- Negotiations
In the last two years the Australian Government has finalised bilateral trade agreements with China, Korea and Japan, which are now in force. The Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement between 12 Pacific Rim countries has been agreed, but is being reviewed by a Parliamentary committees before Parliament votes on the implementing legislation. The TPP will not come into force until six of the 12 countries including the US and Japan pass the implementing legislation, which is expected to take two years.
The current conservative Coalition government has agreed to include Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions in the Korea and China bilateral FTAs as well as the TPP. ISDS allows foreign companies to bypass national courts and sue governments for compensation if they can argue that a change in law or policy harms their investment. The previous Labor government had a policy against ISDS, and even a previous Coalition government did not include ISDS in the Australia-US free trade agreement in 2004.
There is widespread opposition in the Australian community to the inclusion of ISDS in the TPP. The TPP is also controversial because it extends monopoly rights on expensive life-saving biologic medicines, which will mean more years of very high prices before cheaper versions become available. There are also grave concerns about its impacts on food labelling standards and expanded access for temporary workers without additional protection of workers’ rights. A recent World Bank study found that Australia was only likely to gain almost no economic benefit from the deal.
Australia is currently involved in multilateral negotiations towards the PACER-plus agreement with New Zealand and 14 Pacific Island countries, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Trade In Services Agreement (TISA). It is also negotiating bilateral trade agreements with India and Indonesia and will begin talks with Hong Kong and Taiwan later this year and the EU next year.
Contributed by AFTINET
last update: May 2016
Photo: AFTINET
21-Jun-2018
Agri Census
A range of non-tariff measures (NTM) that can prevent the FTA functioning as imagined, Grain Trade Australia’s CEO says.
20-Jun-2018
Sydney Morning Herald
Despite this growing rejection of ISDS, the Australian government claims that ambiguous general “safeguards” in the TPP-11 will protect public interest laws.
30-May-2018
The Rural
GrainGrowers urges the Australian Government to negotiate a comprehensive and high-quality trade agreement with the EU that improves market access and facilitates efficient trade.
24-May-2018
Mining Weekly
Australian mining could also benefit from reductions in Australian tariffs on European mining-related equipment and manufactures, and in European tariffs on a number of minerals and metals commodities.
26-Apr-2018
Sydney Morning Herald
EU’s lead trade negotiator said the agreement would serve a “strategic” purpose by creating a “circle” of allies to remove barriers
13-Apr-2018
Sydney Morning Herald
British officials will fly to Canberra for a “working group” on the free trade agreement, amid hopes on both sides that a deal will commence as soon as Britain leaves the European Union at the end of 2020.
27-Mar-2018
News.com.au
As the date for Brexit looms, trade minister Steven Ciobo is in London for talks on strengthening free trade ties with Britain.
22-Mar-2018
International Centre for Trade & Sustainable Development
Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Australia met in Sydney on 18 March to discuss the next steps for their Strategic Partnership, initiated in 2014, with regional trade agreements, digital trade, and sustainable urbanisation high on the agenda.
7-Mar-2018
SBS
Canberra and Jakarta are unlikely to finalise a free trade deal ahead of the Indonesian president’s visit to Australia for a leaders summit.
12-Feb-2018
Xinhua
Under the deal, tariffs on 99 percent of Australian goods exported to Peru will be eliminated within five years.