US, Malaysia make progress in FTA talks

The United States is hopeful of concluding its free trade agreement (FTA) talks with Malaysia by this summer following an encouraging progress of discussions on several key issues during its sixth round of negotiation this week, local media reported Friday.
Although the four issues discussed in this round of talks -- investment, goods and services, intellectual property and legal issues -- have yet to be closed, both sides have made progress, US Assistant Trade Representative Barbara Weisel said at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur Thursday.
“The US side is hopeful that the progress we achieved this week will propel these negotiations to a successful conclusion. We will continue to work towards concluding this agreement by this summer.