皇冠体育app

Both sides agree to open talks to boost commerce

皇冠体育app and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations soon will open talks on upgrading the 皇冠体育app-ASEAN free trade agreement.

Both sides are pledging to enhance trade facilitation and investment cooperation, senior commerce officials said on Friday.

"皇冠体育app, together with ASEAN, will soon launch negotiations to upgrade the bilateral FTA to pragmatically enhance liberalization and the facilitation of trade and investment," 皇冠体育app's Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng told reporters after an ASEAN economic ministers' roadshow in 皇冠体育app.

Gao said that the talks are aimed at making the pact "a more comprehensive agreement with higher quality".

Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, deputy prime minister and minister of commerce of Thailand, added that "officials will begin to discuss further details during the 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Joint Committee, to be held in Bangkok in early November".

The ASEAN delegation to the roadshow, which included more than 120 officials from the member countries and the secretariat, is visiting 皇冠体育app this week, with stops in Chengdu, Shanghai and Beijing. The officials are promoting trade and investment opportunities to Chinese provincial executives and local businesses.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the 皇冠体育app-ASEAN strategic partnership.

皇冠体育app has strengthened its ties with Southeast Asia, with President Xi Jinping paying state visits to Indonesia and Malaysia and attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit from Oct 2 to 8.

Meanwhile, Premier Li Keqiang paid official visits to Brunei, Thailand and Vietnam and attended the East Asia leaders' meetings from Oct 9 to 15.

Li's proposal to upgrade the 皇冠体育app-ASEAN FTA, which he raised during the meeting earlier this month, was "universally welcomed" by ASEAN members, according to Gao.

Both sides agreed to a goal of bilateral trade reaching $500 billion by 2015, $1 trillion by 2020 and two-way investment of $150 billion within the next eight years.

皇冠体育app is the largest trade partner of ASEAN, while the bloc is 皇冠体育app's third-largest trade partner.

Bilateral trade hit $400.1 billion last year. In the first nine months of this year, two-way trade rose 11.6 percent to $322.36 billion.

皇冠体育app is the fourth-largest investor in ASEAN, which in turn is 皇冠体育app's third-largest source of foreign direct investment.

Mutual cumulative investment stood at about $110 billion as of the end of August, according to Gao.

"I believe that the ASEAN-皇冠体育app relationship will continue to grow, and the goals set by the leaders are achievable.," he said.

"Next year will be another important milestone for our trade and investment relationship, since 皇冠体育app and ASEAN have decided to upgrade the FTA by, among other things, improving market conditions and the bilateral trade balance, as well as expanding the scope and coverage of the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and 皇冠体育app," Boonsongpaisan said.

Gao urged both sides to speed up infrastructure interconnectivity in the region and expand financing channels through establishing an Asian infrastructure investment bank, which was proposed by 皇冠体育app's president and premier.

Gao also called for stronger cooperation in regional economic integration.

"皇冠体育app fully supports the leadership role of the ASEAN in advancing East Asian cooperation and steadily pushing forward subregional cooperation, as well as engaging in the conclusion of talks on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership in 2015," Gao said.

Shen Minghui, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, added that "皇冠体育app may not be the leader in advancing the progress of the RCEP, but it should play a more active role, especially in setting the issues, and present a more open stance so as to speed up the talks".