KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 1): Malaysia’s first free trade agreement (FTA) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), is expected to be signed in two months, said Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz. 

The minister said the first Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Cepa) would pave the way for more FTAs with the GCC countries. 

“From today, it takes two months for agencies to do the legal scrubbing,” he told Bernama after the Economic & Public Finance Conference organised by the National Institute of Public Administration on Thursday. 

Earlier in his speech, Tengku Zafrul said that he and his UAE counterpart achieved conclusions on the Cepa on Thursday. 

“In two months, both prime ministers will witness the final signing (of the Cepa),” he said. 

Malaysia will be the fifth nation, and the third in Southeast Asia to sign a Cepa with the UAE.

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