Trade ambassadors are to convene in Geneva on Friday to give fresh impetus – or so it is hoped – to the WTO’s long-running negotiations on controls of fisheries subsidies.
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Week Ahead in EU trade: US auto tariff deadline, e-commerce, New Zealand, Mercosur
We are looking at a packed week in EU trade. There will be two important negotiations rounds and a few critical meetings in Brussels.
Week in Brussels: Cambodia, Eastern Partnership, FTA calendar updates
This week, World Trade Organization ambassadors met in rue de Lausanne in Geneva for the General Council meeting. It was mainly a meeting to – literally –‘ confront’ views on the state of the organisation and on how to reform it. We partly covered the Appellate Body discussion.
Could developing country projects shield UK tech firms from impact of Brexit?
The United Kingdom’s tech businesses could find a niche role in helping developing countries to ‘climb the cliff-edge’ of dealing with data protection rules and allowing them to participate more fully in the global digital economy. But although developing such business could be a ‘win-win’ from both a commercial and …
International trade: EU must start preparing for the worst and resist own Trumpian sirens
After European elections later this month, the challenge in Europe will be to keep our nations’ own Trumpian instincts at bay and position ourselves as a safe haven in a turbulent world, writes Iana Dreyer.
Key WTO members converge on idea of circumscribing Appellate Body role
The mediation process over the crisis of appointments of departing members of World Trade Organization Appellate Body members initiated last February by New Zealand’s veteran trade diplomat David Walker has visibly channelled discussions over the most divisive issue currently in the WTO onto a path of constructive proposals. On Tuesday …
Week Ahead in EU trade: EU-US, steel, UK customs union
This will perhaps be the quietest of all three holiday-heavy weeks spanning Easter in late April to Europe Day this coming Thursday. But it is only the quiet before the storm. Next week will be manic – so let’s use this one to recharge batteries ahead of a second half …
Week in Brussels: How the EU battery alliance already permeates EU trade policy
On Thursday (2 May) Germany’s Peter Altmaier, France’s Bruno Le Maire and European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic formally launched the European Battery Alliance in Paris. The plan has been in the works in Brussels for almost two years and is the new face of European industrial policy. The aim …
United States eases LNG shipping restraints in view of Europe sales
It’s a case of three interests coming together in the United States: geopolitics, mercantile endeavours and Trumpian electioneering. This time around, the EU had it relatively easy in prompting a significant shift in US domestic regulation. When the European Union and the United States were negotiating the Transatlantic Trade and …
UK should seek EU trade policy role in post-Brexit customs union, MPs told
A customs union between the UK and the EU remains a ‘live’ option for the post-Brexit trade environment, despite the current UK government’s strong opposition to the idea. But what would such an arrangement look like in practice? The ruling Conservative and opposition Labour parties are continuing to hold behind-the-scenes …
