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Kamal Nath defends India’s bilateral trade agreements
Commerce and Industries Minister Kamal Nath staunchly defended India’s ongoing negotiations towards bilateral trade agreements with a number of countries in Asia and Europe on Wednesday, saying they were perfectly compatible with the norms mandated by the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Europe trumps US in Persian Gulf trade
While US free trade initiatives in the Gulf appear to be faltering, Europe has stepped into the vacuum, launching a charm offensive that appeared to be on the brink of clinching a trade pact with a bloc of six energy-rich Arab states.
GCC-Japan trade deal takes shape
Japan is expecting to finalise a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) by the end of 2007, according to a senior diplomat.
KDLP lawmakers go on a hunger strike against US-Korea FTA
The Korean Democratic Labor Party’s lawmakers went on a hunger strike against the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement talks in front of the Shila hotel where the talks convened.
UNICE-CII: Working together for an ambitious EU-India trade and investment agreement
At a meeting in Bangalore, on 17 January 2007, BUSINESSEUROPE and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) adopted a joint statement supporting the rapid launch of the negotiations of an ambitious EU-India trade and investment agreement.
German, Russian doubts aired on EU-US trade push
Senior officials from Germany and Russia warned on Wednesday against pursuing any free trade agreement between the European Union and United States which might endanger a broader multilateral deal under the WTO.
US will re-negotiate free trade deals
The Bush administration said Wednesday it will renegotiate the language covering labor rights in free trade agreements it has reached with Peru, Colombia and Panama, in order to get the deals approved by the new Democratic Congress. The three countries have already been notified.
Ecuador not interested in FTA while Peru expects a ratification soon
Correa’s government officially announced that Ecuador is not interested at the moment to negotiate a free trade agreement (FTA) with the US.
Malaysia says FTA deal with US cannot be completed before July deadline
A free trade pact with the United States is unlikely to be concluded before a July 1 deadline because of differences over opening up services and Malaysian government contracts, the trade minister said Wednesday.
SK-US free trade deal would violate 169 Korean laws: critics
The Korean government has already promised to the US to revise some of the laws. Cases in point are the fair trade law and the labor law. It will also have to rewrite Korea’s copyright act and patent regulations, and revise domestic law on taxation and real estate.
Rafidah skirting main FTA issues
International Trade and Industry Minister Rafidah Aziz has not addressed the main concerns surrounding the US-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement (FTA), claimed a regional grouping of fishermen and farmers today.
In Colombia, free trade means murder and migration
If ratified by Congress, the US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, which President Bush and Colombian President Alvaro Uribe signed in mid-November, could lead to more hydropower and mining projects in Colombia — and more displacement and violence.
Thousands of protesters voice opposition to FTA amid bolstered police presence
Thousands of farmers, workers and progressive lawmakers gathered Tuesday afternoon in downtown Seoul to protest ongoing free trade talks between South Korea and the United States, threatening to march to the site of the negotiations despite police warnings.
Japan, Vietnam kick off FTA talks
Japan and Vietnam began free trade talks in Tokyo, an official said Tuesday, following an agreement last year between the leaders of the two countries.
UAE free trade agreement with US at risk
Free trade negotiations between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United States is at risk of unraveling if an agreement can not be reached next month, UAE government officials said Monday. US oil and gas exploration and development companies stand to lose billions if the Bush administration cannot work it out in time.
Anti-FTA groups stage rally
Civic groups and labor unions staged a series of rallies against the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) as new round of FTA talks opened Monday. The anti-FTA groups estimated at about 2 million people will also have a large-scale protest at downtown Seoul on Tuesday.
Unbundling water from land
In excluding water from GATS but not from the Australia-US FTA, we have simply swapped one lot of water lords for another.
Progessive lawmakers go on hunger strike opposing FTA
Nine progressive lawmakers went on a hunger strike Monday against the free trade talks between Seoul and Washington as the two sides began the sixth round of the negotiations.
Tobacco, rice excluded in FTA negotiations with US
Tobacco and rice are listed in Malaysia’s exclusion list in its negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement with the United States.
India, ASEAN FTA to be signed by July
The much-delayed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with ASEAN could see the light of day sooner rather than later. Over the weekend, the two sides agreed on the broad contours of the agreement, which is expected to be signed by July.