As part of the construction of a China-ASEAN Free Trade Area
(CAFTA), China will further open up its market in the next five
years to offer Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
countries more opportunities in the Chinese market, and to promote
common development, said Chen Jian, assistant minister of Commerce,
on Thursday in Nanning, Guangxi
Zhuang Autonomous Region.
Chen made the remarks at the Senior Officials' Forum, one of the
integral events of the Second China-ASEAN Business and Investment
Summit, which incorporates the China-ASEAN Expo.
The topic for discussion at the forum was "Governments: Building
a Mutually Beneficial and Win-win Environment for Regional
Cooperation." The two sub-topics were "The Construction of
China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA): Building a Transparent, Free
and Business-friendly Trade and Investment Mechanism," and "Further
Strengthening of Regional Cooperation: Expanding the Field of
Cooperation and Promoting Business Development."
China and ASEAN member countries signed the Agreement on Trade
in Goods at the end of 2004 and a tariff reduction program under
the agreement was launched this July, which signified the start of
comprehensive implementation of CAFTA.
In August, China imported goods worth US$63.1 million under the
reduced tariff rates, cutting tariff expenditure by over 430
million yuan.
Chen said that current CAFTA negotiations are focused on trade
in services. Travel and sci-tech are focus points at the ongoing
expo.
Southeast Asia is an important investment destination for
Chinese enterprises. As of the end of June, 883 Chinese
non-financial enterprises had been set up in the region and
investment in signed agreements had reached US$1 billion.
"China and ASEAN member countries are working towards creating a
stable, transparent and convenient environment for two-way
investment," Chen said.
He added: "Deepening economic and trade cooperation accords with
the interest of the people in both China and ASEAN countries."
He also called for further cooperation in agriculture,
information and telecommunications, human resources development,
development in the Greater Mekong Sub-region, two-way investment,
small and medium-sized enterprise, public hygiene, and science and
technology.
"China and ASEAN countries are friendly neighbors and have rich
resources. A huge market is expected to be created by cooperation
based on complementary advantages," said Chan Soo Sen, Singapore's
Education, and Trade and Industry minister.
The Business Leader’s Forum was also held yesterday. Presidents
of chambers of commerce and industry, entrepreneurs and scholars
from China and ASEAN offered their views on the topic: "Enterprises
and Chambers: Sharing and Exploring the Open Market Through
Cooperation."
(China.org.cn by staff reporter Yuan Fang October 21, 2005)