The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) for Arab States and the Government of People's Republic of China resumed negotiations on a free trade agreement between the Council and China on January 17, 2016, and reached agreement in principle regarding overall negotiations on goods trade on January 19, 2016. The two sides decided to accelerate the pace of negotiations, review the progress achieved, and hold the next round of negotiations in the second half of February 2016. The two sides also committed to working closely to complete a comprehensive free trade agreement during the year 2016 .