India's Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao has disclosed that Taiwan and India are to undertake a non-official feasibility study into a proposed bilateral free trade agreement (FTA), after which it would be decided whether to begin official negotiations. This was also confirmed by Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs, from where it was said that the study would be undertaken by private think tanks, Taiwan’s Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research and by the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations.

Viet Nam and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) could be set to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) to boost the bilateral trade, says a report released on Mar. 8. An FTA would hold significant potential to strengthen the economic relationship between Viet Nam and EFTA, the report by a Joint Study Group established August 2010 by Viet Nam's Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ambassadors of the EFTA states (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) said.

(Reuters) - India's bulging grain stocks prior to end-March harvest season make a strong case for lifting export curbs, but analysts say it is unlikely due to political compulsions ahead of state elections in coming months. At 17.2 million tonnes, wheat stocks on Mar. 1 were more than double the 8.2 million tonnes target, government sources said on Wednesday, while rice stocks rose to 28.75 million tonnes against a target of 11.8 million tonnes.

(Reuters) - India has cut the floor price for onion exports to $350 per tonne, a government statement said, its second reduction this month, boosting prospects of overseas sales of the vegetable from the world's second biggest producer. "Minimum Export Price (MEP) of onions other than Bangalore Rose Onions and Krishnapuram onions will be $350 per tonne F.O.B.," said the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, an arm of the trade ministry, in the statement issued late Tuesday. On March 1, the government had lowered the MEP to $450 per tonne from $600.

New Delhi, Mar 9 (PTI) The government today said European Union (EU) has been raising non-trade barriers like labelling and certification against India's textiles and garments exports. "Yes Sir, EU has been raising protective barriers against textiles and garments exports from India through non-tariff barriers such as labelling, certification and REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical substances)," Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jyotiraditya Scindia said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha.

SEOUL, March 8 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's imports of U.S. beef rose drastically 81.5 percent to reach 20,340 tons in the first two months of this year, largely due to the country's severest outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease that has devastated its livestock industry, industry data showed Tuesday. According to the data from the U.S. Meat Export Federation, South Korea imported 11,209 tons of beef from the United States in the first two months of last year.

YANGON, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar authorities have suspended export of poultry products to Saudi Arabia following bird flu re- struck Myanmar last month, according to the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department (LBVD) Tuesday. The export of chicken and eggs from Myanmar to Saudi Arabia have also been temporarily prohibited by World Organization For Animal Health.

New Delhi, Mar 8 (PTI) Commerce Minister Anand Sharma today took up the issue of anti-dumping duty on Indian products by Brazil with visiting minister Antonio Patriota. The two countries, however, identified priority sectors such as energy, oil, tourism, pharmaceutical, mining and agro-processing for further enhancing the bilateral trade and agreed to set up a CEOs Forum, an official statement said.

Vietnamese enterprises will face greater difficulty exporting products to the European market this year, due to stricter technical barriers as well as the Government's tightening monetary policies, said Dang Hoang Hai, Head of the European Market Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. While it was unlikely that exports to the EU this year would match last year's growth of 20 per cent, 10-per-cent export growth was within reach, Hai said.

BEIJING—China plans to shrink its trade surplus further this year but is looking for ways other than rapid yuan appreciation to ease tensions with global trading partners, said the nation's commerce minister. Beijing wants to "stabilize exports, grow imports, and shrink the trade surplus," Chen Deming said at a press briefing on the sidelines of the National People's Congress, the annual meeting of China's legislature.