Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Bilateral Trade: China set to sign agreements with Pakistan and India

China is to sign agreements with Pakistan and India to promote economic and trade ties during President Hu Jintao's official visits to the two countries next week.

The Ministry of Commerce announced that China and Pakistan have agreed on market access and "basically wrapped up" negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). The agreement is expected to be signed during President Hu's state visit to Islamabad on November 24.

It has also been reported that China will conduct FTA talks with India. However, Hu Shisheng told China Daily that the negotiations could not be finalized during President Hu's trip to New Delhi.

China is India's second largest partner and bilateral trade is expected to exceed US$20 billion this year.