EU and Singapore conclude investment talks

The European Union and Singapore Friday concluded the negotiations of the investment part of the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (EUSFTA).
This marks the successful conclusion of the negotiations of the entire EUSFTA, following the initialling of the other parts of the agreement in September 2013, EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht told a news conference here today.
"This agreement will open the doors to improve this picture, increase investment and create new opportunities for European investors," he stated.
The EU Commissioner noted that Singapore is the EU's 5th largest trading partner in Asia.
"Our exchanges of goods amounted to 46 billion euro in 2013, while trade in services reached 28 billion euro in 2012.," said De Gucht.
The EU and Singapore have invested almost 190 billion euro in each other's economies. The EU is the most significant source of Foreign Direct Investment in Singapore, having almost 30 percent of total FDI stock of Singapore.
Similarly, Singapore is the EU's 5th largest external investor and accumulated over the years almost 70 billion euro FDI stock in the EU, he said.
Today, there are over 10,000 European companies in Singapore, many of which use Singapore as a hub. The new trade and investment possibilities could increase this number and help these companies to employ more people, he said.
De Gucht reminded that the EU is currently also negotiating free trade agreements with Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia.
Negotiations between the EU and Singapore on a free trade agreement kicked off in March 2010 and were concluded in December 2012.