China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) highly appreciated their joint activities in realizing the free trade area between the two major markets in Asia, appealing for greater efforts to this effect, a Chinese vice minister of commerce said in Vientiane On Sep 29.

“Both ASEAN and China should speed up negotiations on trade in services and then investment,” Vice Minister of Commerce Yu Guangzhou said after the 4th consultation between ASEAN Economic Ministers and China's Ministry of Commerce, noting that the Agreement on Trade in Services is expected to be signed at the 11th ASEAN Summit slated for December in Malaysia.

China and ASEAN have seen annual growth of 30-50 percent in trade in recent years. The block became China's fourth biggest trading partner in the first half of this year with the two-way turnover reaching nearly 59.8 billion dollars, up 25 percent against the same period last year.