The European Union (EU) extended until next March a ban on the

The European Union (EU) extended until next March a ban on the import of poultry, eggs and live birds from 10 Asian countries because of the spread of the avian flu virus.

Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Pakistan, China, South Korea, Vietnam and Malaysia will be barred from shipping chicken products to the 25-nation EU until March 31, 2005.

"In some of these countries, outbreaks of avian influenza are still occurring and the overall disease situation remains unclear," the Brussels-based European Commission said in a statement.

An EU embargo against Texas chicken ran out on Aug. 23 and similar curbs on Canadian chicken will expire on Oct. 1, the commission said. South African chicken imports are banned until Jan. 1.

The Asian poultry ban had been set to expire in mid- December. -- Bloomberg