In a joint statement issued by Taiwan and Singapore this week, it has been confirmed that negotiations for an agreement on economic partnership between both sides will start early next year. Experts believe the signing of the pact will open the door for Taiwan to further strengthen economic ties with Southeast Asian nations in the future.

In the markets in Singapore, consumers can find Taiwan foods and 3C electronic product.

According the statstics collected by the Ministry of Economic Affairs last year, Singapore is not only Taiwan's sixth large trading partner country, it is also the fifth biggest importer of Taiwan's products.

The two countries have agreed to enter talks on an economic partnership agreement early next year.

In the past, Taiwan has signed the FTA with four diplomatically tied countries, and just last year, signed the ECFA with Mainland China.

The new agreement between Singapore and Taiwan is aptly dubbed ASTEP.

The Minister of Economic Affairs, Shih Yan-xiang, says that what's most important is the cooperation between the two countries under the agreement.

Experts say that manufacturing and agriculture are Taiwan's primary industries, while Singapore is more concentrated in the service industry.

The agreement will not only benefit both countries, it will lead to futher cooperative opportunities with other countries in the future for Taiwan.

Experts say ASTEP can be considered Taiwan's foot in the door to the ASEAN market.

However, although Taiwan will be able to attract more countries like Thailand and the Phillippines for cooperation, it will have to ensure through negotiations, that the industrial competitive advantages do not overlap and end up hurting their markets.

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