Breaking News, World News and Taiwan News.

Updated Monday, June 14, 2010 9:24 am TWN, The China Post news staff

ECFA with China ready for signing

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Trade officials from Taiwan and China concluded yesterday the latest round of talks on proposed economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) across the Taiwan Strait with consensus reached on the text of the major accord and the five sets of attached documents.

Officials declined to reveal details pending finishing touches on certain technical issues.

But they said China will offer either tariff exemptions or reductions to about 500 products from Taiwan, more than twice the 200-plus Chinese products that will enjoy similar tariff concessions upon entering the Taiwan market.

Officials at the Taipei-based Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) described the ECFA as "a done deal" after the conclusion of the talks on the thorny issues concerning each side's "early harvest" lists of goods and services to be subject to tariff waivers or easier market access terms under the landmark agreement.

The statement of the SEF, the semiofficial intermediary body handling deals with Beijing, came after the Taiwanese and Chinese chief negotiators said in Beijing earlier in the day that expert-level ECFA negotiations had been completed.

Huang Chih-peng, director-general of the Bureau of Foreign Trade under Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs, led the talks with Tang Wei, director of the Department of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau Affairs under China's Ministry of Commerce.

According to the SEF statement, the ECFA text is composed of five chapters -- preface, general principles, trade and investment, economic cooperation, early harvest lists and other affairs -- that comprise a total of 16 articles regulating nearly all major cross-strait economic activities.

The trade and investment chapter outlines principles and items requiring further negotiation in terms of bilateral merchandise trade, service trade and investment, the SEF statement said.

On economic cooperation, the text requires the two sides to cooperate on intellectual property rights protection, financial services cooperation, trade facilitation, and industrial cooperation.

The chapter on the "early harvest" program lays down regulations on tariff waivers for merchandise trade and preferential market access terms for service industries.

1|2|Next Page>>

Share

Print

Email

Comments

June 14, 2010 aquahuang@

I think the tariff exemptions or concessions are better for Taiwan.
I hope we can live well through this way.

Regards,
Aqua



	Trade officials and experts from Taiwan and China hold a third round of formal negotiations in Beijing on a free trade pact across the Taiwan Strait. Officials from both sides said yesterday consensus was reached after differences on a few remaining issues were sorted out. (CNA) Enlarge Photo


Sponsors
▪	Get the best deals for Guangzhou Hotels or choose from more than 10,000 hotels in 499 Chinese cities.
▪	Find great real time deals on China Flights. Book flights to China or China domestic flights 24/7.
▪	Buy china wholesale products from reliable chinese wholesalers on DHgate.com!
▪	Save 70% for hotel in Shanghai and 6000 hotels, in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and all China.