Japan To Propose Joint Asian FTA

According to reports, Japan's trade minister is likely to propose the formation of a 16-nation East Asian free trade zone which would eventually cover half the world's population and a quarter of  its gross domestic product.

According to Japanese ministry officials, Japan's Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Toshihiro Nikai will call for a pan-Asian FTA - involving India, Australia, China, Korea, Japan and New Zealand, along with the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - at an ASEAN ministerial gathering in Kuala Lumpur later this month

The proposed free trade area has a combined population of 3.1 billion people and combined gross domestic product of almost $10 trillion, or almost half of the world's population and a quarter of its GDP.