US Secretary of State John Kerry says countries involved in negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership are clear about the benefits of the deal, although recent talks in Hawaii failed to reach a conclusive agreement.

Today the EU and Vietnam have reached an agreement in principle for a free trade agreement (FTA), after two and a half years of intense negotiations. Following a telephone conversation this morning between EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström and Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang, all issues of substance have been agreed, and both sides have reached a mutually beneficial and balanced package.

HCM CITY (VNS)— Twenty years after the US and Viet Nam established diplomatic relations, bilateral trade turnover has risen 80-fold, and is expected to boom after the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement, currently under negotiations, takes effect. In 1995, bilateral trade volume was reported at US$500 million, and this year, it is estimated that it would be $40 billion. Within ten years, it could reach $50 or $60 billion.

Pacific Rim trade ministers failed to clinch a deal on Friday to free up trade between a dozen nations after a dispute flared up over auto trade between Japan and North America, New Zealand dug in over dairy trade and no agreement was reached on monopoly periods for next-generation drugs. Trade ministers from the 12 nations negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which would stretch from Japan to Chile and cover 40 percent of the world economy, fell just short of a deal at talks on the Hawaiian island of Maui but were confident an agreement was within reach.

Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso dismissed on Friday a call to set up a forum within the Pacific free trade negotiations to stop countries from manipulating exchange rates. Aso's comments follow remarks from Australia's trade minister earlier this stating week that countries involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade talks are considering a U.S. proposal for finance ministers to discuss currency questions.

HCM CITY (VNS) — Vietnamese footwear exports rose 21.2 per cent against the same period last year to more than US$5.85 billion for the first six months of the year, the General Department of Customs reported. The figure is expected to reach $14 billion by the end of the year, according to the Viet Nam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (Lefaso). Of the figure for the first half of the year, exports to the US increased by 30.2 per cent to $2 billion, equal to export earnings from the EU, which saw a growth of 17 per cent.

The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is set to arrive at the end of 2015. It is a significant step forward and could be a crucial turning point for ASEAN. But without a strong central authority and mandate, ASEAN integration will remain in a mess and the AEC remain an illusion. The goal of the AEC is to implement economic integration initiatives by creating a single market across ASEAN nations. This requires a strong central authority that can harmonise and standardise regional regulations, and it must be recognised by all member countries.

The two leaders spoke highly of strengthened relations in a number of realms such as politics-diplomacy, trade-investment, development cooperation, and education-training, as well as the increasing number of bilateral visits in recent years. They agreed to facilitate the exchange of visits at all levels and effectively implement existing dialogue mechanisms in the fields of politics, national defence-security, economics and trade.

Pacific trading partners are deadlocked over intellectual property protections, including monopoly periods for next-generation drugs, Japanese Economy Minister Akira Amari said on Wednesday. Amari said he saw no sign of the United States backing down on a demand to protect for 12 years data used to develop biologic drugs, which are made from living cells. Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb has said he sees no legitimate reason to extend past five years.

Kuala Lumpur: International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed has pledged to safeguard and uphold the core policies of Malaysia, including the interests of the Bumiputera community during the last leg of Trans Pacific Partnership talks. As negotiations are poised to wind up in Hawaii, it is also the stage when countries have to make hard decisions as well as concessions.