ASEAN and China on track to sign free-trade deal by 2013: Malaysian PM

ASEAN and China on track to sign free-trade deal by 2013: Malaysian PM

Agence France-Presse
Kuala Lumpur

Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Friday said
a free trade agreement with China will be signed by 2013, and
that Malaysia's exports to China surged 25 percent to a record
high last year.

Abdullah said the free-trade pact between the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China would be completed by
2013 while the initial common tariff reduction would be finished
by 2006.

"I believe Malaysia-China trade relations will strengthen in
the years ahead. Do not worry about political risks. In the years
to come, Malaysia-China ties will remain strong," he said at a
two-day Malaysia-China business forum.

Malaysia was the first country in ASEAN to establish
diplomatic ties with China, in 1974.

Abdullah said that Malaysia's exports to China rose 25 percent
last year to a new record of US$8.5 billion.

He said China was Malaysia's fourth-largest trading partner
last year with total trade of almost $19 billion. Malaysia was
also China's eighth largest trading partner last year.

Malaysia's exports to China include power generation
equipment, mineral fuels, palm oil and animal fats.

Abdullah urged Malaysian businessmen not to regard China as an
economic threat but a land filled with opportunities.

"China is not a threat. China is a country of opportunity. At
the same time we see China as a real challenge. This certainly
does not estrange us but will only enhance our competitiveness,"
he said.
Abdullah also said that with China having acceded to a non-
aggression pact with ASEAN, it was "becoming a trusted friend and
responsible regional actor".

Last year was declared Sino-Malaysia Friendship Year to
celebrate the establishment of diplomatic relations on May 31,
1974.

But ties go back as far as the 15th century when Chinese
admiral Cheng Ho, or Zheng He, arrived in southern Malacca state
to trade.