Asian and Pacific nations are snapping up our beef while EU roadblocks persist
Reading Time: 5 minutes When it comes to Canada’s two big foreign trade deals, the difference for beef producers is night and day — one is putting money in their pockets and the other has mostly been an exercise in frustration. In just the first two years of the three-year-old Trans-Pacific trade deal, member nations upped their buys of […] Read more
A tale of two trade agreements
The TPP deal soars, the EU deal stalls
APEC ministers call for curbs on farm, fuel, fishing subsidies
Washington/Wellington | Reuters — Pacific Rim trade and foreign ministers on Tuesday pledged to sustain the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic while pursuing talks to curb subsidies for fisheries and agriculture at a forthcoming World Trade Organization meeting. The ministers from the 21 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries said in a communique issued after […] Read more
Beef cattle producers ‘encouraged’ by new CPTPP applicants
U.K., China, Taiwan seek memberships; no additional dairy, feather access on table
With their exports on an upswing, the organization for Canada’s beef cattle producers says it’s “encouraged to see other countries’ interest” in joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade bloc. The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association on Oct. 18 noted the official applications to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) from the United Kingdom, China and […] Read more
China calls for overhaul of farm subsidy rules under WTO
Beijing | Reuters – China on Thursday called for the removal of “enormous” farm subsidies in some developed countries as part of Beijing’s push for reform of the World Trade Organization. “There are very unfair rules in the agriculture sector, and enormous subsidies some developed country members are entitled to, that severely distort international agricultural trade,” Wang […] Read more
Britain, New Zealand strike free trade deal
London/Wellington | Reuters — Britain and New Zealand have reached agreement in principle on a free trade deal designed to reduce tariffs, improve services trade, and take London one step closer to membership in a broader trans-Pacific trade agreement. Prime ministers Boris Johnson and Jacinda Ardern sealed the deal in a Zoom call on Wednesday […] Read more
Taiwan applies to join Pacific trade pact week after China
Taipei | Reuters — Taiwan has formally applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the government said Wednesday, less than a week after China said it too had submitted an application. Taiwan has been angling to join the grouping for a while and had already been discussing the issue informally […] Read more
China applies to join Trans-Pacific trade pact
Second-biggest economy seeks to add to economic clout
Updated, Sept. 17 — Beijing | Reuters — Japan said it would have to determine if China meets the “extremely high standards” of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) after the world’s second-biggest economy formally applied to join. Commerce Minister Wang Wentao submitted China’s application to join the free trade agreement in […] Read more
Britain begins negotiations to join Trans-Pacific pact
London | Reuters — Britain will begin negotiations on Tuesday to join a trans-Pacific trade deal that it sees as crucial to its post-Brexit pivot away from Europe and toward geographically more distant but faster-growing economies. The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) removes 95 per cent of tariffs between its members: Japan, […] Read more
Canada, Indonesia launch trade pact talks
First round of negotiations expected later this year
Canada has formally declared it will start negotiations this year on a trade pact with Indonesia, a move ag exporters hope will stabilize and strengthen their market access to the Asia-Pacific region. Canada’s Trade Minister Mary Ng and her Indonesian counterpart Muhammad Lutfi on Sunday declared the launch of negotiations on a comprehensive economic partnership […] Read more
Trans-Pacific trade partners agree for U.K. to start joining process
Tokyo | Reuters — Member nations of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) on Wednesday officially agreed to allow the United Kingdom to start the process of joining the pact, Japan’s economy minister said. Japanese Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura told reporters he welcomed the start of Britain’s joining process after hosting an […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
