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Comesa can do more for Africa
29-May-2007
The just concluded Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) Heads of States Summit in Nairobi seemed to confirm the existence of an uneven playing field in global trade.
Emerson floats Free-trade prospect
29-May-2007
Canada’s ultimate goal in its deepening economic relations with China will be a free-trade deal with the Asian juggernaut, International Trade Minister David Emerson said yesterday.
Labor violence blocks a US-Colombia trade deal
29-May-2007
Free trade agreements with Peru and Panama now seem headed toward approval in the US Congress, after the Bush administration agreed to incorporate the basic labor standards long insisted upon by House Democrats. But a separate trade pact with Colombia rightly remains in legislative limbo over a much starker labor problem.
Pakistan and Malaysia sign trade agreement
29-May-2007
Malaysia will allow import of Pakistan’s textile products free of duty under a new free trade agreement.
Uribe asks US not to punish Colombia
29-May-2007
President Alvaro Uribe has urged the US not to punish Colombia by denying it a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) or reducing military aid because of a deepening political scandal that is engulfing his government.
Oman disappointed with pace of Indo-GCC FTA talks
29-May-2007
Oman today expressed disappointment with the slow pace of talks on Free Trade Agreement between India and the Gulf Cooperative Council and asked officials of both sides to take it up on priority.
JPEPA to cost RP P4B in foregone revenues
29-May-2007
The Philippines’ Finance department expects its most recent trade agreement with Japan to cost P4 billion a year in lost duties from Japanese imports.
EU envoy attempts to re-launch trade talks with Mercosur
29-May-2007 MercoPress
A top European Union trade negotiator begins this week an official visit to the four Mercosur country members in an attempt to re-launch the stalled talks with the South American block for an association agreement.
Malaysia and US to hold informal FTA talks
29-May-2007 FTA Malaysia
Malaysia and the US will be holding informal FTA talks to iron out various issues instead of planning for another formal round of negotiations, according to reports. Both sides last met in April in the US.
East Africa: EPA controversy continues
28-May-2007 AllAfrica.com
The Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) has warned that COMESA states will lose up to Ksh16.9billion ($241 million) annually if the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union is endorsed. "Is this a second colonization by the EU.....or economic slavery by the so-called developed world?" said Mr. John Ogam, member of the Kisumu KAM executive Committee.
Philippines: ’Diplomatic exchange’ on JPEPA toxic provisions not enough, Greenpeace says
28-May-2007 Infoshop
The diplomatic notes state that "Japan would not be exporting toxic waste to the Philippines as defined and prohibited under the laws of the Philippines and Japan, in accordance with the Basel Convention." This is where the loophole and ambiguity lies.
The Jordan-Israel QIZs have been insignificant for peace
28-May-2007 Daily Star
The impact of the Qualifying Industrial Zones — a concept proposed by the United States in 1996 to bolster cooperation between Jordan and Israel after the Jordan-Israel peace agreement was signed in 1995 — remains, after 10 years, difficult to determine. In spite of the tremendous growth of exports to the US market through these zones, QIZs continue to receive mixed reviews and their future is uncertain. Most importantly, the impact of the QIZs on the peace effort has been insignificant, to say the least.
NAFTA from below: A review
28-May-2007
The full impact of the North American Free Trade Agreement on the working people of Mexico, the US and Canada has yet to be assessed, but this slender volume makes a major contribution to our overall understanding of this disastrous economic treaty that was imposed on the people of all three nations by governments which routinely subvert democracy in the service of big capital.
Churches reject Economic Partnership Agreements
28-May-2007
Catholic and other churches in Kenya are opposed to Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) currently being negotiated between developing countries and the European Union.
FTA talks with EU to begin soon
28-May-2007
The council of European Union (EU) has given a mandate to European Commission to pursue negotiations to conclude a free trade agreement (FTA) with India.
Dominican Senate to pass legislation in adherence to Free Trade
28-May-2007
The Senate is set to modify the General Concessions Law so the Dominican Republic adheres to its commitments in the Free Trade Agreement with the United States and Central America.
Business delegation heads to US to sell FTA
28-May-2007
A delegation of business leaders has set off for the United States to promote a Taiwan-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
After revealing the FTA text: how much did Korea give up?
28-May-2007
The full text of the free trade agreement with the United States has been released. To the masses who have grown weary of the almost two months of the government’s self-congratulatory propaganda about how well it did in the negotiations that ended in April, the news is like welcome rain after a long drought. Did not someone say the trade deal was "like a second founding of the nation," in order to say the economic negotiations are the biggest news since Dangun’s founding of the Korean nation in 2333 B.C.E.?
The SPPNA or “deep integration”
28-May-2007 alcaabajo
It’s really not a secret accord. On March 23, 2005, presidents George W. Bush of the United States, Vicente Fox of Mexico, and Prime Minister Paul Martin of Canada issued a joint declaration giving life to the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPPNA), also known as NAFTA-plus, or North American Free Trade Agreement plus other accords.
“Trade with Mexico is a big opportunity for India”
28-May-2007 Financial Express
Mexican minister of economy Eduardo Sojo says Indian companies should use Mexico, through its 44 FTAs, as a gateway to enter the US and the Latin American market.