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SINGAPORE and six Gulf states on Monday signed a free trade agreement that will pave the way for greater two-way economic ties, the Asian city-state said.
It is the first free trade agreement for the six-country Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the Singapore government said.
The free trade pact was signed in Doha by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who was there on a working trip, and his GCC counterparts, the Ministry of Trade and Industry said in a statement.
Under the terms of the agreement, about 99 per cent of Singapore's domestic exports will get tariff-free access to the GCC economies, the ministry said in the statement.
All exports of goods from the GCC to Singapore will also be tariff-free, it said.
According to the ministry, bilateral trade with the GCC reached a record high of $42.4 billion in 2007, up 127 per cent since 2002.
The GCC comprises Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Singapore is heavily dependent on external trade and is a pioneer in forging free trade pacts, having signed them with the United States, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Jordan and India, among others. -- AFP
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