Caribbean Trade Law and Development

Author: caribbeantradelaw

  • WTO Ministers hold Informal Meeting on Davos Sidelines

    Alicia Nicholls

    On January 20, 2017 Ministers and other high-level officials from twenty-nine (29) World Trade Organisation (WTO) member countries held an informal gathering on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum’s 47th Annual Meeting which took place last week in the beautiful ski resort town of Davos, Switzerland.

    The attending ministers hailed from Asia, Africa, the US, European Union and Latin America, but none from the Caribbean. The meeting was chaired by Switzerland’s Federal Councillor, Johann Schneider-Ammann and involved discussion of the on-going negotiations before the WTO and the upcoming 11th WTO Ministerial which will take place this December in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

    According to notes taken by the Chair, Ministers stressed the key role of the rules-based multilateral trading system, the priority of working towards further integration into world trade of developing countries, the importance of trade as an engine for growth and development,inter alia. They also identified several issues for further work in the lead up to the Buenos Aires Ministerial, including domestic support in agriculture, fisheries subsidies, special and differential treatment and a permanent solution for public stockholding for food security issues. The Ministers also identified several “new” issues for discussion.

    Trade has been high on the political agenda due in the main to a growing popular backlash in western countries. As noted by Director-General Azevedo, some positive news is that the WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement will ever closer to coming into force, with only 3 more ratifications needed. Nigeria delivered its instrument of ratification during the Davos Meeting, while member state of the Caribbean Community, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, also recently ratified the Agreement.

    In attendance was also the WTO Director General, Roberto Azevedo whose remarks  after the ministerial gathering may be viewed here. The Director-General noted that there was need for better domestic policies to support persons who had lost their jobs but also reinforced that attacking trade was not the answer. In reference to the increasing speculation of a looming trade war between Trump’s US and China, Mr. Azevedo cautioned that trade wars and protectionism would destroy jobs and urged “everyone to show caution and leadership. We must avoid talking ourselves into a crisis.”

    Earlier this week, UK Prime Minister Mrs. Theresa May in her Davos Speech reiterated her desire for Britain to be a global leader in free trade and free markets.

    The Personal Concluding Remarks by the Chair, Federal Councillor Johann N. Schneider-Ammann, Switzerland can be found on the WTO’s website here.

    Alicia Nicholls, B.Sc., M.Sc., LL.B., is a trade and development consultant with a keen interest in sustainable development, international law and trade. You can also read more of her commentaries and follow her on Twitter @LicyLaw.

  • Caribbean Trade and Development Digest – January 15-21, 2017

    Caribbean Trade and Development Digest – January 15-21, 2017

    Source: Pixabay

    Welcome to the Caribbean Trade and Development Digest for the week of January 15-21, 2017 where we share some of the major trade and development headlines from across the Caribbean and the world.

    And what a week it was! UK Prime Minister May has finally announced her Brexit plan and the UK Supreme Court announced it will deliver its ruling in the Article 50 Brexit Appeal this coming Tuesday. Globalisation took centre-stage at the Annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, while  top of mind was the inauguration of US President Donald Trump who was sworn in as the US’ 45th president, and that’s just the tip of iceberg!

    Below we present the major headlines. For past issues of our weekly Caribbean Trade & Development Digest, please visit here.

    To receive these mailings directly to your inbox, please follow our blog.

    REGIONAL HEADLINES

    CARICOM optimistic of Trump’s vision

    Trinidad Guardian: Caribbean states are hoping America’s new Donald Trump administration – taking over from today – will continue trade and security arrangements as well as other structures which have traditionally been in force between Caricom and the US. Read more 

    Dominican Republic applies definite AD on Chinese rebar 

    Steel Orbis: Dominican Republic’s Commission for Trade Defense announced it has applied a definite anti-dumping ad valorem duty on Chinese rebar. Read more

    Commerce nominee Ross; No position on Cuban embargo

    Washington Examiner: Wilbur Ross, the banker-turned-investor and President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to head the Commerce Department, told a Senate hearing Wednesday that he has no position yet on handling trade with Cuba. Read more 

    Call for CARICOM agency to vet CIP applications

    Antigua Observer: The head of a well-known citizenship advisory firm is making a call for Caribbean Citizenship by Investment Programmes (CIPs) to vet applicants through Caricom’s Joint Regional Communications Centre (JRCC). Read more 

    Airbnb and Curacao sign tourism agreement

    Curacao chronicle: Today, Curaçao’s Minister of Economic Development, Eugene Rhuggenaath and the Minister of Finance, Kenneth Gijsbertha, on behalf of the government, signed an important agreement with Airbnb that will help to promote Curaçao as world-class tourist destination. Read more 

