Vientiane (Laos), Sep 17 (IANS) Representatives from the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have met in the Lao capital, Vientiane, to discuss enhancing regional trade by simplifying trade barriers and implementing trade facilitation measures.
The representatives gathered on Monday for the 38th ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) Council Meeting, according to a report from Laos’ Ministry of Industry and Commerce on Tuesday.
In his opening remarks, Lao Minister of Industry and Commerce Malaythong Kommasith highlighted the importance of the meeting in continuing to integrate ASEAN as a single competitive production hub, according to Xinhua news agency.
Trading among ASEAN countries has made significant strides since the ASEAN Free Trade Area was established in 1992. ASEAN has eliminated tariffs on 98.6 per cent of all tariff items and is continuing to refine the ASEAN Single Window Tax Notification System to reduce trade costs and facilitate business in the region.
These measures have led to a marked growth in trade, with the value of intra-ASEAN trade in 2023 reaching US$ 759 billion, accounting for 21.5 per cent of the total trade value by ASEAN countries.
“In the past year, we have fulfilled work plans on creating the ASEAN Free Trade Zone and achieved many goals. In particular, we were able to resolve issues arising from the ASEAN Trade Agreement and the use of electronic trade documents through the ASEAN Single Window Tax Notification Service System,” said Malaythong.
The meeting was held to broaden and deepen regional trade and further integrate trade.
The meeting focused on considering and adopting a report from an ASEAN senior economic officials committee, a report from a negotiating committee on upgrading the ASEAN Trade Agreement, and a joint statement of the 38th AFTA Council Meeting.
–IANS
int/sd/
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
