7-Aug-2011
Southern African nations have taken steps towards an envisaged $1 trillion (R6.9 trillion) African free trade area but investment data linked to trading indicates a lot of commitment and work lies ahead to achieve the goal, particularly for South Africa as a continental leader.
16-Jun-2011
Tax-News.com
The Deputy US Trade Representative, Demetrios Marantis, has co-chaired a recent meeting with the SA Trade and Industry Minister, Rob Davies, of the US-South Africa Trade and Investment Council (TIFA Council), at which there was a re-launched discussion of a full range of trade issues.
14-Jun-2011
SAPA
The planned creation of a 26-nation African Tripartite Free Trade Area (FTA) will draw industrial investment to South Africa by making it a springboard for low-duty access to other parts of the continent, trade and industry director general Lionel October said on Monday.
8-Jun-2011
On Sunday, heads of state and government from Africa’s three main regional blocs – the Southern African Development Community, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa and the East African Community – will meet in South Africa to launch negotiations for a Tripartite Free Trade Area (T-FTA).
6-Apr-2011
Before mid-year South Africa would host the next summit on the establishment of a Trilateral Free Trade Agreement (T-FTA) among the regional economic groupings of the East African Community (EAC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
28-Mar-2011
Times Live
South Africa is considering bilateral trade agreements with Japan, Turkey and New Zealand, but a preferential trade agreement with India, currently under negotiation, is enjoying priority, said Brendan Vickers, a chief director at the department of trade and industry.
9-Mar-2011
Negotiations for a tripartite free trade area (FTA), which would include 26 East and Southern African member states, were expected to begin by mid-year, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said on Tuesday.
23-Feb-2011
Bua News
South Africa is pushing ahead to secure a free trade agreement between the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the East African Community (EAC) and the Common Market for East African States (Comesa).
13-Dec-2010
The government has thrown its weight behind the South African sugar industry’s demand for preferential access to European markets. If granted, this would put SA on an equal sugar-trade footing with other sugar producing developing economies — the African-Pacific-Caribbean countries and the world’s least developed countries — for the first time since the industry lost its access under apartheid.
8-Oct-2010
Business Day
South Africa is likely to conclude an economic partnership agreement by the end of this year with the European Union as a member of the Southern African Customs Union, International Relations and Co-operation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane said yesterday.
22-Sep-2010
IPS
The beleaguered Southern African Customs Union (SACU) has to face up to serious challenges at its upcoming heads of state meeting in October.
17-Sep-2010
The Times
South Africa’s black business people are battling to benefit from the numerous bilateral agreements the country has entered into, National Empowerment Fund CEO Philisiwe Buthulezi said on Thursday
30-Aug-2010
President Jacob Zuma said on Monday in opening the India Show that SA would be deepening strategic partnerships with India, especially in the areas of science and technology, agriculture, human resource development and security.
30-Aug-2010
India today said it will explore opportunities for a comprehensive market opening trade pact with South Africa as the two nations are likely to touch the $10 billion bilateral commerce this year.
23-Aug-2010
South African President Jacob Zuma will lead a State visit to China this week in a bid to strengthen political, economic and trade relations with the world’s second-largest economy and South Africa’s largest trading partner.
18-Aug-2010
India’s government hopes to “wrap up very quickly” negotiations around a free trade agreement (FTA) with South Africa.
11-Aug-2010
Business Day
An international arbitration tribunal in The Hague has dismissed an objection by Italian investors claiming that SA’s black economic empowerment requirements represented expropriation and violated the country’s bilateral investment treaties with Italy and the Belgo-Luxembourg Economic Union.
7-Jul-2010
Business Day
SA will not pursue a conventional free-trade agreement with China as this is not in the interests of the country, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies says.
6-May-2010
BusinessDay
Parliament’s trade and industry committee wants South African MPs to play a greater role in negotiating international agreements and has urged that the legislative framework and rules for dealing with them be reviewed.
23-Apr-2010
Speaking at the 100th anniversary of the Southern African Customs Union (Sacu) celebration held in Namibia on Thursday, President Jacob Zuma said that the future of the customs union was "undoubtedly in question", if it could not "pursue the unfinished business of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) negotiations as a united group".
