ASEAN likely to exclude rice from free-trade plan<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (Reuter): ASEAN agriculture ministers meeting here
\nfor three days beginning today to liberalize farm trade will
\nexclude key commodities, including rice, from tariff reductions,
\neconomists and agricultural officials said.<\/p>\n
The reductions would be part of ASEAN's regional free-trade
\nplan targeted to be implemented by 2003. Whether the exclusions
\nfrom the cuts end sometime after that year will be up for debate.<\/p>\n
While the ministers are expected to agree to minimal tariffs
\non about half of the commodities traded in the region, analysts
\nsaid the opening up of rice or sugar markets to imports remains a
\ncontentious issue among the group's seven members.<\/p>\n
\"Despite rapid industrialization, ASEAN's dependence on
\nagriculture is still strong,\" a Singapore economist said.
\n\"Furthermore, their agriculture product-wise is not very
\ndifferent. As such, this is a likely area of conflict.\"<\/p>\n
ASEAN members other than Singapore and Brunei are major rice
\ngrowers, and some are major exporters as well. ASEAN, the
\nAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations, groups Brunei, Indonesia,
\nMalaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and newcomer
\nVietnam.<\/p>\n
The group is trying to implement the ASEAN Free-Trade Area
\n(AFTA) by the year 2003. By then, under the AFTA preferential
\ntariff scheme, tariffs on most goods of ASEAN origin would be
\nlowered to between zero to five percent.<\/p>\n
The Aug. 24-26 meeting is expected to confirm the list of
\nagricultural products to be included in AFTA's Common Effective
\nPreferential Tariff (CEPT) regime, delegates said.<\/p>\n
Sensitive<\/p>\n
Senior officials meeting since Monday to prepare for the talks
\nsaid there were still unresolved questions over sensitive
\ncommodities such as rice, which were excluded from the list.<\/p>\n
The issues include when to end the exemptions, one official
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Indonesia has said it planned to exclude 26 products from
\ntariff reductions.<\/p>\n
\"The 26 agricultural commodities are grown mainly by
\nsmallholders and because of that we will not open the domestic
\nmarket in order that farmers are not exposed to any risk,\"
\nAgriculture Minister Sjarifudin Baharsjah said in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Philippine sugar millers warned over the weekend that the
\nASEAN free-trade plan would seriously harm the ability of local
\nsugar farmers to survive.<\/p>\n
Thai Finance Minister Surakiat Sathienthai said on Monday that
\nBangkok would signal to other members its sincerity and readiness
\nto include unprocessed agricultural products in the scheme.<\/p>\n
He told reporters Thailand's sensitive list would be cut to
\nseven items from 47.<\/p>\n
Surakiat said some member countries were not ready to include
\nrice, of which Thailand is a major exporter, in the AFTA regime
\nand he was prepared to use rice to bargain with other members.<\/p>\n
\"Thailand will greatly benefit from the inclusion of rice in
\nthe tariff reduction scheme,\" Surakiat said.<\/p>\n
Vietnam, a major rice producer which joined the grouping last
\nmonth, will be exempted from the scheme until January, he said.<\/p>",
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