TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
RCEP's 3rd ministerial meeting completed in Hanoi
Change Size
Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita (left) and Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman (secondright) speak to an egg merchant at the Rawamangun tradional market in East Jakarta (JP/Supriyono Hemay)
T
rade Minister Enggartiasto “Enggar” Lukita attended on Monday a third meeting of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in Hanoi Vietnam, together with trade ministers from 15 countries, according to a statement issued by the Indonesian Trade Ministry.
The meeting discussed possible win-win solutions for major sticking points in investment and market access for all member countries, Enggar said.
“We have yet to agree on various issues. This negotiation isn’t easy, because each country has its own interest and different abilities. There are RCEP guiding principles that we need to abide by, but it’s impossible to agree on a trade deal if it is a disadvantage to us,” he added.
The fourth ministerial meeting is scheduled to be held in Hyderabad, India, in late July, and the fifth in Manila in September.
RCEP comprises 10 ASEAN countries and its six trading partners: China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
The group will be the biggest regional trade bloc if they could reach an agreement as it accounts for more than 3 billion people or 45 percent of the world’s population, representing a combined gross domestic product of about US$ 22.4 trillion, or 30 percent of the world economy. (bbn)
