ASEAN summit begins, Australian, NZ trade agreement

SHOTLIST 1. New Zealand Trade Minister Tim Groser walking into hall for signing ceremony of Free Trade Agreement with ASEAN 2. Pan of ASEAN ministers, ending on Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean and Groser 3. Indonesian Trade Minister Marie Elka Pangestu signing document 4. Thai Minister Pornthiva Nakasai signing 5. Mid of Crean signing 6. Wide of signing ceremony 7. Mid of Groser signing 8. Wide of Crean, Groser and Nakasai 9. Zoom out of Nakasai and ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsawan holding up documents UPSOUND: Applause 10. SOUNDBITE (English) Simon Crean, Australian Trade Minister: "The principles are very simple. Market access will be improved and by the conclusion of the agreement, some 96 percent of tariff lines will have been eliminated. This is a significant signal, a significant statement of increased opportunity for Australians who want to export so I urge those Australian producers to take advantage of the opportunities presented, get in touch with Aus Trade and develop your strategies to take that advantage." 11. Various of New Zealand Trade Minister Tim Groser 12. SOUNDBITE: (English) Tim Groser, New Zealand Trade Minister: "In these present economic conditions, to forge a free trade zone amongst economies worth over a (t) trillion US dollars over a period of a little more than a decade, I think that's a very strong affirmation. For these countries concerned their actions do speak louder than their words in terms of this underlying issue of combating protectionism." 13. Ministers linking arms on stage, zoom in to Crean and Groser STORYLINE Southeast Asian nations signed a free trade pact with Australia and New Zealand on Friday, one of the few concrete economic measures to emerge from the region's annual summit as it grapples with the worst global slump in decades. The first free trade agreement between the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and developed Western countries could boost the combined gross domestic product of the 12 nations by more than 48 (b) billion US dollars by 2020, but will do little to ease the current economic pain. The gross domestic product of all ASEAN countries combined is about 1.2 (t) trillion US dollars. The pact will facilitate market access and "by the conclusion of the agreement some 96 percent of tariff lines will have been eliminated," said Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean. The agreement needs to ratified by parliaments in New Zealand, Australia and ASEAN members states before coming into effect. Leaders and top officials from ASEAN, a region of more than 500 (m) million people, are gathered in the Thai resort town of Cha-Am, 200 kilometres (120 miles) south of the capital Bangkok, for the grouping's 14th summit. The meeting, usually dominated by human rights issues, is overshadowed this year by the global economic meltdown, which has already dragged the export-dependent region's most advanced economy, Singapore, into recession. Thailand's economy shrank in the fourth quarter and others like Malaysia and Indonesia are facing rapidly slowing growth as exports crumble. The summit has underlined that ASEAN, which groups one of Asia's richest countries with some of its poorest, has limited capacity to respond to the global economic crisis. Officials said talks about the economy have focused on sharing information about self-help mechanisms such as economic stimulus packages that various countries have announced to prop up their domestic economies. Australia, whose one (t) trillion US dollars economy almost equals ASEAN's combined GDP, and smaller neighbour New Zealand, called the free trade agreement a blow against the prospect of rising protectionism amid the economic slump. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/a74910824a503a1baef7cea69c660449 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork