UK, ASEAN set up joint business council to bolster bilateral trade

JAKARTA, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Kingdom (UK)-ASEAN Business Council (UK-ABC) has been launched to further promote trade and investment between ASEAN and the United Kingdom, a statement released by the ASEAN secretariat said here on Thursday.

"I did the inauguration of the UK-ASEAN Business Council this afternoon to develop our network business, especially the small and medium companies, we want to develop them to be active in the path the economy in ASEAN," UK Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Vince Cable said in his remarks at the establishment of the UK-ASEAN Business Council.

He explained that the UK Government wants to see a real step change in all levels of trade with high growth markets particularly in ASEAN - and expects the Council to deliver benefits to UK's leading companies that are looking to, or already active in, the region.

"We welcome the establishment of the UK-ASEAN Business Council and look forward to working with it to create a better appreciation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by the UK businesses and to promote and facilitate trade and investment between ASEAN and the UK, which has been recording remarkable performance over the years," Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Economic Community, Sundram Pushpanathan, said.

The establishment of UK-ABC provides another avenue for the UK businesses to explore, develop and deepen their business in ASEAN. ASEAN view the private sector as a key stakeholder in the establishment of AEC.

The Council will be based in London and will work in partnership with the British Chambers of Commerce across the ASEAN region to provide support for UK business interests in the region.

Two-way trade and investment between ASEAN and the UK has been growing. According to ASEAN statistics, two-way trade between ASEAN and the UK stood at 28.34 billion U.S. dollars in 2010, a 23 percent increase year-on-year.

November 3, 2011

Source: Xinhua News