
TOKYO -- A regionwide free trade deal would benefit Asia by expanding market access, promoting specialization and expanding economies of scale, Laos' commerce minister told a conference here on Monday.
"China, Japan, and [South] Korea, as large economies of Northeast Asia, are at the lead of efforts to use FTAs in order to pursue their respective regional and global trade strategies," Khemmani Pholsena said at the 22nd International Conference on The Future of Asia, organized by Nikkei.