ACFTA highlights importance of ASEAN-China relations: Minister of Brunei

The establishment of ASEAN- China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) highlights the importance that ASEAN places in its relations with China, and will be mutually beneficial to both ASEAN and China, a senior minister of Brunei told said on June 29.

"The ACFTA is the first regional FTA that ASEAN has entered into with another Dialogue Partner. Politically, this signifies the importance that ASEAN places in its relations with the People's Republic of China," Minister of Industry and Primary Resources Abdul Rahman said.

Economically, ACFTA will provide a huge market of 1.7 billion people and the combined regional GDP will reach 2 trillion US dollars, Rahman said in a written statement faxed from Bandar Seri Begawan, capital of Brunei, to Xinhua at Kuala Lumpur.

China offers a potentially large consumer market for ASEAN exports of goods and services, and with the rapid growth of the Chinese economy, more foreign direct investment from emerging Chinese industries and businesses will flow into ASEAN, Rahman said.

ASEAN became China's fourth largest trade partner in the first quarter of 2005, next only to the European Union, the United States and Japan.

There is a large scope for Brunei and China to expand their cooperation in small and medium sized enterprises development, human resources development, hi-tech industries, service sector and tourism, Rahman said when asked on his expectation for the economic cooperation between the two countries.

Ever since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1991, the Sino-Brunei relations and cooperation in political, economic, cultural and various other fields have been improved steadily. In 2001, the total volume of bilateral trade reached 165 million US dollars and the figure stood at 299 million US dollars in 2004.

In accordance with China-ASEAN FTA Agreement, beginning on July 1, the tariff on more than 7000 categories of products will be reduced gradually or removed. By the year 2010, tariff on most normal products among China and the six old member countries of ASEAN, Brunei included, will be completely removed.

The 10-member ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Source: Xinhua