Category: International Trade

US Battles China over Free-Trade Rules in Push for Trans-Pacific Partnership


Representatives from 12 nations in the Americas and the Asia-Pacific region are meeting in Hawaii this week to finalize negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). If all goes to plan, they may reach a deal by Friday. Many consider the proposed treaty to be one of the most important free trade agreements since the United States, Canada, and Mexico entered into the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994.

Wrapping up the TPP is not without Risks


The largest hurdle for the 12-member Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement — the US president’s ability to get Trade Promotion Authority, or fast track — is now clear. Many people think that the TPP can wrap up in a few months.

There are still difficult issues to resolve, but they are trivial compared to the ability to get a straight up-or-down vote in the US Congress, without which the deal would be a non-starter. The remaining issues can easily be horse-traded at the political level and compromises can happen in order to complete the deal.

WTO Members Make $1 Trillion IT Deal


On Friday (July 24), representatives of the member nations of the World Trade Organization (WTO) met in Washington, D.C. to finalize the terms of a new trade agreement to cut tariffs on $1 trillion worth of information technology products. The deal should generate over $1 trillion in technology related trade.

Canada and Israel Form New Free-Trade Agreement


Canada and Israel have long enjoyed a mutually beneficial trade arrangement. That relationship strengthened even further on Tuesday when the two nations announced a new free-trade agreement expected to facilitate the import of fish and baked goods to Israel and the export of farm products and wine. The new agreement has the formal title Canadian-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA).

Asian Countries Dependence on China for Trade has Pluses and Minuses


Economic integration has steadily increased in East Asia. But the region still suffers from what South Korean President Park Geun-hye calls ‘Asia’s paradox’, the disconnect between economic interdependence and backward political and security cooperation. Any further economic integration will likely reflect political power shifts in the region.

The Largest Trade Agreement in 20 Years Promises to Strengthen Economic Ties between US and Pacific Region


In late June, the US agreed to enter into the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP). The Agreement is the largest trade treaty entered into by the United States in more than two decades. It encompasses a dozen Pacific nations and could equate to billions of dollars for the US economy as well as a boost to the world’s economic health.

Enormous Agreement

Trade Group Says Opening More Chinese Sectors to Foreign Competition Critical to U.S. Investment Treaty


The United States and China have the two largest economies in the world, making an investment treaty an obvious course of action in the opinion of many financial analysts. Yet, such a treaty has been sorely lacking for some time. After seven years of talks, it looks like it could finally come about in the relatively near future. However, the negotiations will soon enter the most contentious phase of talks: discussing formal market access.

Escalating Debate over the ISDS Dogs the China-Australia FTA


The China–Australia Free Trade Agreement (FTA), signed and made public on 17 June 2015, included investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions, which allow foreign investors to claim against host states that violate substantive commitments if the treaty’s inter-state arbitration mechanism is unavailable due to political or diplomatic reasons. ISDS is especially useful when the host state’s laws and procedures do not meet commonly accepted minimum international standards.

The Export-Import Bank: Should It Stay or Should It Go?


Last summer, a debate over the historically ho-hum Export-Import Bank of the United States (aka Ex-Im Bank) simmered over and went mainstream, as a growing chorus of Republicans and many companies demanded its dismantling.

Like many government agencies, the Ex-Im Bank – which provides financing for exports of American goods and services – requires reauthorization every so often. In addition, during the 2014 debate to do just that, some major US businesses petitioned Congress to terminate the bank, while others fought fiercely to preserve it.

The Road to a Ratified TPP was Always Going to be Long


Republican leaders and President Obama appear to have aborted a plan to put off a “final” vote on a fast-track trade bill until the end of July and may bring it before the House as soon as today.