China keen on free trade accord with Asean

Beijing, China – A senior Chinese foreign affairs official said here that the People’s Republic of China was keen on the signing of the China-Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Free Trade Agreement within the year for an immediate implementation by Jan. 1, 2010.

Hu Zhengyue, PROC Ministry of Foreign Affairs assistant minister, said that China was even open to pushing forward the schedule of the signing of the agreement to within this month from the original schedule of October this year.

In a briefing with ASEAN journalists in the Chinese foreign affairs ministry in Beijing the other day, Hu said that China saw trade cooperation and partnership with ASEAN as crucial in the two’s interests as each deal with the current global financial crisis.

“The major challenge is how to tackle the impact of the global financial crisis,” Hu said.

“The Chinese government is taking positive steps to encourage Chinese enterprises to invest in ASEAN economies,” Hu said.

The China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement would reduce by 90 percent tariffs on goods entering each other’s borders.

Hu noted that mutual investments in each other’s economies would boost economic activities in China and ASEAN.

Hu said that the bustling trade between China and ASEAN has already shown the benefits of trade cooperation.

“We have enhanced our mutual trust and we have seen prospering economic cooperation. And we have seen unprecedented people to people exchanges,” Hu noted.