US Hopes to Conclude
FTA with Malaysia by June’07

The United States hopes to conclude any possible Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Malaysia by June 2007, said Assistant US Trade Representative (USTR) for Southeast Asia and Pacific Affairs Barbara Weisel. 

Figures by the US Census Bureau in July 2005 ranked Malaysia as the 10th largest trading partner of the US with two-way trade totaling nearly US$40 billion during 2004. 

The US law, Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), signed by President George W Bush in 2002 was to implement trade agreements that would encourage trade and investment between the US and its trading partners. 

Under this authority, the US signed an FTA with Singapore in 2002, a trade and investment framework agreement (TIFA) with Malaysia in May 2004 and is currently in negotiations with Thailand for an FTA in 2006. If Malaysia were to gain the FTA, it would likely receive the FTA before the expiry of the Trade Promotion Authority legislation in the US by June 2007.

During the productive meetings, led by Weisel and secretary general of Malaysia's Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Datuk Sidek Hassan on 10 October 2005 at KL, the two sides continued their detailed discussion on progress in addressing outstanding bilateral issues as well as co-ordination on regional and multilateral issues. The meeting is the third Malaysia-US joint council on trade and investment meeting under the TIFA.

The wide ranging bilateral agenda covered priority trade issues for both countries, including improving market access in the automotive, financial services and agriculture sectors, strengthening the protection and enforcement of intellectual rights, upgrading customs procedures and addressing investment concerns.

Back to Index of September 2005