    UWI Lecturer calls for better CARICOM trade under Trump

    Trinidad Guardian: A UWI lecturer is calling on T&T and other Caricom member states to establish a united proposal to improve and further develop trade and other relations with the United States under US President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Friday. Read more

    Trade and investment agreement signed between Curacao and the Dominican Republic

    Caribbean news now: An agreement was signed last Tuesday in the office of the consul of the Dominican Republic in Curacao; between ADECK; the Association of Small and Medium size business in Curacao and the Dutch Chamber of Commerce in the Dominican Republic.Read more

    Full, frank discussion needed on CSME says Barbados PM Stuart 

    Caricom Today: Prime Minister Freundel Stuart believes the time has come to have “full and frank discussions” on the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). Read more 

    UN adviser for new consortium to bolster Haiti’s long term recovery 

    Caricom Today: A senior United Nations adviser has called for a new “consortium” of donors to bolster Haiti’s long-term recovery. Read more

    Jamaica confident about reviving pork exports to CARICOM 

    Jamaica Gleaner: Jamaica’s meat companies are weighing a resumption of pork exports to Caribbean neighbours, but say it all depends on the reception from government agencies throughout the region and the harmonisation of standards. Read more 

    INTERNATIONAL

    Fiji Signs newest version of the MSG Free Trade Agreement

    Fiji Sun: FIji Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama has signed the Melanesian Spearhead Group Free Trade Agreement. Read more 

    Donald Trump is sworn in as president

    New York Times: Donald John Trump was inaugurated as the 45th president of the United States on Friday, ushering in a new era that he vowed would shatter the established order and reverse a national decline that he called “this American carnage.” Read more

    Ross prefers inking bilateral trade agreements

    The Hill: Commerce Secretary-designate Wilbur Ross echoed Donald Trump’s call for bilateral trade deals instead of larger agreements where he says the United States tends to lose out. Read more 

    WTO chief Warns against stumbling into trade wars

    Irish Times: The world should be wary of stumbling into trade wars that would destroy jobs, World Trade Organisation director general Roberto Azevedo said on Friday. Read more

    Chinese President Xi Jinping: No one can win a trade war

    CNN Money: “Many of the problems troubling the world are not caused by economic globalization,” Xi said Tuesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos. “Whether you like it or not, the global economy is the big ocean you cannot escape from.” Read more

    New Zealand and Sri Lanka to consider Free Trade Agreement

    Reuters: New Zealand and Sri Lanka will open diplomatic posts in each other’s nations and are considering a free trade agreement, the Pacific country’s trade minister said on Friday. Read more 

    Indian Cabinet approves Trade Agreement negotiations with Peru

    Economic Times (India): The Indian Cabinet has approved holding negotiations for a trade agreement with Peru. Read more 

    EU and US publish TTIP state of play assessment

    EU: On 18 January Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom and United States Trade Representative Michael Froman published a joint assessment of the progress made in negotiations for a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) since negotiations started in July 2013. Read more 

    US Chamber of Commerce warns Trump on Trade

    CNBC: Washington needs to trade with foreign markets if it wants to boost domestic growth, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce warned on Monday. Read more 

    PM May Defines “Brexit means Brexit”

    FRANHENDY: Today, in an address which lasted just over forty minutes, former ‘Remainer’, Prime Minister Theresa May,added some content and context to her well-worn maxim: brexit means brexit. Read more 

    China’s Xi warns of Dangers of Trade War

    VOA: Chinese President Xi Jinping warned governments of the dangers of a trade war while speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Tuesday. Read more 

    Ottawa Weeks away from starting free-trade talks with China

    The Globe & Mail: The Trudeau government is weeks away from an inaugural round of talks on a free-trade agreement with China as it presses ahead a central objective in its plan to deepen ties with the world’s second-largest economy. Read more 

    Azevedo welcomes call in Davos for progress at the WTO; urges caution on protectionism

    WTO News: Attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo welcomed the strong desire shown by ministers and the private sector for new negotiated outcomes to be delivered at the WTO’s Ministerial Conference in Buenos Aires in December this year. Read more 

    Nigeria ratifies the Trade Facilitation Agreement 

    WTO News: Nigeria has ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), making it the 107th WTO member to do so. Only three more ratifications from members are needed to bring the TFA into force. Read more 

    United States files WTO complaint against Canada over measures affecting the sale of wine in stores 

    WTO News: On 18 January the United States notified the WTO Secretariat that it requested WTO dispute consultations with Canada regarding measures maintained by the Canadian province of British Columbia governing the sale of wine.Read more 

