Japan eyes ending most duties on ASEAN imports
Wednesday, 22 August 2007
TOKYO, Aug 21 (AFP): Japan will propose scrapping duties immediately on 90 per cent of imports from ASEAN when it holds free trade talks with the regional bloc this week, a report said today.
But Japan wants to exclude politically sensitive rice from a deal, along with sugar and some other farm products on which Japan imposes duties of several hundred percent, the Nikkei economic daily said.
Japan, a major exporter, has been actively pursuing bilateral trade pacts amid a collapse of global trade negotiations. On Monday, it signed a deal with Indonesia, its sixth with a Southeast Asian country.
Japan is also negotiating for a pact with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a whole. Japan and ASEAN are due to hold new talks Saturday in the Philippines.
But Japan wants to exclude politically sensitive rice from a deal, along with sugar and some other farm products on which Japan imposes duties of several hundred percent, the Nikkei economic daily said.
Japan, a major exporter, has been actively pursuing bilateral trade pacts amid a collapse of global trade negotiations. On Monday, it signed a deal with Indonesia, its sixth with a Southeast Asian country.
Japan is also negotiating for a pact with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a whole. Japan and ASEAN are due to hold new talks Saturday in the Philippines.