TOKYO: Japan and Canada formally agreed Sunday to launch talks on a bilateral free trade agreement expected to result in the first such pact betweenTokyoand one of the Group of Eight major economies.
The agreement was announced by Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and his Canadian counterpart Stephen Harper inTokyo.
JapanandCanada, which has abundant natural resources, concluded a joint study on the feasibility of a trade deal this month, saying the two countries' economies were largely complementary.
Harper arrived inTokyolate Saturday and was due to tourJapan's northeast, hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami in March last year, before travelling on toSeoulon Monday to attend a nuclear security summit.
Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2012