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Environmentalists, unions protest Pacific trade pact in Maui
30-Jul-2015 The Associated Press
About 400 protesters blew conch shells on a Hawaii beach to demonstrate against a trade agreement being negotiated by ministers from 12 Pacific Rim nations.
Malaysia will not sign any TPP pact in Hawaii
30-Jul-2015 The Sun
As pivotal negotiations in the making or breaking of the Trans-Pacific Partnership enter the final stretch, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry has stated that Malaysia will not sign any agreement during the current round of talks, which runs until July 31, and sought to reassure critics that it will stand firm on issues of sovereignty, government procurement, state-owned enterprises and the bumiputra agenda.
China-ASEAN trade negotiations to be completed by year-end
30-Jul-2015 China Daily
Negotiations to upgrade the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement are expected to be concluded by the end of this year. China will expand two-way investment in major sectors involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, including big-ticket projects involving global production, industrial parks and other cross-border projects.
Govt readies 3-tier offer for RCEP
30-Jul-2015 Business Standard
With next round of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) talks is scheduled to take place in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, on August 24-26, India government readied its strategy on goods trade.
Malaysia to remain firm in TPPA talks
30-Jul-2015 New Straits Times
Malaysia has pledged to safeguard and uphold their core policies, including the interests of the Bumiputera community during the last leg of Trans Pacific Partnership talks.
TPP: Australia considers ’modified’ ISDS clause
29-Jul-2015 Financial Review
Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb says he won’t sign off on investor-state dispute settlement in the Trans-Pacific Partnership "until we’re satisfied that there’s a carve out for public policy on health and the environment,"
European Parliament says REACH must not be included in TTIP
29-Jul-2015 ITRI
Chemical Watch reports that the European Parliament has asked the European Commission not to negotiate on issues related to REACH and its implementation in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with the US.
The Customs Bill: an unacceptable barrier to climate action
29-Jul-2015 CIEL
A proposed amendment to the Trade Priorities and Accountability Act (TPA) incorporated into the House version of the US Customs Bill poses significant risks to future progress on climate mitigation if accepted.
Groups demand rejection of anti-climate provision in Customs Bill
29-Jul-2015 Center for International Environmental Law
A coalition of environmental and fair trade organizations are protesting the inclusion of language in the “Customs bill” in the US Congress that would explicitly prevent the United States Trade Representative from seeking to address climate change in trade agreements.
Analysis of foreign investment protection in Senegal’s bilateral investment treaties
29-Jul-2015 PressAfrik
Is Senegal providing a disproportionate level of protection to foreign investors through BITs?
El Salvador: “Arbitration with Pacific Rim has cost the State $12.6 million”
28-Jul-2015 El Salvador
Luis Parada, a lawyer with the law firm Foley Hoag, is optimistic that the company, Pacific Rim, will not prevail in the proceedings.
UNAIDS calls on trade negotiators to uphold governments’ commitments to public health and access to medicines
28-Jul-2015 UNAIDS
The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement reportedly contains provisions that would lead to higher drug prices, not just in the TPPA but in future trade agreements as well, UNAIDS warns.
Malaysia and Canada resist TPP deal
28-Jul-2015 The Land
Resistance from a stubborn Canada and protectionist Malaysia is emerging as the biggest hurdle ahead of a crucial Trans-Pacific Partnership meeting starting in Hawaii on Tuesday.
More than 2,000 unionists rally in Brisbane to protest against China-Australia FTA
28-Jul-2015 ABC
The protest marked the second national rally against the FTA, following protests at the ALP National Conference last Friday.
Rally against TPP negotiations planned July 29 on Kāʻanapali Beach
28-Jul-2015 Maui Now
A coalition of advocates for the environment, labor, health and native Hawaiians will gather on Kāʻanapali Beach, outside the negotiators’ hotel, to speak out against the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Blocked from trade pact by its failure on slavery, Malaysia suddenly gets a passing grade
28-Jul-2015 The Intercept
The State Department on Monday took Malaysia off a list of countries with particularly egregious human trafficking records, clearing the path for the country’s participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, one of the top political priorities for the Obama administration.
NZMA calls again for independent health assessment of TPPA
28-Jul-2015 Scoop
The New Zealand Medical Association is extremely disappointed Trade Minister Hon Tim Groser has rejected the call for an independent assessment of the impact of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement on the country’s health system.
Media barred in Brisbane as unions rally against Chinese free trade agreement
27-Jul-2015 Sydney Morning Herald
Overzealous security has barred media from a public hearing into Australia’s free trade deal with China, prompting union claims of a cover-up.
TiSA – the new trade deal being kept under wraps
27-Jul-2015 Left Foot Forward
Like TTIP, CETA, and TPP, the TiSA deal would turbo-charge global trade this time in ‘services’, which includes air and maritime transport; parcel delivery; e-commerce; telecommunications; accounting; engineering; consulting; health care; private education; and financial services – around 80 per cent of the US economy.
EU steps up PR campaign to overcome US trade deal hostility
27-Jul-2015 Reuters
European officials are ruing their failure to spot early signs of opposition to the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership