Beijing - China on Sunday said it was ready to begin negotiations for an economic pact with Taiwan before the end of the year, state media reported. "We are willing to negotiate with Taiwan and launch official discussions on a cross-strait economic cooperation agreement under the ARATS-SEF framework, as early as possible before year end," Wang Yi, head of China's Taiwan Affairs Office, was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua news agency.
The trade pact would reduce trade barriers, increasing the cross-strait flow of goods, services and capital already worth 129.22 billion dollars in 2008, according to the China Daily.
Some analysts predict the pact could raise Taiwan's 2010 economic growth by nearly 1 per cent.
Wang was speaking at a two-day cross-strait symposium on industrial and economic cooperation in the Sichuan capital, Chengdu.
