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Philippines negotiates banana tariff cut with Japan ahead of CPTPP bid
2-Feb-2026 Manila Bulletin
The Philippines government is negotiating lower tariffs on banana exports to Japan as a stopgap measure before the country secures zero duties through its potential membership in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
Pakistan - Canada review BIT
2-Feb-2026 The Express Tribune
The meeting between Pakistan’s Commerce Minister and Canada’s High Commissioner emphasized regulatory reforms and progress on the Bilateral Investment Treaty.
Korea-UK upgraded FTA finalized, enhancing trade, investment foundations
2-Feb-2026 Pulse
South Korea and the United Kingdom have concluded negotiations to upgrade their free trade agreement (FTA), prompting Korean companies to move swiftly to establish the UK as a strategic overseas base.
India-EU FTA unsettles not only Pak but also Bangladesh
2-Feb-2026 India Today
The EU–India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) has raised concerns in neighboring countries Bangladesh and Pakistan, as it grants Indian goods duty-free access to 93% of the European market. This threatens the competitive advantage these nations have long held in European textile exports, which are vital to their economies.
Where is globalisation headed?
31-Jan-2026
The shift in globalisation is not just a bump in the road. It signals a deep transformation of the world economy, its political balances and its power relations.
ISDS vs. the climate: How a colonial-era investment mechanism jeopardises a just transition
30-Jan-2026 CAN Europe
A little-known yet powerful legal mechanism is undermining the energy transition, by enabling fossil fuel companies to sue countries that take climate action.
The mother of all deals: why geopolitics finally sealed the EU–India FTA
30-Jan-2026 European Policy Centre
Its conclusion has been driven in large part by shifting geopolitical pressures from Washington and Beijing, which have forced both Brussels and New Delhi to reassess their strategic positioning.
120+ groups call on EU to resist Trump’s ‘fossil-fueled imperialism’ and cancel US trade deal
30-Jan-2026 Common Dreams
“The EU is at a fork in the road: It can follow the US down a volatile, destructive path or it can forge its own course toward stability.”
The law of the jungle
29-Jan-2026 Tribune
Trump’s destructive foreign policy not only reveals the emptiness of the liberal ’rules-based order’, but announces a new approach built on military might and open corporate power.
EU Parliament eyes US trade deal approval with Trump-proof safeguards
29-Jan-2026 Politico
Lawmakers want agreement to be voided if US president threatens Greenland again.
US, Mexico agree to begin talks on USMCA reforms, timing unclear
29-Jan-2026 Reuters
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Mexican Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard agreed on Wednesday to begin formal discussions on possible reforms to the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement.
Decades of trade deals fail to wean Nigeria off crude oil dependence
29-Jan-2026 The Guardian
Despite two decades of being handed preferential access to global markets, Nigeria remains trapped in oil dependence as many deals fail to deliver the much-needed diversification.
AfCFTA member states advance digital trade integration
29-Jan-2026 BFT online
Tunisia, Zambia, Senegal, Uganda, Togo, and Angola shared practical experiences in implementing the Digital Trade Protocol. These country presentations demonstrated concrete progress in areas such as digital identity systems, payment infrastructure, and regulatory frameworks that support cross-border digital commerce.
Ghana risks becoming net consumer instead of producer under AfCFTA
29-Jan-2026 News Ghana
Ghana’s growing imports under the AfCFTA, without a corresponding rise in exports, could erode the country’s industrial base and dilute the core objectives of the continental trade pact, an international trade expert has warned.
US, African Union launch strategic investment group
29-Jan-2026 Mirage News
Joint statement was released by the Government of the United States of America and the African Union Commission on the occasion of today’s agreement to establish a Strategic Investment Working Group.
Public health group demands release and discussion on full text of India-EU FTA
28-Jan-2026 Pharmabiz
The Working Group points out that the European Commission’s press release states the agreement provides for a high level of protection and enforcement of Intellectual Property rights, including copyright, trademarks, designs, trade secrets and plant variety rights.
EU-India trade deal leaves bloc’s carbon border tariff intact
28-Jan-2026 Reuters
A landmark trade deal struck by India and the European Union on Tuesday will not trigger any changes to the bloc’s carbon border tariff, EU officials said, despite India’s concerns over the scheme.
The EU is seeking new trade partnerships. Here’s why
28-Jan-2026 AP
The free trade agreement between the European Union and India underscores the EU’s efforts to ink new global partnerships at a time when the Trump administration has rattled the region’s capitals which have long relied on a stable relationship with Washington on trade, defense and diplomacy.
Institutional innovation in investment treaties: The India-EFTA TEPA model and alternative frameworks for dispute prevention
28-Jan-2026 Kluwer Arbitration Blog
TEPA addresses fundamental conflicts of emerging market investment structures. The agreement will enable India to escape the ISDS 2015 liability trap, balancing defensive provisions with a pro-investor focus.
US tariff policy bulldozing Asia’s agriculture
28-Jan-2026 GRAIN
Asian farmers are bearing the heaviest burden of Washington’s import tariffs. And tariffs are only part of the threat.