    Free trade talks already under way with range of non-EU countries 

    Sky News: Article 50 has yet to be signed but already Theresa May has laid out her negotiating lines and has said that informal talks are already taking place about Britain’s future trade relations with the rest of the world. Read more 

    France’s Hollande criticises protectionism as “worst response”

    Reuters: France’s President Francois Hollande on Saturday criticized protectionism and with his Chilean counterpart said that Europe would look to strengthen ties with Latin America, speaking a day after U.S. President Donald Trump took office. Read more

    RCEP more relevant now more than ever

    New Strait Times:When American President-elect Donald Trump called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement a “disaster” and vowed to pull out of it as soon as he took office, the international media almost instantaneously pronounced the TPP dead. Read more 

    Malaysia’s move if TPPA falls through

    The Star: Should the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agree­ment (TPPA) fall through, Malaysia may look into the possibility of pursuing bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) with TPP members, said International Trade and Indus­try Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed. Read more 

    Djibouti-Ethiopia railway carries hope for Pan-African trade

    Financial Times: Great article by FT discussing the prospects that the Djibouti Ethiopia railway will have for Pan-African trade. Read more 

    Britain must relax immigration rules for Australians if it wants a free trade deal, says High Commissioner to UK

    Independent: Australia will seek ‘greater access’ for its businesspeople before reaching a post-Brexit trade agreement with the UK, says Alexander Downer. Read more

    Free trade agreement with India a “high priority” for Canada

    The Star: Federal Liberal Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi, fresh off a trade promotion trip to India, says a free-trade agreement with India “is high priority for our government.” Read more 

    Wallonia parliament holds third hearing on EU-Vietnam free trade agreement

    Vietnam Net: The parliament of Belgium’s Wallonia region held the third hearing on the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) on January 19.  Read more 

     

     

    BONUS

    Time to solve intra-Africa trade challenges

    The New Times (Rwanda): In a CNBC televised debate in Davos, Switzerland, President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame has challenged African countries to solve intra-Africa trade challenges. Read the article here and WATCH VIDEO

    NEW ON CARIBBEAN TRADE LAW & DEVELOPMENT

    5 Main Points from PM May’s Davos Speech

    TTIP: Joint US-EU State of Play Report Published

    UK Supreme Court to deliver ruling in Article 50 Brexit Appeal next Tuesday

    Why PM May’s “Hard Brexit” Choice is no surprise

    President Obama Ends Three Special Parole Programs for Cuban Migrants

    Liked this issue? Read past issues of our weekly Caribbean Trade & Development Digest, please visit here.To receive these mailings directly to your inbox, please follow our blog.

  • 5 Main Points from PM May’s Davos Speech

    5 Main Points from PM May’s Davos Speech

    Photo source: Pixabay

    Alicia Nicholls

    At the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2017 currently underway in Davos, Switzerland this week, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May, presented what may be considered a follow-up to the major Brexit speech she had given in London earlier this week in which she had outlined her 12-point Brexit plan.

    It was the Prime Minister’s first appearance at Davos in her capacity as Prime Minister of the UK and she reiterated many of the main points she had made in her speech earlier this week, focusing most of her attention on Brexit and outlining her plans for building a “truly Global Britain”.

    Below are some of the main points from her Davos Speech:

    (1) Brexit is not a rejection of Europe

    Mrs. May reiterated that the Brexit vote was not a repudiation by Britain of the EU but “simply a vote to restore, as we see it, our parliamentary democracy and national self-determination”. She further explained Britain’s desire to pursue a “bold and ambitious Free Trade Agreement between the UK and the European Union” while also being free to negotiate new trade deals with both longstanding and new allies around the world.

    (2) UK to be leader of free markets and free trade

    To this extent, she expressed the intention for the UK to “step up to a new leadership role as the strongest and most forceful advocate for business, free markets and free trade anywhere in the world”. Mrs. May noted that discussions on future trade ties have already begun with a number of countries, while others have already signalled their interest.

    (3) She will build a “Global Britain”

    Aiming to dispel the notion that the UK was turning “inward”,  Mrs. May emphasised her desire to build a “Global Britain” which would be in control of its own destiny once again and would help to underpin and strengthen the multilateral rules-based system. She reiterated that she believes strongly in a rules based global order and that “we must continue to promote international cooperation wherever we can”.

    Although Mrs. May has  previously highlighted the need to take control of the UK’s immigration policy, she did mention in this speech that the UK derives “much of our strength from our diversity”, emphasing that “we are a multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy, and we’re proud of it”.

