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ASEAN aims to break free from China’s shadow, speeds up AFTA
AFP - Genting Highlands

The southeast Asian nations, armed with a new policy to accelerate free trade plans, are launching a fresh bid to become a powerful trading bloc to break free from China’s economic shadow. In a move away from tradition, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) economic ministers recently adopted the so-called “10 minus X” principle to speed up a 2010 deadline to completely remove tariffs under the Asean Free Trade Plan (AFTA).

The policy, which lets more advanced countries undertake new projects without having to wait for the rest, will be applied to plans for open sky policy, smart cards, services and investment liberalisation, and standards and conformance. Wrapping up their annual retreat in this hill resort, ministers also tasked the ASEAN secretariat to analyse trade and investment policies in China and ASEAN amid plans to create the world’s largest free trade zone.