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21-Dec-2004
ARENA
The New Zealand, Chile and Singapore governments are promoting a P-3
whose primary - and arguably only - beneficiaries are the transnational companies that
straddle two of the three countries, including opportunists who locate there to take advantage
of the deal. The greatest potential beneficiaries are the agribusiness interests of Fonterra and
Nestle as they promote their shared strategy to dominate Latin America’s dairy industry.
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21-Dec-2004
Scoop
ARENA today stepped up its campaign against the proposed Chile/New Zealand free trade agreement, which forms part of the Pacific 3 (P-3) with Singapore, by launching a sign-on letter to the Prime Minister calling on her to end the negotiations.
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21-Dec-2004
Scoop
The New Zealand government today published the text of the Closer Economic Partnership agreement between New Zealand and Thailand.
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20-Dec-2004
Reuters
Japan needs to work on loosening restrictions in domestic agriculture and labour and to work effectively to more swiftly forge free trade agreements (FTAs), the government’s top advisory panel said on Monday.
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20-Dec-2004
Jakarta Post
It might be that the best path of all for the Indonesian government to reassess its commitment to pursue free trade. Bilateral FTAs are nothing more than hidden tools used to secure the privileges and the wealth of multinational corporations and to advance the interests of powerful governments.
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20-Dec-2004
Times of India
Malaysian PM Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmed Badawi on Monday underlined the need to strengthen India-Malaysia economic and trade co-operation through a free-trade agreement (FTA).
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19-Dec-2004
Znet
Colombia will suffer the same fate with either the FTAA or the [US] FTA, since it is clear that it is the same policy initiated in 1990, but elevated to the nth power.
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19-Dec-2004
The Daily Star
Speakers at a business session yesterday said Bangladesh and Malaysia can strike a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) after taking into account the strengths and needs of both these countries.
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19-Dec-2004
The New Nation
Bangladesh Finance Minister Saifur proposed to initiate Bangladesh-Malaysia free trade agreement if sub-regional economic bloc among the OIC [Organisation of the Islamic Conference] member-states is not possible.
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19-Dec-2004
Korea Times
While there have been suggestions that the second GW Bush administration may consider an FTA with Korea, any such agreement would be an uphill battle for several reasons.
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18-Dec-2004
Channel News Asia
Japan’s Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura proposed Saturday Japan and South Korea hold talks on a free trade agreement (FTA) as early as January next year.
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18-Dec-2004
Taipei Times
ASEAN on Dec. 2 signed a free trade agreement (FTA) with China, a move that has grabbed the world’s attention. The agreement won’t take force until 2010. But since it involves a realignment in the region’s integration, it has caused a domino effect.
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18-Dec-2004
Yomiuri Shimbun
Negotiations to conclude a free trade agreement between Japan and South Korea are expected to face tough going because of ongoing disputes in specific areas of bilateral trade.
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17-Dec-2004
PDI
Drastic imbalance is likely to be the result of the China-ASEAN FTA. But the blame for this is not China’s. The responsibility is largely ASEAN’s. We had 30 years to build an ASEAN house, and we blew it.
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17-Dec-2004
Deputy United States Trade Representative Peter F. Allgeier states recently signed BIT with Uruguay will raise investor confidence and lower the perceived country risk.
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16-Dec-2004
Mail and Guardian
Scores of Egyptians protested across the country on Tuesday against the signing of a strategic trade and industry accord between Egypt and Israel, slamming the agreement as a form of colonialism.
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16-Dec-2004
Daily Star
Lebanese farmers say the Greater Arab Free Trade Agreement (Gafta) could wipe them out when it goes into effect Jan. 1. If that happens, they promise to take to the streets in protest.
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16-Dec-2004
As the first Arab nation, the government of Egypt yesterday signed a trade pact with its neighbour Israel that will help breaking the latter’s economic isolation. After the controversial trade agreement was made known, demonstrations broke out throughout the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
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16-Dec-2004
Jakarta Post
The governments of Japan and Indonesia are mulling a new economic agreement, which would see the latter offering Japanese firms incentives to invest here.
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16-Dec-2004
EU
At the fifth Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Hanoi, PM Jean Claude Juncker, incoming President of the European Council, President Romano Prodi of the European Commission, PM Thaksin Shinawatra of Thailand and PM Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore confirmed their intent to launch official negotiations for the conclusion of bilateral ’Partnership and Co-operation Agreements’ between EU-Thailand and between EU-Singapore.
