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By David Brunnstrom

BRUSSELS, Oct 3 (Reuters) - The European Union agreed on Wednesday to toughen existing sanctions against military-ruled Myanmar and look at trade bans on the country's key timber, metals and gemstone sectors, EU officials and diplomats said.

The decision by EU ambassadors follows a bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters in Myanmar last week and will be forward for approval by EU foreign ministers on Oct. 15.

"The existing sanctions will be amplified, increased, adding names of individuals and state enterprises to the existing list," an EU official said.

Commission experts will also look at ways to increase humanitarian aid to Myanmar, and any further sanctions would be designed to minimise the affect on ordinary people, he said.

Existing EU sanctions include visa bans on 386 senior military officers and members of government and their families together with freezes on their assets.

The measures also include an arms embargo and a suspension of trade privileges. EU-registered companies are also prohibited from making finance available to named state-owned enterprises.

The Portuguese EU Presidency proposed new measures, including import and investment bans on logs and timber products, metals and precious stones and export bans on equipment and spare parts that can be used in those industries.

"There was full agreement on reinforcing existing measures," an EU diplomat said. "On the second measures, a number of member states took the view it should be done only after further information was obtained, particularly on how they would affect the local population."

Britain, the Netherlands Ireland and Denmark had led the calls for tougher action, while Sweden, Germany, Austria and Cyprus argued that more information on their impact was needed.

Activists have criticised EU sanctions an ineffectual. Burma Campaign U.K. last week called them "pathetic".

EU trade with Myanmar is extremely limited. Exports to the country totalled 83 million euros ($117.6 million) in 2005 and imports 287 million, according to EU data.

EU officials concede extending sanctions will have only a limited effect and more important will be efforts to persuade Myanmar's neighbours, especially its main ally China, to bring their influence to bear.

(Additional reporting by Mark John)

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