Beijing and ASEAN have signed an upgraded free trade agreement expanding cooperation into areas such as digital and green economies, in a bid to offset the impact of the US tariffs.
With the signing of the agreement and optimism around the US-China trade talks, the Asian markets opened strongly on Tuesday with investors bullish on the chances of a trade deal between the world’s largest economies.
The 2025 ASEAN summit was focused on navigating and managing the tariffs imposed by the United States on the developing economies. The agreements between members like Indonesia and Malaysia have found it difficult to manage the 19 per cent tax levies, forcing them to search for alternatives in Brazil and China.
Meanwhile, United States President Donald Trump is in Japan to discuss bilateral trade and defence agreements with the newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Besides, Trump also met Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, whom both leaders described as a very constructive and positive meeting. Additionally, East Timor, which gained independence from Indonesia after decades of struggle in 2002, has become the 11th country to join the Bloc.
China and the United States have imposed tit-for-tat sanctions on each other. At first, Trump imposed 100 tariffs on China, which were then raised to 145 per cent after China slapped a 125 per cent reciprocal tariff on the US.
The fight between two major economies has caused uncertainties in the global market and forced investors to focus on gold options instead of stocks.
Also Read: Trump and Lula discuss tariffs at the ASEAN Summit in Malaysia
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