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Dhaka, Delhi agree to map out product standards
India and Bangladesh have agreed on a time-bound programme to recognise each other’s certification of commodities like food products, agro-products, textiles and leather, in a bid to remove a major non-tariff barrier in bilateral trade.
Drugs May Tie Up FTAs
Disagreements over trade in pharmaceuticals may bog down pending free trade agreements between the U.S. and foreign nations.
Thailand: Calls for rethink on privatisation, FTAs
The Thaksin government should rethink its privatisation and free-trade agreement (FTA) policies, and any such plans should go through public hearings or a national referendum, a panel of speakers at a labour seminar said yesterday.
Analysis: Laser-Guided Liberalization and Latin America
While the US military unleashed laser-guided weapons of mass destruction on the peoples of Iraq and Afghanistan, the Bush Administration’s aggressive international trade and investment agenda has developed some “smart bombs” of its own.
India: New trade pact with Bangladesh ready
The revised India-Bangladesh bilateral trade agreement is likely to be signed soon. The modalities for the agreement were thrashed out at a joint working group meeting of the two countries yesterday.
India seeks to amend trade treaties
India is seeking to amend bilateral trade treaties with foreign countries by diluting international protection agreements - a move which will provide the government respite against any international arbitration, a la Dabhol or Maruti.
Thailand: Activists want new law to control FTA process
Academics and social groups yesterday joined forces to propose that a law be passed to hold the government accountable for several FTA negotiations that they say have adversely impacted many sections of society as well as the country’s sovereignty.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) mulls FTA with India
The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are exploring the possibility of signing a free trade agreement (FTA) with India, Commerce Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain, Ali Saleh Al Saleh, has said.
US-THAI RELATIONS: FTA with Thailand opposed
A growing campaign in the US Congress to encourage the Bush Administration to re-evaluate its policy with Thailand has reached a new height, with a leading member of the House of Representatives making moves to derail upcoming talks on free trade with Thailand.
US, Panama to begin free-trade negotiations in late April
The United States and Panama announced March 26 that they will begin free-trade negotiations in Panama City, Panama, during the week of April 26, according to a press release issued by the Office of the US Trade Representative.
America will not wait for the won’t-do countries -Zoellick FT op-ed
The final minutes of the World Trade Organisation session in Cancun were symptomatic of the whole meeting: we stalled after representatives of the least developed, African, and Caribbean countries reported that their colleagues had rejected any negotiation to update the 1947 rules on customs procedures.
Chile aims for free trade talks with China
Chile said Wednesday it wants to improve ties with China in the hope of eventually signing a free trade agreement and has set a date with Beijing for preliminary talks.
Dhaka set to sign Tifa with Washington
Bangladesh is set to sign a trade and investment accord with the US aimed to give bilateral trade and commerce a shape, as trade officials of the two countries sit at the commerce ministry today to thrash out some minor outstanding issues.
Pakistan, US meeting in April under TIFA
Pakistan and the United States will hold in early April their first bilateral meeting in Washington under the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) signed last year to increase commercial cooperation between the two countries.
Bangladesh TIFA with US in three months
Bangladesh has agreed to sign the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) with the United States within the next two to three months.
Saudi-US TIFA designed to boost ties after Sept. 11 events
Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr. Hashim Yamani and US Trade Representative Robert B. Zoellick signed in Washington last week a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) designed to boost bilateral relations in the wake of the Sept. 11 events and the Iraq war. The agreement, signed in Washington on July 31, was released by the US Embassy here yesterday.
New ACP-EU trade arrangements: New barriers to eradicating poverty?
The liberalisation of trade between the EU and ACP countries through the current EPA negotiations will be detrimental to poverty reduction programmes and could even undermine the Cotonou Agreement itself. This is the conclusion of a new independent civil society study published by Eurostep and its partners from five ACP countries.
FTAAs/IIRSA, Plan Colombia and the Axis of Western Development
The North American Free Trade Treaty (NAFTA, Jan 1994), the Free Trade Area for the Americas (FTAAs, December 1994), Plan Colombia (1999), the Regional Integration of Infrastructure in South America (RIISA, September 2000) and the Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP, March 2001) are the building blocks of the US hegemonic policy for the Americas and the Caribbean.
Korea: Employers Concerned About FTA With Japan
The Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) on Friday proposed that the government take a cautious approach to the ongoing Korea-Japan free trade agreement (FTA) talks, demanding a delay of in the schedule for cutting tariffs on Japanese imports.