China, ASEAN to drop tariffs by 2010
27 October 2004
China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed to remove all tariffs on merchandise goods by the end of the decade. The deal is part of a wider free trade agreement scheduled to be signed at a China-ASEAN leaders' summit in November. The two sides will begin to implement tariff cuts next year, China's Ministry of Commerce said. The 10-nation bloc is China's fifth largest trading partner, with two-way trade currently accounting for more than one-tenth of mainland trade volume. The two sides have been negotiating details of a trade pact for several months, but the breakthrough came in September when ASEAN members agreed to grant China market economy status.
