They said the pact should be molded after China's Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with Hong Kong, which grants zero-tariff treatment to hundreds of Hong Kong products, the China Business Weekly reported.

"Personally, I think the trade deal has to be inked by the end of this year," Zhang Hanlin, a professor at the University of International Business and Economics, told the newspaper.

The call from the trade experts came just days before presidential elections on Taiwan, which China fears could push the island further towards independence from the mainland.

Analysts and officials on the mainland have often argued that closer economic integration will help draw the island closer to China following 55 years of separation.

An agreement with Taiwan should also emulate the CEPA deal in granting greater access to the mainland market for Taiwan service industries, the newspaper quoted trade experts as saying.

This is necessary in order to ensure that Taiwan companies can be served by the same institutions, such as banks and insurers, that they also deal with at home, they argued.