Joint Statement by European Commission Executive Vice-President for an Economy that Works for People and Commissioner for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis and Singapore Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu on the conclusion of negotiations on the EU-Singapore Digital Trade Agreement and the second Trade Committee meeting under the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement.
Today, European Commission Executive Vice-President for an Economy that Works for People and Commissioner for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis and Singapore Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu announced the conclusion of negotiations between the EU and Singapore on a Digital Trade Agreement. The Agreement reflects the strategic importance of digital trade and the pivotal role that Southeast Asia plays given the sizeable growth of its digital economy.
The EU and Singapore share long-standing and robust economic relations anchored by the 2019 EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. A Digital Trade Agreement deepens our partnership in the digital domain, and underscores the EU and Singapore's key role in setting high-standard and legally-binding digital trade rules.
The Digital Trade Agreement sets digital trade rules and facilitates cross border data flows between the EU and Singapore. It also demonstrates our shared objective to uphold open digital economies that are competitive, transparent, and fair. The Agreement will contribute to our societies' digital transformation that enables our companies and people to keep pace with the fast-evolving nature of the digital economy, as well as access and benefit from greater opportunities.
The Agreement's digital trade rules will build trust, ensure cross border data flows free of unjustified barriers, ensure predictability and legal certainty for businesses, especially micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, while ensuring that we can continue to develop and implement the policies required to address new challenges posed by the digital economy.
The EU and Singapore will now proceed with their domestic approval processes to work towards the formal signature and conclusion of the Agreement.
In conjunction with the announcement on the Digital Trade Agreement, Minister Fu and Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis co-chaired the second Trade Committee meeting under the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (EUSFTA), which entered into force on 21 November 2019. The Co-Chairs affirmed the strong trade relations between Singapore and the EU which have grown from strength to strength, with annual trade in goods and services exceeding €130 billion in 2022. They recognised the good bilateral cooperation on the FTA's smooth implementation and effective functioning, and highlighted the significant progress that has been made on bilateral digital cooperation since the inaugural Trade Committee meeting in December 2021. The Co-Chairs also discussed ways to strengthen collaboration in forward-looking trade areas including the green economy, exchanged views on regional and global economic developments including at the World Trade Organisation (WTO), and agreed to continue working together on shared priorities to strengthen trade and investment links.
