EU seeks more Asia trade deals after Vietnam pact

Brussels has approved a trade agreement with Vietnam in the latest sign of how the EU is trying to strike deals to fight a growing climate of protectionism.

Cecilia Malmstrom, the EU’s trade commissioner, said Europe was determined to deepen commercial ties with Asia, saying the deal and a similar agreement with Singapore would move the bloc closer to a broader regional trade pact with south-east Asia.

The deal with Vietnam was the “most ambitious agreement we have ever made with a developing country”, Ms Malmstrom said.