this is business agent e.w. i m glad elf as welcome. singapore and the european union are one step closer to signing off on the free trade deal it s a sign of the deeper push for open market accords with countries all over asia the european parliament will vote on the deal by wednesday afternoon and it looks like it will pass that first hurdle it s the use first trade agreement with a member of the association of i m sorry southeast asian nations a group of countries in the region that have teamed up to promote economic growth the deal and story move urgently all barriers to trade within five years in twenty seventeen trade in goods alone between the un singapore amounted to more than fifty three billion euros it s hoped the agreement will result in a rise of up to ten percent in bilateral trade the u.s. already singapore is more important export destination for services and singapore