    It is here that her rhetorical tone is strikingly different from that of her counterpart across the pond, incoming US President Donald Trump who has not only expressed his disdain for both the United Nations but called the World Trade Organisation a disaster. Moreover, Mr. Trump has been consistently anti-immigrant, seeing immigration as a threat rather than a strength.

    (4) Britain has embarked on “an ambitious programme of economic and social reform”

    Mrs. May noted that the UK has embarked on what she termed “an ambitious programme of economic and social reform”. The issues of growing income equality and popular discontent with trade and globalisation have been a consistent theme in the Davos discussions, which is not surprising given the political ramifications which these issues have already delivered.

    In tackling these issues Mrs. May outlined what she believed should be the roles of both governments and businesses and that the status quo could not remain. She noted the need for leaders to work together to shape new policies and approaches in order to deliver for all people in their respective countries.

    Interestingly, she noted that the role of governments was not to just “get out of the way” as has been the mantra of neoliberal economic theory, but to “step up to a new, active role that backs businesses and ensures more people in all corners of the country share in the benefits of its success”. Turning to businesses, she noted that “it means doing even more to spread those benefits to more people”, including paying their far share of tax and recognising their obligations to their employees, inter alia.

    (5) Support for the Compact for Responsive and Responsible Leadership

    To this effect, she expressed her support for the World Economic Forum’s new “Compact for Responsive and Responsible Leadership” initiative proposed for signature to all participants of the Annual Meeting 2017. This initiative aims to “create a corporate governance framework with a focus on the long-term sustainability of corporations and the long-term goals of society”.

    The full text of her speech may be read here.

    Alicia Nicholls, B.Sc., M.Sc., LL.B., is a trade and development consultant with a keen interest in sustainable development, international law and trade. You can also read more of her commentaries and follow her on Twitter @LicyLaw.

     

  • TTIP: Joint US-EU State of Play Report Published

    TTIP: Joint US-EU State of Play Report Published

    Source: Pixabay

    Alicia Nicholls

    “The EU and the United States have made considerable progress in negotiating a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement since the negotiations were launched in July 2013”. This is the assessment according to a Joint Report released today January 17, 2016 by EU Trade Commissioner, Cecilia Malmström and outgoing United States Trade Representative (USTR), Michael Froman, which outlined the state of play of negotiations on the TTIP to date.

    In 2013 the US and EU set out to conclude an “ambitious, balanced, comprehensive, and high-standard agreement”. Since then fifteen negotiating rounds have been held between July 2013 and October 2016. The future of the TTIP is currently uncertain given incoming US President Donald Trump’s seeming aversion to mega free trade agreements which he argues could undermine American workers and manufacturing, and his stated preference for bilaterals. While he has railed against the concluded but not yet ratified 12-country Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), President-elect Trump has said comparatively little on TTIP and the agreement’s future appears uncertain. It is worth noting though that similar to TPP there has been a significant popular backlash against TTIP. Another spanner in the works is the impending exit of the UK from the EU. President-elect Trump has already indicated an interest in pursuing a US-UK free trade agreement post-Brexit.

    The Joint report reiterated the perceived expected benefits to accrue from TTIP, including increased trade and investment flows, promotion of higher standards in the global economy, and strengthen an already strong trans-Atlantic partnership.

    In explaining the current state of play, the Joint Report noted some of the things on which the EU and US have found common ground:

    • Exchanged offers to eliminate duties on 97% of tariff lines
    • Identified steps to reduce unnecessarily burdensome requirements and delays at borders
    • TTIP must include strong obligations to protect the environment and foundamental labour rights.
    • Negotiated a dedicated chapter focused on small medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)

    However, the report did note that there was still significant work to resolve differences in several important areas. A few of the several areas identified were:

    • how to treat the most sensitive tariff lines on both sides
    • how to expand and lock in market access in key services sectors
    • how to reconcile differences on sanitary and phytosanitary measures; how to encourage the recognition of qualifications to facilitate licensing of experienced professionals
    • how to improve access to each other’s government procurement markets
    • how best to achieve our shared objective of providing strong investor protection while preserving the right of governments to regulate

    In perhaps a last ditch to make the case for TTIP before the Trump administration assumes office on Friday, the report expressed the view that political will and continued engagement by both sides could lead to a successful outcome.

    To this effect, EU Commission’s press release quotes Commissioner Malmström as stating “We have made considerable, tangible progress, as this summary demonstrates. I look forward to engaging with the incoming US administration on the future of transatlantic trade relations.“

    The full report may be read here.

    Alicia Nicholls, B.Sc., M.Sc., LL.B., is a trade and development consultant with a keen interest in sustainable development, international law and trade. You can also read more of her commentaries and follow her on Twitter @LicyLaw.