ASEAN committee discusses trade facilitation in Hanoi

1/14/2020 - 5:02:43 PM

The 16th Meeting of the ASEAN Trade Facilitation joint Consultative Committee (ATF-JCC) was recently held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) in Hanoi.

The ASEAN Trade Facilitation joint Consultative Committee convenes the 16th meeting in Hanoi on January 10.

The meeting on January 10 was the first on economic issues organised by the MoIT in Vietnam’s 2020 ASEAN Chairmanship.

Luong Hoang Thai, Director of the MoIT’s Multilateral Trade Policy Department, said the event discussed the cooperation in facilitating intra-ASEAN trade and consulted about initiatives such as simplifying customs procedures with the aim of reducing 10 percent of trading cost within the bloc in 2020.

Participants looked into ways to double the intra-bloc trade value in the 2017-2025 period as targeted in the 2025 Trade Facilitation Strategic Action Plan of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and the AEC 2025 Strategic Action Plan for Trade in Goods.

Issues put on the table also included the establishment of a mechanism for exchanging information about non-tariff measures (NTMs), the increase of consultation between ASEAN governments and the business community, and a proposal for regulatory impact assessment of NTMs.

The meeting updated the database on NTMs built by ASEAN’s partners to publish on the ASEAN Trade Repository and the national trade repositories of the member countries. It also proposed the organisation of workshops and capacity building for the nations.

Thai noted that as the chairman, Vietnam actively conferred with other ASEAN members, the ASEAN Secretariat, the bloc’s specialised agencies and partners to help the meeting reach unanimity on the issues raised at the meeting.

Source: NDO

Existential danger from COVID-19 pandemic

The danger from the COVID-19 pandemic is still latent, threatening people’s health and lives in the context that the immunity provided from the COVID-19 vaccine has decreased. Many other dangerous diseases are also likely to break out when the global vaccination rate slows down, due to inequality in access to health services, vaccine hesitancy, and consequences of economic recession.

Vietnam among ASEAN countries recording EV sales surge

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is witnessing a rise in the sales of electric vehicles (EVs) in Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia, according to Maybank Investment Bank Research (Maybank IB Research).

International friends bid farewell to Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong

The respect paying ceremony for Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong continued on the morning of July 26 at the National Funeral Hall in Hanoi, with high-level delegations from foreign countries and international organisations paying their last respects and expressing deep condolences.

Global outpouring of grief for Vietnamese Party chief

A wave of condolences have poured in from world leaders, international organisations, rulling parties, Communist parties and partner parties following the death of Vietnamese Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, a revered leader in Vietnam and world: Australian Senate President

President of the Australian Senate Sue Lines has expressed her deepest sympathy over the passing of General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong and affirmed that he is a revered leader both in Vietnam and across the world.

Vietnam hopes UN, ASEAN coordinate closely, effectively over Myanmar issue: Ambassador

Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Vietnam’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN), on June 5 had a meeting with UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Myanmar Julie Bishop during her working visit to New York.