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bilateralism & multilateralism


US trade pact with Seoul: What next?
The free trade agreement the United States signed with South Korea last week could be the most important step in the nation’s trade policy since the North American Free Trade Agreement. It could symbolize a shift away from global trade negotiations, which were supposed to help poor countries grow, to the bilateral option, the only game in town right now.
Rangel and Levin unveil new trade policy for America
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles B. Rangel (D-NY), and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Sander Levin (D-MI), today unveiled “A New Trade Policy for America,” to improve pending free trade agreements and allow for bipartisan support in the House.
UNCTAD meeting warns of effects of bilateral, regional FTAs
An expert meeting was held in Geneva last week on the interface between the multilateral trading system and regional trade arrangements, organized by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
UNICE strategy on an EU approach to free trade agreements
Past EU bilateral and regional agreements have been strongly influenced by political concerns. The new generation of FTAs must be based on economic criteria: where the EU’s current and future markets lie.
SK-US free trade deal may open 10 out of 18 types of rice products
Contrary to its long-standing assertion that rice will be excluded from a free trade agreement (FTA) with the US, South Korea’s government is reviewing measures to open some less sensitive rice products.
Deadlock of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) in Ouagadougou
EPA negotiators from West Africa and the European Union meeting in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, from the 23 -26 January, failed to reach agreement on key issues regarding the results of the mid-term review of the EPA negotiations and the way forward.
Kamal Nath defends India’s bilateral trade agreements
Commerce and Industries Minister Kamal Nath staunchly defended India’s ongoing negotiations towards bilateral trade agreements with a number of countries in Asia and Europe on Wednesday, saying they were perfectly compatible with the norms mandated by the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Europe (re)joins the FTA bandwagon
A view on the similarities and differences between the US and the EU’s FTA strategies.
MEPs press for a Transatlantic Market by 2015
Influential MEP group urges greater economic and regulatory cooperation between the EU and the US by removing transatlantic barriers to trade and investment.
Happily ever AAFTA
This year President Bush and the Democratic-led Congress should launch a new Association of American Free Trade Agreements (AAFTA), writes Robert Zoellick in the Wall Street Journal.
Six countries could lose US trade benefits: USTR
Six countries — including Brazil, India and Venezuela — could lose duty-free access to the US market for some of their key exports under a revamped U.S. trade program signed into law on Wednesday by President George W Bush, US trade officials said.
EU welcomes signing of new Central European Free Trade Agreement
Prime Ministers of South Eastern European countries and territories have today signed a new Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA).
US advises developing country FTA partners not to follow WHO IP plan
Developing countries that have free trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States received an email in the form of a “démarche” from the US government before the 4-8 December 2006 meeting of the WHO Intergovernmental Working Group on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property Rights saying that it had become apparent that the WHO was trying to go beyond its competency and address issues which could have impact on the scope and effect of FTAs.
EC to negotiate Association Agreements with Andean Community and Central America
The EU Commission notified its intention to begin negotiations for Association Agreements in the first quarter of 2007, which would gradually become free trade agreements with the Andean Community (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru) and Central American countries (Costa Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala). However, this process could be broken because of the new demands on part of Ecuador before the WTO.
Mercosur/EU talks depend on the Doha Round
As long as the Doha Round is pending, “significant advances” in negotiations with Mercosur for a free trade agreement will not be forthcoming anticipated on Friday the European Union External Trade Commissioner, Peter Mandelson.
South-South strategic alternatives to the global economic system and power regime
An exciting development is the number of new South-South inter-governmental alliances that are emerging to defend their interests and challenge the bias of the current global trade and investment regime.
EU seeks to complete trade deals in two years
The European Commission hopes to complete bilateral trade agreements with South Korea, India and ten south-east Asian countries within two years at the latest, according to negotiating mandates for trade agreements which it is expected to adopt on 6 December.
Bilateral trade agreements and the world trading system
Bilateral Trade Agreements (BTAs) have been proliferating. Why are they so popular? What are their impacts on multilateralism and the world trading system? This papers attempts to answer these questions.
Transcript: Susan Schwab interview
Susan Schwab, US trade representative, on the prospects for turning the 21 economies of Apec into a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP); current talks about bilateral trade deals in Asia; the expiration in June next year of trade promotion authority (TPA); and the expected signing of a bilateral trade agreement between the US and Russia.
Ministers endorse Multilateral Fisheries Partnership Agreement
Pacific Island Countries now have a draft Multilateral Fisheries Partnership Agreement (MFPA) to negotiate with the European Union (EU) as part of the region’s Economic Partnership Agreement(EPA).