Caribbean Trade Law and Development

Author: caribbeantradelaw

  • Caribbean Trade & Development Digest – September 15-October 5, 2019

    Caribbean Trade & Development Digest – September 15-October 5, 2019

    Welcome to the Caribbean Trade & Development News Digest for the weeks of September 15-October 5, 2019! We are happy to bring you the major trade and development headlines and analysis from across the Caribbean Region and the world from the past weeks.

    HIGHLIGHTS

    The India-CARICOM Leaders’ Summit was held on the sidelines of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly. Read more about the meeting here.

    The WTO has cut its global trade growth forecast again. World merchandise trade volumes are now expected to rise by only 1.2% in 2019, substantially slower than the 2.6% growth forecast in April. Read the full outlook here.

    In the latest installment of the 15 year Boeing-Airbus saga between the US and the EU, a WTO arbitrator on October 2 authorised the US to impose tariffs up to $7.5 billion worth of European exports annually in retaliation for illegal government aid to Airbus. Read the full ruling here.

    With just three weeks to go before the UK is officially due to leave the EU, the UK PM Boris Johnson has made a new Brexit proposal regarding the Ireland-Northern Ireland border issue. Read the proposal here.

    REGIONAL NEWS

    India, CARICOM agree to create task force for trade, diversification

    LoopTT: The meeting concluded with a decision to create a joint India/CARICOM task force which will develop and implement concrete plans to further advance trade and facilitate diversification in the region. Read more

    No change

    Barbados Today: The UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT) in Bridgetown Barbados hosted a trade and investment reception to stimulate increased business opportunities between the UK and Caribbean markets. Read more

    Antigua and Barbados to continue talks over sale of LIAT’s shares

    Barbados Today: The Government of Antigua and Barbuda said that it intends to keep discussions going with Barbados with a view over the sale of the latter’s shares in the regional airline, LIAT, despite reports from other regional media houses that negotiations between both countries has fallen through. Read more

    Caribbean governments urged to take a collective approach to marijuana

    LoopSLU: St Vincent and the Grenadines Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar is calling for Caricom and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) to take a collective approach to the development of standards governing the negotiation of cannabis trade agreements for their member states. Read more

    CARICOM Sugar stakeholder engagement meeting held in Belize

    Breaking Belize News: Minister of Investment, Trade and Commerce, Tracy Panton, Minister of Agriculture, Godwin Hulse and the CARICOM Secretariat hosted sugar stakeholders from across the Caribbean Community at the Best Western Plus Biltmore Plaza in Belize City on October 2nd, 2019. Read more

    CARICOM and Central America make common cause on fish

    Breaking Belize News: The fishing communities of the Caribbean and Central America are meeting this week in Belize City to seek joint action on facing the problems affecting both. Read more

    Holness Reiterates Call For Concessionary Financing For CARICOM

    The Gleaner: Jamaica yesterday reiterated a call for concessionary financing for Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries, saying that the present policy was severely hampering the socio-economic growth of the 15-member regional grouping. Read more

    Local Chamber of Commerce members meet with Indian High Commissioner

    Antigua Observer: On Monday 16th September 2019, a delegation of the local Chamber of Commerce held high-level discussions with the newly-appointed Indian High Commissioner to CARICOM, Dr. K.J. Srinivasa and his second in command, Mr. R.K. Perindia, on their first official visit since the High Commissioner’s recent posting. Read more

    INTERNATIONAL NEWS

    UK response to WTO ruling on Airbus

    UK.gov: The UK is confident that it has fully complied with WTO rulings in the Airbus dispute. Read more

    WTO members engage in exploratory talks on market access for environmental services

    WTO: WTO services negotiators debated market access issues relating to environmental services based on a new communication tabled by Australia, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and Switzerland at an informal meeting of the Council for Trade in Services in Special Session held on 30 September 2019. Read more

    Brexit: We can do a deal if EU is willing – Johnson

    BBC: Boris Johnson has claimed his Brexit proposals have picked up support in Parliament as he urged the European Union to compromise. Read more

    EAEU signs free trade agreement with Singapore under Armenian chairmanship

    Emerging Europe: The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), the Russian-led economic alliance of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, has signed a free trade agreement with Singapore during the annual summit of the Supreme Eurasian Council, the organisation’s executive body in Yerevan, the Armenian press has reported. Read more

