The third ASEAN Investment Forum opened in Brunei’s capital city ofBanda Seri Begawan on August 19, focusing on supply chain in theassociation and how to enhance ASEAN’s role in the global chain.

Participants, who were leaders of the ASEAN Heads Investment Agencies(AHIA), agreed to work on specific measures, while enhancing cooperationand collaboration between investment promotion agencies of membercountries.

The same day, representatives of 16Asia-Pacific countries started the first ministerial level negotiationwith the aim to establish the Regional Comprehensive EconomicPartnership (RCEP), which will be one of the largest free trade groupsin the world.

Ministers of 10 ASEAN countries and sixregional partners, namely China, Japan, the Republic ofKorea, India, Australia and New Zealand are scheduled todiscuss ways to promote negotiations on tariff cuts and abolishmentwithin the framework of the RCEP.

Earlier, RCEPmembers started the negotiations in November, 2012 and held the firstworking-level negotiation round in May, with the aim of reaching thefinal agreement by 2015.

The RCEP will create a free trade area with 3 billion people, accounting for one third of the global GDP.-VNA