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Adhesion to SADC free trade zone postponed
22-Nov-2006 AllAfrica.com
Angola is not yet prepared to join the free trade zone in the year 2008, under the process of regional integration of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), said Tuesday in Luanda the Planning minister, Ana Dias Lourenço.
Chilean trade to span Asia
22-Nov-2006 Prensa Latina
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet concluded a new tour of Asia and the Pacific in search of markets.
Colombia: Concern over US free trade deal and tariff benefits
22-Nov-2006 IPS
Indigenous and black people, trade unionists and victims of the armed conflict in Colombia are preparing to fight the ratification of the free trade agreement (FTA) with the United States, which will be signed by the trade ministers of both countries Wednesday in Washington.
Democrats urge USTR renegotiate Andean trade pacts
22-Nov-2006
A group of Democrats urged the Bush administration on Tuesday to renegotiate trade pacts with Peru and Colombia to strengthen their worker protections. The request came in a letter to US Trade Representative Susan Schwab one day before the United States was set to sign the trade deal with Colombia.
Americans protest US-Korea free trade agreement in Seoul
22-Nov-2006 IAC
An American delegation of peace, labor and social justice activists led by Cindy Sheehan is in Seoul to join the nationwide mobilization against the US-Korea Free Trade Agreement currently being negotiated.
Sacu-US to pursue scaled-back trade talks after FTA process ceases
22-Nov-2006 Mining Weekly
The South African Customs Unions (Sacu) has formally accepted an offer made by the US government to progress a so-called trade and investment cooperation agreement (Tica), following the breakdown of the more ambitious free-trade agreement (FTA) talks earlier in the year.
Peru, India to sign commercial pact
22-Nov-2006 Daily India
Peru is a good investment destination for India because the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) it has with the United States provides a platform for Indian investors to export to the US, said Vice President, Peru-India Chambers of Commerce, Marco Hurtado.
S Korea labor unions to launch general strike tomorrow to oppose FTA with US
22-Nov-2006 Forbes
The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) said that its members will launch a general strike tomorrow to pressure the government to halt free-trade talks with the US.
Japan to accept Indonesian nurses, hotel trainees under economic pact
21-Nov-2006 ANTARA
Japan will accept nurses, care workers and hotel trainees from Indonesia under a bilateral economic partnership agreement in the final stages of talks, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported.
Unequal partners
21-Nov-2006 Oxfam New Zealand
This paper by Claire Godfrey provides a wide-ranging look at the many problems with the EPAs, and investigates how these could impact on the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries’ future development.
Key issues in Pacific trade negotiations with the EU
21-Nov-2006 Oxfam New Zealand
This short summary of issues by Barry Coates of Oaxfam New Zealand focuses on the most recent negotiating documents, particularly the draft “legal text” that was prepared by Pacific negotiators after their meeting in June 2006. It aims to provide a “non-technical” overview to inform civil society of progress in negotiations.
The con/dominion of Vanuatu?
21-Nov-2006 Oxfam New Zealand
A case study that looks at the impacts from liberalisation of the tourism industry in Vanuatu.
Offering a realistic alternative
21-Nov-2006 Oxfam New Zealand
Outlines the legal and moral obligation of the EU to offer the Pacific ACP an attractive alternative to the EPAs.
Fishing for a future
21-Nov-2006 Oxfam New Zealand
Provides background information on fisheries in the Pacific and explores the pros and cons of a Pacific fisheries agreement with the EU.
Nationwide rallies against S Korea-US FTA set for Wednesday
21-Nov-2006 Yonhap
South Korean activist groups said Tuesday that nationwide mass rallies against a free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the United States are scheduled for late Wednesday.
The implications of an Economic Partnership Agreement
21-Nov-2006 Swazi Observer
Swaziland will be forced to open up her market to foreign EU exports as a result of an EPA. This will have a devastating impact on local industries to the extent that they would have to adjust due to competition.
US-Russia bilateral WTO market access agreement
20-Nov-2006 USTR
USTR fact sheets
Arroyo eyes free trade pact with US by July 2007
20-Nov-2006 INQ7
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said she wanted the Philippines to forge a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United States by July next year. "I told [business leader] Doris Ho... ‘I got President Bush to say yes to the FTA so you write the draft so that we don’t have to go through the years and years of negotiations,’" she said.
No FTA envisaged during Hu visit: Kamal Nath
20-Nov-2006 Monsters and Critics
India and China will sign at least half a dozen trade agreements during Chinese President Hu Jintao’s four-day visit to India, but no free trade agreement (FTA) is on the cards, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said Monday.
Bush encourages continuation of talks on possible RP-US FTA
19-Nov-2006 Philippine Information Agency
United States President George W. Bush is in favor of continuing the discussions on a possible US-Philippines Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to further enhance trade relations between the two countries, Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Favila said today.