Tokyo, April 10:

Japan resumed talks today to reach a free trade deal with the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) after an eight-month stalemate, foreign ministry said.

Japan will also hold bilateral talks during the three-day meeting with Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, ASEAN’s least developed states, in hopes of finding ways for Tokyo to help bridge the income gap in the regional bloc.

ASEAN and Japan opened negotiations in April 2005 which came to a halt after a second round in August. Japan is now looking only to secure a free-trade deal and not a more comprehensive accord that would include measures to settle trade disputes and protect intellectual property. But the foreign ministry said Japan still aimed to seal a comprehensive agreement with ASEAN.

Duties levied

BEIJING: China will extend its anti-dumping duties on cold-rolled stainless steel sheets imported from Japan and South Korea for five years. “Lifting the duties may lead to a

renewed dumping of such goods and may cause damage to China’s domestic steel

industry,” it said. — AFP