 'The traditional impression is that China-Asean trade is focused on agricultural products, mineral resources, textiles or light manufacturing. 'But the truth is that the structure of bilateral trade has been improving in recent years with the growth in trade as well as the speeding up of the construction of the free trade area.' Last year, for instance, the trade volume in electronics and high-tech products accounted for more than 45 per cent of total imports and exports between China and Asean. When completed by 2010, the China-Asean FTA is expected to boast some 1.85 billion consumers and an annual trade volume of US$200 billion (S$314 billion). Leaders from China and Asean are expected to give mutual trade and investment a further boost later next month when they gather in Nanning, capital city of south-western Guangxi autonomous region, for a series of meetings. In Nanning, they will mark the 15th anniversary of the establishment of dialogue and partnership between China and Asean, as well as attend a major regional trade expo. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Philippine President Gloria Arroyo are among the leaders who have confirmed they will attend the event. Despite the growing China-Asean ties, Beijing is aware that the region harboured lingering concerns about its rising economic and political clout. To ease those worries, China has repeatedly stressed that its economic growth will be a boon to Asean, a point Mr Gao repeated yesterday. He said that China has been importing more from Asean countries than it exports to them since the early 1990s, running a trade deficit that has grown from US$4.8 billion in 2000 to US$19.6 billion last year. Beijing will also set aside an additional US$5 billion in concessional loans to encourage Chinese businesses to invest in Asean countries, he said. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 2006 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access |