ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand FTA

Subscriber Update

Update 22 – August 2008

Special Round of Negotiations

A special meeting of the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) trade negotiating committee took place in Singapore from 23-25 July 2008.

Negotiations are in their critical final phase. The text of the Agreement is substantially finalised with a limited number of issues remaining to be resolved outside the ongoing market access negotiations. These issues are expected to be addressed at the 8 August ASEAN-Closer Economic Relations Officials meeting in Brunei. The aim is to try and conclude the negotiations by the 28 August ASEAN Economic Ministers and Closer Economic Relations Trade Ministers (AEM-CER) meeting.

On goods, there was no formal agreement on target numbers that will guide the preparation of the tariff schedules, although there appears to be acceptance of some of the key elements. Intense bilateral market access negotiations with key ASEAN countries will follow in the next couple of weeks to finalise the tariff commitments of each country. The draft Chapter on Trade in Goods was substantially concluded with some minor issues remaining to be resolved and the Chapter on Safeguard Measures was finalised.

The highly complex rules of origin (ROO) negotiations have effectively been finalised, with only two product-specific rules outstanding both of which require resolution internally among ASEAN members.

The services chapter and sectoral texts on financial services, telecommunications and movement of natural persons were largely finalised. Intense bilateral negotiations on market access schedules will continue in the lead up to the AEM-CER meeting.

On investment, all outstanding issues were resolved and the chapter text has been finalised. Finalisation of market access schedules has been deferred to an agreed forward work program.

More information on the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand FTA