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ASEAN wants agriculture to be in ASEAN-East Asia FTA
ASEAN does not discount the possibility of having a free trade agreement (FTA) with all East Asian countries as a whole, said the Philippines’ Department of Trade and Industry director Ramon Vicente T. Kabigting. However, it must first consider including agriculture in the agreement for this to materialise, he told reporters.
Free trade agreements, intellectual property and access to medicines
Patent and data protection rules in free trade agreements have a profound impact on the ability of developing countries to access life saving medicines of assured quality.
Latin America Now: An Interview with Raúl Zibechi
In this interview, Raúl Zibechi discusses the challenges of the Evo Morales administration in Bolivia, the power and role of Bolivian social movements, projects for regional integration such as People’s Trade Agreement and the Bolivarian Alternative for Latin America and the region’s new situation after the electoral victories of various "progressive" governments.
When free trade sinks into the ’noodle bowl’
FTAs are supposedly meant to substitute for lack of progress at the WTO. In practice they are mostly preferential arrangements that run counter to APEC’s principle of "open regionalism," which allows members to pursue liberalization at their own pace but on a nondiscriminatory basis.
Pressure on SADC states to clear way for free trade area
Pressure was mounting on Southern African Development Community (SADC) leaders to get economic integration back on track in a bid to meet the 2008 target date for a free trade area in the region, said Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad yesterday.
Chile eyes Viet Nam free trade deal
Viet Nam will receive priority under Chile’s plans to develop its free trade agreement (FTA), according to the Chilean Foreign Ministry’s External Economic Department.
FTA means deeper poverty in Peru
An issue that has received less attention is the implications of the FTA for the entry of genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) into Peru.
Asean to set deadline for India to decide on FTA talks
Asean will set a time frame for India to decide whether it wants to continue with negotiations on the Asean-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA), a Philippine economic official said Wednesday.
Plan B for world trade
The indefinite suspension of the Doha round of world trade talks creates big risks for the world economy. A new explosion of discriminatory bilateral and regional agreements is likely to substitute for global liberalisation, eroding the multilateral rules-based system of the World Trade Organisation.
Negotiate, negotiate and negotiate
The EU has brought up new subjects that "hasn’t really made the GCC side too happy" in terms of delaying the EU-GCC FTA negotiations. "You saw the negotiations being filled with all kinds of issues that really shouldn’t have been a part of an FTA agreement: human rights, political reform and (anti-) terrorism strategies."
Frente Amplio rejects FTA with US
The Political Board of Uruguay’s Frente Amplio on Tuesday ratified its rejection of the US-sponsored Free Trade Agreements within the framework of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).
Goff: The current state of trade negotiations
New Zealand has never put all its eggs in one basket and has always maintained an active regional and bilateral agenda, parallel to the WTO. In current circumstances, that is likely to intensify.
Making free trade fair
Ukrit Kungsawanich, a fruit grower in Rayong, was worried when he read in the news that a US company is trying to patent a drink made with mangosteen extract.
Seoul, Washington exchange initial proposals on tariff cuts for FTA
South Korea and the United States exchanged initial tariff cut proposals for manufactured goods, agricultural products and textiles ahead of their third round of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations next month, the government said Tuesday.
Too many trade pacts seen driving up costs
The proliferation of regional and bilateral free trade agreements in the Asia-Pacific, coupled with the failure of global trade talks, is driving up transaction costs for business despite the decrease in tariffs.
Malawian farmers union wary of EU trade deal
Farmers in Malawi have warned government to tread carefully before endorsing the European Union’s Economic Partnership Agreement, saying signing the deal will put the country’s agricultural products at the risk of not finding the international market.
Azurix wins $165 million vs Argentina in latest ICSID ruling
Former Enron Corp. (ENE) water unit Azurix Corp. has been awarded $165 million against Argentina in the latest ruling on dozens of international arbitration claims brought against the country by foreign companies. A person familiar with the situation confirmed Tuesday that both parties were informed Monday of the decision by a tribunal at the International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes, or the ICSID.
Malays ’have right to Malaysia’
Malaysia on Monday said it would issue a "big fat no" to any nation or group that asked it to dismantle a system of positive discrimination for its majority ethnic Malays as part of trade talks.
Beazley takes aim at China trade deal
Labor leader Kim Beazley has accused a China-based Australian of growing rich on Australian intellectual property and wants the Government to slowly ditch trade negotiations with China.
Executive committee is established to oversee Taiwan-Guatemala FTA
n executive committee was established in Taipei yesterday to oversee the execution of a Taiwan-Guatemala free trade agreement (FTA) that took effect July 1.