Honey the Hamster

The ASEAN-Korea Agreement on Trade in Goods was signed in 2006 and entered into force in 2007. It establishes preferential trade regime for goods between ASEAN member states and South Korea, so that 90% of the goods traded between ASEAN and Korea can be processed duty-free. The agreement provides for a gradual reduction and elimination of tariffs by each country on almost all products. Under the Trade in Goods Agreement, ASEAN-6, including Brunei Darussalam and Korea, abolished more than 90% of tariffs in January 2010. Efforts to close the development gap and expand trade among ASEAN members are key points in the political debate. According to a research report published in 2008 by the World Bank as part of its Project on Trade Costs and Facilitation[11], ASEAN members have the potential to reap significant benefits by investing in further trade facilitation reforms as a result of the comprehensive tariff reform already implemented under the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement. Although these national customs and trade authorities coordinate with each other, disputes may arise. The ASEAN Secretariat does not have the legal authority to resolve these disputes, so disputes are resolved bilaterally through informal means or through dispute settlement. An intergovernmental agreement signed in Singapore on 28 January 1992 by ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam). AFTA, through the common effective preferential tariff regime, aims to increase the value of the region as a production base for the world market. More and more companies are recognizing the benefits of full management of eligible free trade agreements in the Asian region. Leaders are increasingly familiar with the significant cost savings that can result, guiding supply chain and retail staff to recognize the benefits that preferential trade can have on business outcomes and global supply chain performance. The ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (AJCEP) entered into force in December 2008.

The agreement covers trade in goods, trade in services, investment and economic cooperation. The free trade agreement provides for the reduction of tariffs on 87% of all tariff items and includes a dispute settlement mechanism. It also allows for the consecutive shipment of goods between member countries, the invoicing of goods by third parties and the cumulation of ASEAN. ASEAN and Japan have also launched several economic cooperation projects that include capacity-building and technical assistance in areas of mutual interest. These areas include intellectual property rights, trade-related procedures, information and communication technologies, human resources development, small and medium-sized enterprises, tourism and hospitality, transport and logistics. Rules of ORIGINTo benefit from preferential tariff treatment under these existing free trade agreements, imported goods must meet the conditions set out in the rules of origin (ROO) of each free trade agreement. SROs are a set of criteria used to determine the country where goods originate in international trade. It is crucial because it prevents non-members of a free trade area from benefiting from the tariff preferences granted by individual Member States. In the simplest sense, the ROO determines the eligibility of a product for concessions or preferential tariff treatment by establishing that the goods actually originate in an FTA Member State. The administration of AFTA is handled by the national customs and trade authorities of each ASEAN member. The ASEAN Secretariat has the authority to monitor and ensure compliance with AFTA measures, but does not have the legal authority to enforce compliance with the measures. This has led to contradictory decisions on the part of ASEAN national authorities.

The ASEAN Charter aims to strengthen the capacity of the ASEAN Secretariat to ensure consistent implementation of AFTA measures. Asian FTA procedures are different from others. Take NAFTA, which allows for self-certification, where the exporter issues the preferential certificate, which is valid for up to one year, and importers claim to prefer to use the “lump sum certificate” for multiple shipments until those certificates are valid. In contrast, Asian free trade agreements have more pre-shipment regulations that require companies to obtain a certificate of origin from the exporting country`s agency to achieve tariff savings. By the way, fake certificates of origin issued by the government have become a major global trade problem. Steps have been taken to end this practice, including the addition of linear barcodes and online platforms to validate authenticity. In 1992, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) concluded a trade agreement known as the ASEAN Free Trade Area (FTA). The original members were Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia joined the rest of the 1990s. In addition to the ASEAN Free Trade Area (FTA) among ASEAN member states, the regional trading bloc has signed several free trade agreements with some of the major economies in the Asia-Pacific region.

These include the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand FTA (AANZFTA), the ASEAN-China FTA (ACFTA), the ASEAN-India FTA (AIFTA), the ASEAN-Korea FTA (AKFTA) and the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (AJCEP). The objective of these free trade agreements is to encourage and encourage companies of all sizes in ASEAN to trade regionally and internationally without tariff barriers. Companies with branches in ASEAN can use free trade agreements to easily access new export markets for their low-cost products and to benefit from simplified export and import procedures. The ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA)[1] is a trade bloc agreement of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations that supports local trade and production in all ASEAN countries and facilitates economic integration with regional and international allies. [2] [3] [4] It is considered one of the largest and most important free trade areas (FTAs) in the world and, together with its network of dialogue partners, has promoted some of the world`s largest multilateral forums and blocs, including the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the East Asia Summit and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] The AFTA Agreement was signed in Singapore on 28 January 1992. . . .