Bilateral & Regional Trade

Canadian Softwood Controversy Shows Why You Can?t Trust the US to Live up to Trade Deals

21 October, 2005
As developing country negotiators in Geneva are offered what appears to be an attractive US offer to cut its agricultural subsidies by 60 per cent in order to pave the way to a new WTO Agreement in Agriculture, they might look at what is happening in Canada to understand why it is most unwise to enter into yet another trade agreement involving the United States.

Developing countries warned against WTO-plus issues and rules in FTAs

17 September, 2005
The Third World Network held a regional Asian workshop on bilateraland regional FTAs on 26-29 August in Kuala Lumpur. Many speakers and participants voiced concerns about how the developed countries are making use of such FTAs to get developing countries to accept issues (such as investment) and rules (such as in intellectual property and services) that oblige them to take on more commitments than they have acepted in the WTO.(M.Khor)

USTR Portman announces US-Saudi negotiations concluded

8 September, 2005
Trade Representative Portman today announced the United States and Saudi Arabia have concluded bilateral negotiations

U .S. Mulling Free-Trade Deals With Egypt, South Korea, Malaysia

7 September, 2005
The Bush administration said it's considering separate entreaties from Egypt, Malaysia, South Korea and Switzerland to negotiate free-trade agreements with them.

EU-Mercosur agree new route map

5 September, 2005
Mercosur and the European Union decided in Brussels to resume the interrupted talks.

Mercosur-EU negotiators meeting at Ministerial Level

4 September, 2005
Ministers reaffirmed the importance of the strategic relationship between Mercosur and the EU.

No easy ride in the land of the FTA

19 August, 2005
IT WAS meant to be the big breakthrough for Australian exporters

U.S. gains in one-sided trade deal

19 August, 2005
THE much-vaunted free trade agreement with the United States has become one-sided, with no financial benefit to Australia.

Call for a South-North Consultation: RESISTANCE AND ALTERNATIVES TO DEBT DOMINATION September 28?30, 2005

11 August, 2005
Call for a South-North Consultation: Resistance and alternatives to debt domination, September 28

WTO rules EU banana duty unfair to Latin America

1 August, 2005
The World Trade Organization rejected European Union plans to triple its banana import tariff

Cafta Vote Clouds Prospects For Other Trade Deals; Bitter Fight Reveals Fears of Globalization, as Talks in Doha Round Languish

28 July, 2005
Congressional approval of a trade pact with six small Central American countries nudged forward the Bush administration's free-trade agenda. But the close vote and bitter fight underscored anxiety about the pace of globalization and clouded prospects for approval of future deals.

Democracy Sold Out - CAFTA Approved by Pork and a Hill of Beans; Razor Thin Vote Seals Fate Against More Expansion of NAFTA

28 July, 2005
At 12:03 am on July 28th, the House of Representatives approved the Central America-Dominican Republic-United States Free Trade Agreement, CAFTA. CAFTA, which would expand NAFTA to Central America and the Dominican Republic, would devastate farmers, privatize essential public services, and accelerate the race to the bottom on wages in the US and all over Central America.

European Commission's DG Trade reply to questions raised by Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO)

27 July, 2005
The European Commission's DG Trade has finally replied to questions raised by Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) about the privileged access and influence of industry lobby groups like the Trans-Atlantic Business Dialogue (TABD) and the European Services Forum (ESF).

Economic arguments surrounding CAFTA remain misunderstood

13 July, 2005
As the U.S. House of Representatives moves closer to a vote on the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), much of the debate over the economic costs and benefits to all potential signatories remains unclear.

White House promises Lincoln no new subsidy caps before CAFTA vote

7 July, 2005
In advance of her vote in favor of a U.S. free trade agreement with Central American countries.

Bush plan on illegals dims hopes for agenda

6 July, 2005
The Bush administration's stance on immigration, already the cause of a political split with some Republicans in Congress, is beginning to erode lawmakers' support for such presidential policy priorities as trade deals and extending the Patriot Act.

Trade Pacts to the South Losing Appeal

29 June, 2005
An ambitious American plan for a hemisphere-wide trade pact is mired in disputes that have led to widespread skepticism about its chances of ever materializing.

Sorting Out the DDA End Process

19 June, 2005
A dozen capital-based senior trade officials today will be asked by the European Union to provide some indication as to how far they can go in advancing all the pillars of the Doha Development Agenda work program

APEC Ministers Agree on WTO Tariff-Cutting Formula for Industrial Goods; USTR Portman Visits China to discuss bilateral trade issues

9 June, 2005
At the June 2-3 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Cheju, Korea, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Portman and Trade Ministers from the 20 other APEC economies unanimously endorsed a strong statement advancing an ambitious outcome to the WTO Doha negotiations and spurring further progress toward free and open trade and investment in the Asia Pacific region.

For Bolivia, Neoliberalism is Not an Option

8 June, 2005
As the Organization of American States completes its three-day session debating the role of free trade and neoliberalism in fostering democracy for the continent, the country of Bolivia is on the brink of a civil war over that very question.