Economy complains about “overloading of trade talks”

Brussels, Singapore Business representatives believe that stagnant negotiations on a number of free trade agreements in Asia are jeopardizing the German government’s diversification plans. Reliable and good trade agreements are the basis for expanding business relations with India and Southeast Asia, said Volker Treier, head of foreign trade at the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce, to the Handelsblatt. “We don’t have enough of those in the region.”

In recent years, the EU has been able to conclude free trade agreements with Japan, Singapore and Vietnam. In the summer, EU negotiators also agreed on a trade agreement with New Zealand – and an agreement with Australia next spring is also considered possible. In talks with the most important emerging countries in the region, such as India and Indonesia, the Europeans have so far not been able to reach a conclusion, even after years of negotiations.