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Australia passes trade deal with ASEAN and NZ
Australia’s lower house on September 16 approved a free trade agreement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and New Zealand, offering full exemption from import tariffs.
The deal has cleared the Australian House of Representatives six and a half months after it was ratified in Thailand late February 2009 on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit.
It is expected to be submitted to the Australian Senate for approval soon.
The agreement covers commitments on commodities, services, investment, intellectual property, e-trading and economic cooperation.
ASEAN economic ministers held an annual meeting with their Australian and New Zealand partners in Bangkok, Thailand, on August 15, all pushing for a quicker tempo in the approval of the agreement by each and every signatory country so that it may come into force on schedule on January 1, 2010.
Australia and New Zealand are two of ASEAN’s biggest trade partners with revenues reaching 67.2 billion USD in 2008.
Two-way trade between Australia and the ASEAN increased 10 percent in each of the past 10 years, representing the second-highest growth rate among Australia ’s top ten trade partners, just after China.
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