The U.K. Department for Business and Trade Nov. 21 released its approach to negotiating a free trade agreement with South Korea, outlining the results of the government's call for input on the trade negotiations and details covering goods market access, rules of origin and customs and trade facilitation. Responding to input on trade remedies, the government said it will make sure the U.K. is able to impose trade remedies "as appropriate" along with maintaining trade remedy provisions that "support market access" in line with World Trade Organization commitments.
A USMCA dispute settlement panel ruled in Canada’s favor in a much-awaited second decision on Canada’s dairy tariff rate quotas, according to a report released by the panel on Nov. 24.
A joint statement by the leaders of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework countries said the trade pillar has made progress, and the White House said they will continue negotiations "to facilitate trade, advance workers’ rights through strong and enforceable labor standards, strengthen environmental protections, align our regulatory procedures, promote a fair and inclusive digital economy, deepen our technical assistance and economic cooperation, and advance inclusivity in our trade policy."
The trade pillar of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, which already was being criticized for not being ambitious enough, is not going to be finished as quickly as the pillars run by the Commerce Department on tax and corruption, supply chains and climate, the administration acknowledged as Asian leaders meet in San Francisco.
Australia and the EU were unable to finalize a free trade agreement, Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell said in an Oct. 30 statement after a meeting with EU trade negotiators during the Group of 7 summit in Osaka, Japan. Farrell said he came to Osaka "with the intention to finalise a free trade agreement with" the EU, but "unfortunately we have not been able to make progress." He added that FTA talks will continue and is "hopeful that one day we will sign a deal that benefits both Australia and our European friends." FTA talks have continued for over five years between the parties (see 2307110050).
The Commerce Department and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said the fifth negotiating round for the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, held in Malaysia Oct. 15-24, made progress "towards high-standard outcomes" in trade, clean economy and fair economy pillars. "Officials also continued discussions on next steps for the proposed IPEF Supply Chain Agreement (Pillar II) following substantial conclusion of negotiations in May and public release of the text on September 7th," their readout said.
Is it EU "institutional rigidity," as a former assistant U.S. trade representative for Europe, Dan Mullaney, says, or unrealistic asks from the U.S. government delaying a deal on trade in steel and aluminum that could end tariff rate quotas on European exports?
An official from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative told Bangladesh "that supporting workers’ rights, including freedom of association and collective bargaining, is a top priority for the Biden-Harris Administration," according to a USTR readout of the Sept. 20 U.S.-Bangladesh Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement Council meeting.
A former Office of the U.S. Trade Representative career negotiator and a former Trump administration trade adviser say that even if the U.S. is not going to reenter into a tweaked Trans-Pacific Partnership -- as they advised in an earlier think tank piece -- the U.S. needs to take trade negotiations in Asia more seriously to not get left behind.
Vice President Kamala Harris talked about critical minerals with Indonesia's president and resilient supply chains with him and the president of the Philippines and prime minister of Japan during meetings in Jakarta this week on the sidelines of the biannual meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN Summit.