China and France signed contracts totaling $15 billion during a visit by President Emmanuel Macron, a Chinese government official told a news briefing on Wednesday.

Vietnam had taken concrete steps in the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) based on the European Council's (EC) recommendations, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien. 

China and the US are expected to wrap up their phase-one trade agreement soon, a step towards ending the year-long trade dispute and stimulating the global economy, experts and business leaders said.

The damages awarded, in a document released Friday on the Geneva-based organizations' website, are the third highest in WTO history.

The deal, which may be signed later this month by Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a yet-to-be determined location, is widely expected to include a U.S. pledge to scrap tariffs scheduled for Dec. 15 on about $156 billion worth of Chinese imports, including cell phones, laptop computers and toys.

Years of negotiations with China over an upgraded free trade agreement have ended, Jacinda Ardern announced this afternoon while touting the outcome as "the best FTA China has with any country". 

Vietnam’s textile and garment industry was likely to reach its target of US$40 billion in export turnover this year despite facing difficulties in some markets.

Many foreign businesses have recently visited Việt Nam with the desire to invest or expand their investments in the country, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) under the United States Department of Agriculture officially recognised Vietnam's Pangasius Food Safety Control System on Thursday after more than three years of negotiations.

The signing of the world’s largest trade pact will likely be kicked back to 2020, according to a draft statement by Southeast Asian leaders, delaying a deal craved by China as it seeks to temper the fallout from a painful tariff war with the US.