An agreement has been announced to upgrade this country’s free trade deal with the Association of SouthEast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
It is intended to further boost two-way trade that is currently worth $20 billion a year, and has led ASEAN nations to take 10% of all New Zealand exports.
The agreement aims to improve that further by upgrading the 14-year-old ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA).
AANZFTA combines the 10 members of ASEAN with New Zealand and Australia.
A communique by the agreeing parties said the deal was intended to help the region rebuild from the covid pandemic.
It aimed to bolster supply chains, keep markets open for trade, and help with digital trade, sustainable development, labour standards and women’s rights.
It is hoped to be signed next year.
The upgrade follows years of steady improvement in AANZFTA, with 99% of tariffs eliminated for sales to Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, including the total elimination of tariffs on dairy, beef forestry, apples and kiwifruit.
