ASEAN members mull upgrade of FTA with Australia, New Zealand

The private sector, comprising businesses and business associations, and government officials from Member States have engaged in discussions about the provisions of the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA) and learnt more about the potential benefits of an AANZFTA upgrade.
The Free Trade Area was discussed during the AANZFTA Regional Business Roundtable meeting held in Vientiane last week, co-hosted by Laos’ Ministry of Industry and Commerce.

(From left) Mr Tim Ayres, Ms Nicola Grigg and Mr Malaythong Kommasith last week gather for the AANZFTA Regional Business Roundtable Meeting in Vientiane.

The meeting shared the results of National Business Roundtable Meetings as well as encouraging private sector usage of FTA provisions and building understanding of barriers to trade within the private sector.
Some 200 participants representing the public and private sectors from all AANZFTA members attended the meeting.
Several topics were discussed, such as raising awareness of the Free Trade Area and the challenges and opportunities involved, while suggestions by the private sector and other key groups on the AANZFTA upgrade were put forward.
Suggestions for maximising the benefits of the AANZFTA upgrade 2023 were made and the roles of the various stakeholders discussed.
Laos’ Minister of Industry and Commerce Mr Malaythong Kommasith noted that Laos is serving as the 2024 ASEAN Chair under the theme “Increasing ASEAN Connectivity and Resilience”.
“ASEAN and Closer Economic Relations (CER) countries are long-term economic partners and are getting stronger. In 2023, the value of trade between ASEAN and Australia was worth US$94.4 billion, accounting for 2.7 percent of the total trade value of ASEAN, while trade between ASEAN and New Zealand was worth US$12.7 billion, accounting for 0.4 percent of the total trade value of ASEAN,” he said.
At the same time, the value of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by Australia in ASEAN member countries reached US$1.6 billion, accounting for 0.7 percent of the total value of direct investment by other countries in ASEAN in 2023.
Meanwhile, the value of FDI from New Zealand in ASEAN member countries reached US$13.5 million, accounting for 0.01 percent of the value of FDI in ASEAN last year.
Mr Malaythong said he firmly believed that these trade and investment links would become even stronger after implementation of the revised ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement.

By Times Reporters
 (Latest Update September 25, 2024)