China Free trade pact signed
Wednesday, 22nd October 2008
The landmark free trade agreement (FTA) between China and Singapore, which is the Chinese government's first with an Asian country, will eliminate tariffs for 85 per cent of Singapore's exports to China from January 2009. An additional 10 per cent of exports, or 95 per cent of Singapore's exports to China, will be duty-free from 2010 onwards. The Singapore exports covered by the FTA, which include such items as instant coffee, aviation kerosene and ornamental fish, have a total trade value of over $18 billion. As part of the China-Singapore FTA , Singapore will lift tariffs for all Chinese exports to Singapore. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loon and his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao signed the FTA in Beijing.