PM Lee urges final push to create Asean common market

PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday called on Asean to step up efforts in the economic grouping's final push to become a common market next year.

While more than 70 per cent of the work is done, he told his fellow Asean leaders that the last mile of the journey towards the 2015 Asean Economic Community (AEC) will be tougher. But it will also be more rewarding for "our peoples and businesses".

The remaining sensitive hurdles such as trade in services, trade facilitation and non-tariff barriers will require political will to tackle - and to make the necessary reforms to liberalise the 10 members' economies, Mr Lee said at the 24th Asean Summit chaired by Myanmar.