The top trade officials from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) coalition have pledged to endorse a “package of outcomes” by the end of the year, in a bid to help wrap up nearly six years of negotiations. “At this point in time, we have a reached a stage where we are very near, and we can see the possibility of having a substantive conclusion for the RCEP negotiations by the end of this year,” said Singapore’s Minister of Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing, according to comments reported by the Straits Times. “I would encourage every one of us here, at this juncture, to seize the moment, and exercise maximum flexibility for us to close the last few steps of our negotiation,” Chan added, having served as one of the meeting’s chairs. In a joint media statement, RCEP trade ministers tasked negotiators to “focus efforts towards achieving a package of year-end outcomes.” They noted the progress across all areas and agreed to focus on finding breakthroughs to bring the talks to a successful, quick close. The other meeting chair, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry Hiroshige Seko, also told the same news agency that he foresees a trade...