Japan-Brunei free trade pact comes into effect
Friday, 1 August 2008
TOKYO, July 31 (AFP): A free trade deal between Japan and Brunei came into force today, paving the way for Japanese firms to trade and invest more easily with the energy-rich nation.
Japan hopes that the deal, which will abolish nearly all tariffs between the two nations in a decade, would serve as a catalyst for a similar agreement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) bloc as a whole.
Prince Mohamed Bolkiah, Brunei's minister of foreign affairs and trade, visited Tokyo to mark the start of the treaty and met Japan's foreign and finance ministers.
Japan hopes that the deal, which will abolish nearly all tariffs between the two nations in a decade, would serve as a catalyst for a similar agreement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) bloc as a whole.
Prince Mohamed Bolkiah, Brunei's minister of foreign affairs and trade, visited Tokyo to mark the start of the treaty and met Japan's foreign and finance ministers.