China-ASEAN FTA set for key upgrade

A "substantial upgrade" of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) may be announced during an upcoming summit in Laos, said Kao Kim Hourn, secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, on Wednesday.

Noting that China and member economies of ASEAN have been working actively to accelerate negotiations for the CAFTA 3.0, Kao said the announcement is likely to be made in October during the ASEAN-China Summit.

"This is going to be a very substantial upgrade of the CAFTA because we want to see this free trade area (FTA) become more relevant for business," said Kao on the sidelines of the 21st China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.