On 26th August, in Manila, Ministers of Economy of ASEAN and China announce together to the press that the matter on nowadays product quality and food safety is a big mutual challenge o ten members of ASEAN and China as well.

As the result, those countries have to cooperate positively in improving the risk control and ensuring the quality of products exported and imported.

The above mentioned announcement was made in at the end session of the 6th ASEAN and China Economy Minister Advisory Conference taking place in Makati urban area in Manila, capital of the Philippines.

This year’s annual advisory conference of Ministers of Economy of ASEAN and China was held under the chair of Minister of Trade of China Bo Xilai and the Minister of Industry and Commerce of Philippines Peter Favila.

Vietnam’s delegation attending the above mentioned conference was headed by Minister of Industry and Commerce Vu Huy Hoang.

This year’s ASEAN- China Advisory conference was held in addition to the 39th annual ASEAN Ministers of Economy conference held in Manila from 23rd to 27th August.

In the press conference with the Minister of Industry and Commerce of Philippines Peter Favila right after the closing of the 6th ASEAN and China Economy Minister Advisory Conference, Minister of Trade of China reveals:

At the moment, up to 50% of the products manufactured in China are made by foreign companies and more than 60% of the exports is manufactured and controlled in accordance with the standards set up by the importers and overseas customers.

China is now the 4th biggest trade partner of ASEAN after the United States, EU, and Japan. As the statistics shows, China’s direct investment to ASEAN reached 936.9 million USD in the previous year.   ASEAN and China signed in an agreement on goods trading in 2004 and an agreement on service trading in the early of this year.

The two parties are now negotiating an agreement on investment which is considered a step to conducting free trade between ASEAN and China in the future.

Once the two parties conduct all the agreements on free trade, all the mutual standards and requirements of technologies exchanged between ASEAN and China must be outlined and agreed in order to ensure that all products of the two parties receive the treatment fairly.

The ASEAN - China Ministry of Economy’s press announcement clearly stated that in the ASEAN - China summit held in the coming September, the two parties will sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in inspecting and checking.

This memorandum will be the start of enhancing, upholding and developing the cooperation in the field of inspecting, censoring the administration of passing goods between ASEAN and China.

Those efforts are aimed at facilitating the intensification of trade exchange in the region to reach the successful and effective execution of the ASEAN- China agreement on free trade.

The above mentioned press announcement also stated clearly that in order to push up trade between ASEAN and China and to ensure that products of the two parties can exploit the other’s market, there should be measures to ensure the product standards, quality, and safety.

Ministers of Economy of ASEAN and China agree that what is needed is a measure supporting the cooperation and information exchange between the two sides in the relating fields in order to be able to sign the agreement which approve the other’s standards of quality, safety as well as checking before exporting.

In addition to ASEAN and China Economy Minister Conference, there are Economy Minister Advisory Conferences between ASEAN and Japan, Korea in Manila.

After the 6th ASEAN and China Economy Minister Advisory Conference, on 27th August, ASEAN Ministers of Economy will open the ASEAN’s Conference on Cooperate to Develop the Mekong basin.