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Work intensifies in preparation for EPA negotiations
“On the international stage, ACP-EU Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations have reached a stalemate in all regions except for the Caribbean,” said the Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat
White House, key senator in standoff over South Korean trade deal
Senator Baucus has not said whether he will merely vote against the agreement or will use the full force of his authority as finance committee chairman to block it indefinitely.
Mexico: Avocado producers opposing the FTA with Peru and Brazil
Due to the risk to cultivation health that it represents, producers and packagers who export the Michoacán avocado oppose this fruit being included in the free trade agreements which Mexico will sign with Peru and Brazil.
Thailand seeks adjustment on Australia FTA
Thailand will soon start talks with Australia on opening up the two countries’ markets to more goods and services under their five-year-old free-trade agreement.
Peru-EU FTA legal review to conclude on Friday
Once the text is finalised, the Peruvian Chancellery is in charge of determining whether the FTA should be ratified by Congress or the Executive, while the EU will determine whether the agreement is “mixed” or not, reports Agencia Andina.
Libre-échange: un accord Canada-Europe serait néfaste pour le Québec
La signature d’un traité de libre-échange entre le Canada et l’Union européenne serait néfaste pour le Québec, qui verrait s’effriter sa souveraineté économique, conclut une étude de l’Institut de recherche en économie contemporaine (IRÉC).
Free trade: US corn flows south, Mexico exports men
"The government [of Mexico] didn’t so much pull the plug on corn. The government pulled the plug on family farmers who grow corn because the big guys who grew corn got massive subsidies and protection from imports," said Jonathan Fox, an expert on rural Mexico at the University of California at Santa Cruz.
Textile groups oppose KORUS FTA
Five organizations representing interests of the US textile industry have sent a letter to members of Congress urging defeat of the pending US-Korea Free Trade Agreement, and a campaign has begun to include the voices of the wider community in a grassroots expression of opposition to the treaty.
India-EU FTA: Grave implications of unrestrained investments
The EC recommendations contain several alarming policy provisions and therefore should receive public attention both in Europe and India. If implemented, these provisions would seriously undermine development priorities and restrict policy space to regulate investments in the public interest.
Don’t swallow this pill
Troubling news reports indicate that a newly-minted Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and India would permit companies to circumvent visionary safeguards built into India’s 2005 Patents Act, widely seen as one of the most progressive patent laws in the world.
Business as usual - How free trade agreements jeopardise financial sector reform
In contrast with the current wide-ranging financial reform agenda in the European Union, the EU continues to liberalise a wide range of risky and non-risky financial services in the General Agreement on Trade in Services and other Free Trade Agreements as if the financial crisis never happened. This SOMO briefing paper gives specific examples on how new EU regulations are in contrast with the pre-crisis model that is still being applied in the GATS negotiations, the Cariforum-EU Economic Partnership Agreement and the EU-South Korea FTA.
Deepening Canada-US security and military ties‏
Recent Canada-U.S. bilateral talks further deepened security and military ties.
US: More than 250 economists call for trade reforms to allow capital controls
In a letter delivered January 31, more than 250 economists urged the Obama administration to reform US trade rules that restrict the use of capital controls.
Pakistan, US to resume, broaden investment treaty talks
Pakistan and the United States have agreed to resume negotiations on a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) through broad inclusion of stakeholders from both sides, said an official announcement.
’Vexed issues’ delaying free trade talks
Concerns over attacks on Indian students in Australia and Australia’s refusal to supply uranium to India have delayed free trade talks between the two countries.
Malaysia and Gulf nations boost ties towards FTA
Malaysia and the Gulf Cooperation Council signed a landmark framework agreement to boost economic, commercial, investment and technical cooperation between them.
COAG criticizes French Azura for selling Saharawi tomatoes
The Spanish agrarian organisation COAG is convinced that the impending EU-Moroccan agricultural trade liberalisation agreement could be illegal for implicitly including Western Sahara. COAG has now condemned French company Azura’s presence in the occupied territories.
Spate of trade deals move toward passage
On the heels of US President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address Tuesday in which he focused squarely on resuscitating the economy, pressure is mounting in the nation’s capital to move forward with free trade agreements (FTAs) whose passage would promote exports and create jobs.
CETA.mov
Maude Barlow explains why Canadians should oppose the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement otherwise known as CETA
Canada in for $12B windfall with EU deal: Van Loan
The Canadian government’s assertion that a Canada-European Union trade deal will add $12 billion to Canada’s annual wealth by 2014 is coming under criticism from analysts, with one describing it as a "sales pitch" that doesn’t take into account the impact of Europe’s debt crisis and the slide since 2008 in the euro currency.