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e-commerce | digital economy

WTO 2023 plurilateral ecommerce draft consolidated revised text
24-Aug-2023
Some WTO Members are negotiating rules on ecommerce. This is the revised version of the draft consolidated text as of 4 August 2023
Nothing to lose but your supply chains: IPEF and the resilience agenda
23-Aug-2023 Ibon International
Trade justice activists slammed the lack of transparency in the IPEF negotiation process. Social movements have showing resistance to demand prioritising labour, climate justice, and human rights over corporate profits in Indo-Pacific trade talks.
High digital stakes in new China–ASEAN new agreement
9-Aug-2023 East Asia Forum
Negotiations for the third iteration of the China–ASEAN Free Trade Agreement continued beyond June 2023. The development of the digital economy — has raised some alarm bells for ASEAN negotiators and others.
EU and Singapore open negotiations on digital trade agreement
21-Jul-2023 The Straits Times
The agreement will have legally binding rules and provisions that give certainty to end-to-end trade, facilitate trusted data flows and promote a connected and secure digital environment.
Tech giants play too big a role in US Indo-Pacific trade talks, critics say
10-Jul-2023 Bloomberg
Technology giants are drawing protests as they aggressively try to shape a new US trade deal with Australia, South Korea and other members of the Indo-Pacific region that account for 40% of global economic output.
China to ease economic and trade rules to aid CPTPP pact bid, amid scepticism over reform commitment
3-Jul-2023 South China Morning Post
China has unveiled new measures to help its bid to join the CPTPP as Beijing presses on with its goal to reach the standards of the 11-nation deal, despite the thresholds for entry deemed by some members to be too high for the world’s second-largest economy.
Belarus, China plan to sign trade in services agreement by 2023 year-end
30-Jun-2023 BelTA
Belarus and China are planning to sign an investment service agreement by the end of the year, BelTA learned from the press service of the Economy Ministry of Belarus.
Proposed EU-India FTA
30-Jun-2023 Heinrich Böll Stiftung
Can India protect its development objectives by signing a free trade agreement with an unequal partner with different ambitions?
Korea seeks digital trade pact with EU
13-Jun-2023 The Korea Times
Korea will push to clinch a bilateral pact on digital trade with the European Union to facilitate trade in the digital realm and to enhance industry cooperation, the industry ministry said.
South Korea joins DEPA as first non-founding partner
9-Jun-2023 Pulse
South Korea has officially acceded to the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement, becoming the first member country outside of its founding partners, Seoul’s Trade Ministry said.
Civil rights groups warn trade talks may hurt efforts to counter discriminatory algorithms
26-May-2023 The Washington Post
A coalition of civil rights and consumer protection groups warned in a letter to President Biden that ongoing trade talks risk eroding efforts to mitigate algorithmic discrimination.
WTO e-commerce moratorium: FTAs as the logical next step?
23-May-2023 Lexology
FTAs are providing a way forward for WTO Members who are adamant about the continued application of the e-commerce moratorium.
The US has a strong case against Canada’s Online Streaming Act
22-May-2023 The Hill
The new legislation requires that streaming services like Netflix, Spotify and Disney+ invest in, and show, more Canadian content.
Google, Amazon lobbyists helped US shape new Indo-Pacific Trade Framework
9-May-2023 Bloomberg
US trade officials have solicited the advice of lobbyists for Amazon.com Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google and other major technology companies to help craft the new Indo-Pacific trade framework.
Digital divide: India-UK FTA faces data flow rift
24-Apr-2023 Mint
India’s insistence on data localization is a “major stumbling block" to a planned free trade agreement with the UK, a report tabled in House of Commons said, signalling continuing differences on cross-border data flow issues.
Corporations dominate trade advisory panels
19-Apr-2023 The American Prospect
Trade advisers get special access to agreements and can comment on them before they are made public. More than 4 out of 5 advisers represent corporations.
International “digital trade” agreements: the next frontier
19-Apr-2023 AI Now
International trade agreements, typically negotiated in secret and without public deliberation, could prematurely deter or undercut ongoing efforts to regulate the tech industry.
International preemption by “trade” agreement: Big Tech’s ploy to undermine privacy, AI accountability, and anti-monopoly policies
19-Apr-2023 Rethink Trade
The bottom-line is that the USMCA and related TPP digital rules that represent the agenda promoted by Big Tech interests must not become the model or starting text for future agreements.
Big Tech lobbyists explain how they took over Washington
19-Apr-2023 The American Prospect
An amazing research paper unearths how the tech industry invented the concept of digital trade and sold it to government officials.
US agenda revealed at IPEF talks in Bali
5-Apr-2023 AFTINET
The summaries of US inputs at the recent Bali round of negotiations for the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) reveal US pressure of the other 13 states to adopt US standards.