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’Corporate courts’ and post-Brexit trade deals
11-Mar-2020 The Ecologist
An alliance of civil society groups has delivered nearly 70,000 signatures calling on the UK government to commit to keeping controversial ‘corporate courts’ out of post-Brexit trade deals.
Tunisian parliament urged to pass Africa Free Trade bill
11-Mar-2020 Middle East Online
The Tunisian parliament is under increasing pressure to revisit its decision not to ratify the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.
Lebanon close to signing free trade deal with Mercosur countries: ambassador
11-Mar-2020 Xinhua
Lebanon is only a few steps away from signing a free trade agreement with Mercosur countries, the Uruguayan ambassador to Lebanon said
Chlorinated chicken and hormone-grown beef? What a UK-US trade deal could mean for your diet
11-Mar-2020 CNBC
Some of the most controversial issues include chlorinated chicken, potassium bromate and hormones.
EU: mini US deal will only tackle regulatory barriers
10-Mar-2020 Politico
The European Union is prepared to lower barriers for US agricultural goods such as GMOs as part of a mini trade deal, but don’t expect bigger concessions like cutting tariffs or changing EU laws, an EU official said.
Caroline Lucas: Coronavirus – and why we should all be worried about the US trade deal
10-Mar-2020 Left Foot Forward
Corporate-led trade deals put us all in danger when it comes to tacking future health crises, writes Caroline Lucas MP.
Brexit UK risks copying EU’s Sahara flaws
10-Mar-2020 WSRW
The UK Government is in the final stages of entering into a new trade agreement with Morocco including the territory of Western Sahara, without consideration of recent EU and British court rulings, or of the people of the occupied land.
Britain to table draft UK-EU trade pact, seeking to pressure Brussels
10-Mar-2020 Euractiv
The UK will table its own free trade pact with the EU in a bid to up the ante on Brussels at next week’s second round of negotiations on post-Brexit relations.
Regional MPs call for greater transparency of RCEP negotiations
10-Mar-2020 APHR
As ministers of the member countries of the RCEP meet for final negotiations over the trade agreement this week, regional lawmakers today expressed concern about the lack of parliamentary and public oversight of the deal, as well as its potential human rights impacts.
US shows China patience on purchases if trade gap doesn’t grow
9-Mar-2020 Bloomberg
The US is willing to show China some flexibility on its pledges to boost American imports as long as Beijing ensures exports don’t surge when production returns to full strength.
US-EU trade talks: Under the spectre of coronavirus pandemic
9-Mar-2020 Global Risk Insights
Attempts by EU and US officials to come to an interim ‘mini’ agreement on modest issues by March 18th have been met with scepticism among European lawmakers.
Moving out of RCEP in interest of India’s business, says MEA Jaishankar
9-Mar-2020 Business Standard
Moving out of the RCEP was in the interest of India’s business, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday.
New trade deal takes from China, delivers for Valley
9-Mar-2020 The Monitor
Yet even before the coronavirus outbreak began in the mainland Chinese city of Wuhan in December, seismic rumblings already were being felt in the field of global logistics.
What ails India’s Free Trade Agreements?
9-Mar-2020 Financial Express
Lack of harmonised standards, and certification issues that increase transaction costs plague India’s FTAs
Thai firms explore investment avenues in Pakistan
9-Mar-2020 The Express Tribune
Pakistan and Thailand will hold political consultations at the secretary level as well as organise meetings of the Joint Economic Commission to further bolster economic relations between the two nations.
EU-UK Brexit talks: Differences clear after first week
6-Mar-2020 BBC
The two sides sound quite positive and appear to agree on some technicalities in areas like transport and energy. But there are some big disagreements about some big things.
EU punishes Cambodia over human rights abuses
6-Mar-2020 The ASEAN Post
The EU launched the process to strip Cambodia of its preferential trade terms following the dissolvement of the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) by the Cambodian government.
Trade impact of coronavirus epidemic for India estimated at 348 million dollars: UN report
6-Mar-2020 Tribune India
The trade impact of the coronavirus epidemic for India is estimated to be about 348 million dollars and the country figures among the top 15 economies most affected as slowdown of manufacturing in China disrupts world trade, according to a UN report.
China looks to boost investment, strengthen ties with Colombia
5-Mar-2020 Buenos Aires Times
Beijing is preparing to sign a deal that would strengthen its ties with Colombia, one of its closest Latin American allies, as its companies pour billions into rail projects, mines and other investments.
Chinese investment upheavals anger Laos’ indigenous tribes
5-Mar-2020 Nikkei Asian Review
Nowadays, China is its largest foreign investor and aid provider in a series of infrastructure projects. But critics have raised serious concerns about the impact of the projects, pointing at their gigantic price tags and environmental issues, among others.