The 48th Meeting of the ASEAN Coordinating Committee on the Implementation of the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (CCA-48) was held on June 13, 2025, in Vientiane, Lao PDR, under the Chairmanship of Mr. Somphone Phady, Head of the Trade in Goods Division, Ministry of Industry and Commerce of Lao PDR. The Meeting was attended by representatives from the 10 ASEAN Member States, the ASEAN Secretariat, and a representative from Timor-Leste.

At the meeting, Member States discussed various matters aimed at promoting the effective implementation of the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA), while also preparing for the ATIGA accession of Timor-Leste.

The main outcomes of the Meeting were as follows:

1. Viet Nam’s Tariff Reduction Schedule: The transposed Viet Nam’s ATIGA TRS in AHTN 2022 version has been endorsed by CCA and SEOM and is expected to be submitted to the AFTA Council for official endorsement in September 2025.
   

2. Viet Nam’s Proposal on CKD issue: Viet Nam’s proposal for long-term solution regarding the CKD issue under the ATIGA was positively received. Based on this, ASEAN Member States will conduct domestic consultations on the proposal and provide feedback to Viet Nam by June 20, 2025.
   

3. Accession of Timor-Leste: ASEAN Member States acknowledged Timor-Leste’s readiness in terms of technical capacity and trade data to participate in ATIGA. However, ASEAN requested Timor-Leste to clarify several issues and respond as soon as possible to align with the scheduled ASEAN accession in October 2025.
   

4. Promotion of ASEAN Tariff Finder: The meeting discussed promoting the use of the ASEAN Tariff Finder, including the development of a communications plan to disseminate the portal.
   

5. ATIGA Utilization Rates: The meeting noted efforts to promote ATIGA utilization rates, with five countries, including Viet Nam, having submitted trade data to evaluate the utilization of ATIGA in 2024. The remaining countries committed to completing this task by June 30, 2025.
   

6. ATIGA Upgrade Negotiations: The meeting reaffirmed the commitment to conclude the negotiations on upgrading ATIGA in 2025, to ensure the Agreement meets modernization needs and effectively addresses new challenges in regional trade.

At the meeting, Viet Nam continued to demonstrate an active and responsible role in the implementation of ATIGA, notably by proposing solutions to unresolved issues and offering constructive input on the accession process of Timor-Leste to the Agreement.

The Meeting concluded in an open and constructive spirit, looking forward to reporting the main outcomes of the meeting at the Third Meeting of the Senior Economic Officials for the Fifty-Sixth ASEAN Economic Ministers’ Meeting (SEOM 3/56) scheduled to take place in August 2025 in Malaysia.

According to data from the General Department of Customs, Viet Nam’s total export turnover to ASEAN in 2024 reached approximately USD 37.9 billion, an increase of 11.5% compared to 2023, accounting for about 9.1% of the country’s total exports – affirming ASEAN's position as one of Viet Nam’s most important trading partners.