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DoP to convey concerns of industry over proposed FTAs, TPPA to commerce ministry
10-Aug-2011 PharmaBiz
India’s Department of Pharmaceuticals will take up issues with the Commerce Ministry regarding the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement which is likely to have adverse impact on the Indian pharma products, and other such Free Trade Agreements in the pipeline.
US presses Vietnam ahead of ASEAN meeting
10-Aug-2011 Reuters
A top US trade official on Tuesday said he urged Vietnam to undo a number of trade-restrictive policies aimed at curbing inflation and reducing the country’s current account deficit.
US requests panel to decide Guatemala labor case
10-Aug-2011 Reuters
The United States said on Tuesday it was requesting a dispute settlement panel to hear its year-old complaint that Guatemala has failed to protect workers’ rights as required under CAFTA. Guatemala could potentially face millions of dollars in fines if the panel finds it has violated the agreement.
Canada-Brazil CEO forum to consider trade agreement with Mercosur
10-Aug-2011
In a show of the importance the Canadian government places on relations with Brazil and Mercosur the delegation includes four cabinet ministers and a cadre of business leaders. Canada has reiterated its interest in reaching a trade agreement with Brazil and Mercosur, which will be one of the main points of the recently created Brazil-Canada CEO forum.
BD wants duty-free access of all products to Indian market
10-Aug-2011
Bangladesh has sought duty-free access of all its products to the Indian market to bring down the trade gap between the two neighbouring countries, Commerce Minister Faruk Khan said.
U.S. requests panel to decide Guatemala labor case
10-Aug-2011
The United States said on Tuesday it was requesting a dispute settlement panel to hear its year-old complaint that Guatemala has failed to protect workers’ rights as required under a free-trade agreement.
Harper in Colombia on free-trade deal ‘victory lap’
10-Aug-2011
Stephen Harper pays a brief visit to Colombia Wednesday to celebrate the coming-into-force of a free trade agreement with Canada.
Crisis may speed up big trade deals
10-Aug-2011
Although a dreary outlook for the U.S. economy coupled with a rating cut has triggered mayhem throughout the world’s stock markets this week, it may serve as a catalyst for free trade agreements, experts said Wednesday.
US may ratchet up FTA drive amid economic woes: experts
10-Aug-2011 Yonhap
"The US has no viable options at the moment to prevent a further slowdown in the economy," said Kim Han-seong, a researcher at the state-run Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP). "The only answer is free trade deals, and the US is now forced to seek free trade deals aggressively."
Sharma to push Asean on services deal this week
10-Aug-2011 Business Standard
Trade ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and India’s minister of commerce and industry, Anand Sharma, meet this week to push the much-awaited services trade deal, that got stuck over the issue of movement of professionals.
Tymoshenko’s trial and Ukraine’s future
9-Aug-2011 Moscow Times
Negotiations on the EU association agreement should proceed — this is an issue of strategic importance to Europe — but subsequent steps will inevitably depend on Ukraine’s commitment to the values and principles underpinning European integration, writes Carl Bildt
Agriculture agreement with Morocco rejected by the EU
9-Aug-2011 Green Med Journal
The Agriculture Committee of the European Parliament rejected yesterday the agreement for the liberalization of trade in agricultural and fishery products between Europe and Morocco. The decision must be ratified and voted in the European Parliament.
Key deadline looms in EPA talks
9-Aug-2011 Mmegi Onlines
A market access regulation giving SADC states, including Botswana, duty and quota-free access to the European Union is expected to elapse soon, potentially squeezing the affected states out of the world’s biggest market for beef, minerals, textiles and other products.
Fisheries remains key to Pacific trade negotiations
9-Aug-2011 Solomon Times
The Pacific ACP Trade Ministers, at their meeting in February 2011, agreed to continue negotiations of a comprehensive EPA with the EU as a single region with a view to concluding negotiations by the end of 2011. Fisheries is one of the key contentious issues for the Pacific region, and must be dealt with.
The stakes are high in the EU-Canada trade deal
9-Aug-2011 The Mark News
Though we’re missing critical details about what the provinces, territories, and federal government have offered the EU in terms of goods and procurement, there is enough information out there to start a debate on the merits of CETA for Canada.
Free trade pact will grossly impact Indian dairy sector: Dairy players
9-Aug-2011 Food and Beverage News
The Indian dairy sector will be grossly impacted by the Union government’s effort to include milk products within the domain of the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and New Zealand, feels a section of the Indian dairy industry.
US firm eyes trade case to force Argentina payment
9-Aug-2011 Reuters
Azurix Corp plans to ask the Obama administration for help in recovering more than $230 million it says it is owned by the government of Argentina. It would be the first time a US company has used the "Section 301" trade law to pressure a foreign government to pay an award decided by an arbitrator in an investment dispute.
Approval of bilateral investment treaty with Syria
8-Aug-2011 iloubnan.info
The Lebanese Parliament ratified an agreement between Lebanon and Syria that aims to promote private investments between the two signatory nations in each other’s territory, as reported by Lebanon This Week, the economic publication of the Byblos Bank Group.
Two more banana workers murdered in Colombia as free trade agreement is debated in DC
8-Aug-2011 Talking Union
The assassination of two more banana workers’ union members underscored the weakness of the “Labor Action Plan” by which the government of Colombia has promised, as a side agreement to the US FTA, to end the decades-long violent assault on the labor movement.
Canadian Prime Minister Will Visit Honduras
7-Aug-2011
Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada plans to visit Honduras on August 12 to meet with President Porfirio Lobo. The trip, which is part of a tour to Latin America, which includes stops in Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, and lastly Honduras, will focus on developing economic and security ties and promoting democracy.