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Icsid: Venezuela with the largest amount of ongoing complaints
22-Aug-2012
Venezuela turned out to be the country with the highest number of complaints filed against it at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (Icsid) of the World Bank, after four new complaints lodged in the days prior to its effective pullout of the body.
‘No doubts’ in Caribbean forging ahead with EPA says official
22-Aug-2012
A top Caribbean Forum (Cariforum) executive wants to put to rest doubts that region will not be able to capitalise on the opportunities offered by the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) signed into effect between CARIFORUM and the European Union (EU) since 2008.
Lost trade with U.S. prompts Canada to seek other markets
22-Aug-2012
Eleven years after the 9/11 debacle, the Canada-U.S. border linking the world’s two most friendly countries remains a debilitating choke point.
OAE: Thailand still has upper hand in FTAs on farm products
22-Aug-2012
The Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE) has disclosed that Thailand this year still has an edge over its dialogue partners in the free trade agreements (FTAs) on agricultural products.
S. Korea, Costa Rica agree to explore FTA
22-Aug-2012
South Korea and Costa Rica agreed Tuesday to explore the possibility of a free trade agreement to build on their growing economic ties, the president’s office said.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership: free trade at what costs? – analysis
22-Aug-2012 COHA
The most significant issue regarding the TPP is the very lack of transparency. Hailed as a new century trade agreement, the lack of information made available to the public, including the US Congress, hardly embraces the realities of the twenty-first century, writes COHA.
Anti-free traders to copy anti-nuke protestors in weekly Tokyo demos
22-Aug-2012 WSJ
The Japanese prime minister’s office — for months the scene of weekly anti-nuclear protests in Tokyo — got a new group of demonstrators on Tuesday: A group protesting Japan’s proposed participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP.
Paul Ryan-sponsored Bahrain trade agreement under scrutiny amid crackdowns
22-Aug-2012 Huffington Post
A spate of anti-democratic actions in the Persian Gulf nation of Bahrain have turned an unflattering spotlight on a six-year-old US free trade agreement sponsored and promoted by Rep. Paul Ryan, the Republican candidate for vice president.
Trade agreement between Canada and Europe – Canadian free trade and the electoral campaign
21-Aug-2012 Le Devoir
Angela Merkel and Stephen Harper have just firmly announced the need to conclude a Comprehesive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) with the European Union
S. Korea’s economic reliance on China deepens
19-Aug-2012
Who will catch a cold if China sneezes? As was recently shown, the U.S., European and other major economies are not insulated to a slowdown in the Chinese economy. South Korea is also not an exemption to this phenomenon with its exposure to the world’s factory growing sharply over the past two decades.
Chile and Thailand sign agriculture agreements in Bangkok
17-Aug-2012
Chilean Minister of Agriculture Luis Mayol signed two agreements in Bangkok Wednesday with his Thai counterpart, Theera Wongsamut. The agreements will set a common protocol for agricultural exchange and sanitary practices.
Harper, Merkel aren’t playing tit-for-tat on free trade deal, IMF bailout
17-Aug-2012
Angela Merkel gave Stephen Harper what he wanted — strong public support for a Canada-European Union trade deal — but not before she gently but firmly noted "problems" with high carbon emissions from Alberta’s oilsands.
Chile affirms importance of trade agreement with Sacu
17-Aug-2012
Chile views the recently finalised memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the creation of a Joint Trade and Investment Commission with South Africa as the starting point for the negotiation of a preferential trade agreement (PTA) with the Southern African Customs Union (Sacu).
Canadian Foreign Minister to visit India next month
17-Aug-2012
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird will visit India next month to strengthen bilateral economic ties between the two countries.
FTA with European Union should get the green light
15-Aug-2012
A free-trade agreement between Thailand and the European Union seems to be on the cards, offering the prospect of an end to tariff barriers for exports to the EU market. But the devil is in the details. Both sides should weigh the potential benefits to ensure that the proposed agreement is acceptable to all stakeholders.
Australia upholds tobacco branding ban
15-Aug-2012
Australia’s High Court has rejected a challenge by the world’s biggest tobacco companies which are seeking to overturn a law requiring cigarettes to be sold in plain packaging from the start of December.
Fair trade group condemns big tobacco’s use of trade agreements to continue plain packaging fight after High Court defeat
15-Aug-2012
“We welcome the High Court decision as a vindication of the Government’s right to regulate tobacco as an addictive substance that still kills 15,000 Australians per year,” Dr Patricia Ranald, Convener of the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network, said today.
Israel unhappy after EU blacklists 1980s town
15-Aug-2012 EU Observer
The European Commission on 3 August added three postal codes to a register of over 500 codes relating to "Israeli settlements located within the territories brought under Israeli administration since June 1967"
Chile, India to hold free trade talks: official
15-Aug-2012
Chile and India will begin negotiations on a free trade agreement at the end of the year, Chilean Foreign Minister Alfredo Moreno in a television interview Tuesday.
Whither the Asian FTA?
14-Aug-2012 Live Mint
East Asia may be on its way to stitch a regional trade agreement. This will be at the cost of an Asia-wide deal, writes Biswajit Dhar.