European Commission DG Trade on EU FTAs with ASEAN members

A region-to-region Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is the ultimate goal for both the European Union (EU) as well as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Negotiations for an EU-ASEAN FTA were launched in 2007 and paused in 2009 to give way to bilateral FTA negotiations.

After the conclusion of FTAs with Singapore and Vietnam, Malaysia is next in line. Both sides expressed hopes that the negotiations can be completed before the end of this year. The proposed Malaysia-EU FTA is expected to boost total trade by around 20-30 per cent from the current 10 per cent, said Maria Castillo Fernandez, EU Ambassador and Head of the EU Delegation to Malaysia, according to The Star. This estimation is based on the EU’s FTA with South Korea. The EU currently has a similar volume in terms of trade with Malaysia that it had with South Korea five years ago.

Peter Berz, Head of Unit South and Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, at the Directorate General for Trade of the European Commission, will brief Asia House corporate members on the current status of EU-FTAs with Malaysia and the Philippines, and will give a broader overview on EU-ASEAN negotiations.