Singapore, EAEU Sign Trade Deal

Singapore signed a free trade deal with the Eurasian Economic Union that will reduce tariffs and non-tariff barriers while increasing customs cooperation, “respect for intellectual property rights and e-commerce protocols,” according to an Oct. 17 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The agreement will eliminate or reduce duties on 90 percent of Singapore’s exports to the EAEU -- which includes Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia -- and will increase to 97 percent “over a 10-year period,” the report said. Duties will be reduced on “mineral fuels, oils and their distillates, prepared foodstuffs, machinery and mechanical equipment, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and precision instruments,” the HKTDC said. The deal will also eliminate tariffs on nearly all exports from EAEU to Singapore, the report said. The two sides also agreed to improved customs procedures, including “24 hours customs clearances, with priority items approved within four hours,” the report said.