David Cameron says deals worth more than £750m will be made on south east Asia trip
As the he embarks on his four-day trip to south-east Asia, David Cameron has said business deals worth in excess of £750m will be made.
The trade mission, for which Cameron is accompanied by 31 business leaders, aims to forge links to the area to exploit emerging markets which could open up new channels for trading British goods and services. Number 10 says the deals will create 270 new jobs across the UK.
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On the visit to Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Singapore, the Prime Minister is doing his part to help boost UK exports to the region, as “over the next 20 years, 90 per cent of global growth is expected to come from outside Europe, and Britain must be poised to take advantage,” Cameron said.
That’s why I'm delighted to be taking British businesses to this vast and dynamic market, securing deals worth over £750m and creating opportunities for hard working people back at home.
We can also open up more markets for British businesses by leveraging the power of the EU's single market with 500 million consumers to secure bold, ambitious trade deals with these fastest, growing economies.
Read more: David Cameron’s south east Asia tour: The UK needs a step change in its ASEAN trade
Last week the Prime Minister said the UK needs to go to “the ends of the earth” to sell its goods and services.
The business secretary Sajid Javid will lead a separate delegation from the North of England.
The Prime Minister will also hope to make progress on a free trade deal between the EU and the south east asian trading bloc Asean, holding talks with the group’s secretary general Le Luong Minh. Downing Street believes this could provide a £3bn a year boost to the British economy.
We can also open up more markets for British businesses by leveraging the power of the EU's single market with 500 million consumers to secure bold, ambitious trade deals with these fastest, growing economies.
The EU has shown this can be done with the trade agreement with Singapore and the recent breakthrough in talks with Vietnam, but an EU-Asean trade deal would really turbocharge growth across the single market.
Alongside an EU-US trade agreement, such deals would be like a shot in the arm for Europe's economy.
Cameron will also engage his counterparts in conversations surrounding the international threat posed by Islamic State during his visit.