China, Japan and Korea held the first round of trilateral free trade agreement (CJKFTA) negotiations in Seoul, Korea last month. During the meetings, representatives discussed the basic principles and scope of the negotiations, established working groups and addressed administrative issues.
According to press reports, the positive progress made in the first round provides a solid foundation for future negotiating rounds. The countries have agreed to conduct negotiations on trade in goods, trade in services, and investment simultaneously. They have agreed to hold two more rounds of negotiations in 2013, with the second round scheduled to take place in China in June or July and the third round scheduled to take place in Japan toward the end of the year.
Source: AMI