ASEAN


Hong Kong-ASEAN free trade agreement, investment agreement to take effect for Philippines in May
On trade in goods under the FTA, the Philippines will progressively eliminate and reduce customs duties on goods originating from Hong Kong. On trade in services, Hong Kong service providers will enjoy better business opportunities.
UK keen on joint committee to boost bilateral trade post-Brexit
The British government remains hopeful of setting up a joint committee to boost bilateral trade and investment with Malaysia amid changes to the federal government.
Japan scouts more Asian players for TPP to cut China dependence
Japan will make a fresh attempt to expand the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact to include more Asian economies, such as Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines, after the new coronavirus exposed the risks of supply chains overly dependent on China.
India in free trade talks with 23 parties
India is in talks with 23 parties, including the European Union, the Gulf Cooperation Council, ASEAN and Israel, on various types of trade agreements, according to data from the central ministry of commerce and industry.
ASEAN presses on with the RCEP without India: How they covered it
Despite India’s decision to withdraw from the final stages of negotiations to form the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the remaining parties hope to get the free trade agreement (FTA) signed off by the end of the year.
Asean agrees to persuade India to return to RCEP
Asean nations have agreed to try and persuade India to return to the negotiating table for the 16 nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade deal.
RCEP deal expected to be signed late 2020: ASEAN secretary general
The RCEP deal is expected to be signed at the end of this year, ASEAN Secretary-General Dato Lim Jock Hoi said on the sideline of the 26th Meeting of ASEAN Economic Ministers Retreat.
Regional MPs call for greater transparency of RCEP negotiations
As ministers of the member countries of the RCEP meet for final negotiations over the trade agreement this week, regional lawmakers today expressed concern about the lack of parliamentary and public oversight of the deal, as well as its potential human rights impacts.
What ails India’s Free Trade Agreements?
Lack of harmonised standards, and certification issues that increase transaction costs plague India’s FTAs
The European Commission’s palm oil conundrum
With new regulatory changes now taking place on the basis of the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED) II of 2018, Indonesia and Malaysia are trying to come to terms with the implications for their global palm oil market strategy and domestic production.