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Asian experts take part in UN meeting to promote regional trade

Asian experts take part in UN meeting to promote regional trade

Experts from government, academia and the private sector have gathered today in the Chinese city of Kunming for a United Nations-sponsored meeting set up to identify ways to encourage greater trade within the Asia-Pacific region.

The three-day meeting, which started today, is expected to focus on promoting trade facilitation, agriculture and innovation. It will also look at devising policies to improve the efficiency of existing trade, including by simplifying the international transport of goods.

Trade and economic growth have boomed across much of the Asia-Pacific region in the last decade, but the conference’s convenors – the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) – said in a press release that trade barriers still exist in the region and there is room for Asian countries to strengthen their trade relationships.

UNESCAP, which has convened the meeting in collaboration with authorities in China’s Yunnan province, also said that about 20 experts are expected to attend.