China ASEAN Announced Its Agreement To Start Negotiations On The Upgraded Version Of The FTA.

The thirteenth China ASEAN Economic and trade ministerial conference issued a joint press communique on 26, announcing that China and ASEAN agreed to start the China ASEAN Free Trade Area upgraded version negotiations.

The thirteenth time

- ASEAN Economic and trade ministers' meeting was held in Naypyidaw, Burma on the same day.

Gao Hucheng, Minister of Commerce of China, said that 2014 was the first second years of the establishment of the China ASEAN strategic partnership, and that the economic and trade cooperation between China and ASEAN has become a bright spot in the overall relationship between China and ASEAN, along with the accelerating process of the construction of China ASEAN Free trade area.

Gao Hucheng said that bilateral trade between China and ASEAN grew steadily. In 2013, bilateral trade volume reached 443 billion 600 million US dollars, an increase of 11%. ASEAN has been China's third largest trading partner, fourth largest export market and second largest source of imports for three consecutive years.

According to ASEAN statistics, China has become ASEAN's largest trading partner for four years in a row.

Between 1 and July this year, bilateral trade grew steadily, reaching US $about 260000000000.

China is willing to expand mutually beneficial cooperation with ASEAN and put forward four suggestions for cooperation: to jointly build the maritime Silk Road in twenty-first Century, further enhance the level of bilateral trade and investment facilitation, speed up interconnection and infrastructure construction, and strengthen cooperation in regional economic integration.

The joint press communique published after the meeting said that the ministers agreed that the escalation of China ASEAN free trade area is a strong proof of the constructive relationship between China and ASEAN, which is conducive to deepening bilateral economic interests through mutual benefit.

The China ASEAN free trade area was formally established in January 1, 2010, with a total economic volume of about 6 trillion US dollars and a trade volume of US $4 trillion and 500 billion.

The largest free trade area constituted by developing countries.

The Chinese side proposed to build an upgraded version of China ASEAN Free Trade Area in 2013.