    High-level meeting in Peru takes aim at illegal wildlife trade

    CGTN: The jaguar, the largest cat in the Americas, is the emblem of a new initiative to combat the illegal trade in the continent’s wild animals. The iconic but threatened predator has a key role in the ecosystem but also tremendous cultural significance for the peoples of the Americas. Read more

    Nigeria, South Africa Seal 32 Trade Pacts

    AllAfrica: Nigeria and South Africa, yesterday, signed 32 bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding covering trade and industry, science and technology, defence, agriculture and energy, thus expanding Africa’s deepest trade relationship. Read more

    WTO in ‘critical situation’, EU warns

    Euractiv: EU member states discussed on Tuesday (1 October) how to address the “critical situation” of the World Trade Organisation, as the US continues to block the renovation of its appellate body, key for the functioning of the institution. Read more

    STRAIGHT FROM THE WTO

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  • Climate refugees: A new reality for Caribbean Small States?

    Climate refugees: A new reality for Caribbean Small States?

    Alicia Nicholls

    For many people, the decision to leave one’s place of birth, family, friends and possessions for lands unknown is not one that is lightly taken. But this is a decision an increasing number of people will be forced to make. In 2018, a groundbreaking World Bank report entitled ‘Groundswell: Preparing for Internal Climate Migration’ estimated that in three regions of the world (Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and Latin America), just over 143 million people – or 2.8 percent of these regions’ population – could be internally displaced due to the effects of climate change by 2050. The year 2050 may seem like a long time away, but already in the Caribbean, we bear witness to the impact of displacement due to climate change.

    How climate change causes displacement

    Climate change is, without doubt, one of the biggest threats facing the planet and mankind. The Geneva-based Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) estimates that over the period 2008-2018, approximately 265.3 million people worldwide were internally displaced due to disasters. The IMDC further noted that Small Island Developing States (SIDS) were disproportionately affected by natural hazards. As climate change worsens, this number is increasing.

    Climate change causes displacement in several ways. Firstly, rising sea levels cause coastal erosion. Kiribati, an archipelagic nation in the Pacific comprising some thirty low-lying atolls, is on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Rising sea levels have already claimed some of its land area and it is estimated that the island nation will be uninhabitable within decades as whole islands could disappear.

    Secondly, hurricane damage can displace entire populations. The whole island of Barbuda (part of the island nation of Antigua & Barbuda) had to be temporarily evacuated following Hurricane Irma in 2017. A reported 130,000 Puerto Ricans (4% of the population) have left that US island territory in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, according to the US Census Bureau.

    In September this year, the island of Abaco in the Bahamas was rendered virtually ‘uninhabitable’ due to category-five Hurricane Dorian which lingered above the island for hours unleashing torrential rain and storm surges. Thousands of Abaco residents had to be evacuated to Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas.

    Thirdly, changes in weather patterns can make some places uninhabitable due to drought, declining water supply and falling crop yields which force residents to move to more inhabitable and productive places. Sea level rise can also lead to saltwater infusion into natural aquifers, rendering the water undrinkable.

    Displacement due to climate change can affect any country. But the problem is exacerbated in SIDS like those in the Caribbean, the Asia-Pacific and the Indian Ocean, some of which are either low-lying and/or have small land areas. Even in some SIDS with larger land areas and/or more mountainous land topographies, the population and major infrastructure tend to be concentrated primarily along coastal areas putting them at risk to storm surges during storms and sea level rise.

    Whereas in a larger country like the US, for example, displaced populations can move to another State, inhabitants of small islands have no such luxury. For many SIDS, the threat of their homeland being rendered uninhabitable and eventually disappearing is a real one.

    What can be done?

    Firstly, it is important to tackle the root cause of climate-caused displacement – climate change. From individuals, to households, to businesses, to municipalities, to countries, we all have to make cutting our emissions and adopting environmentally friendly habits our imperative.

    We must pressure our leaders to honour the commitments they made upon signing the historic Paris Agreement in 2015. It is incumbent on SIDS to hold the international community to account, to not just aim for limiting global average temperature increases to no greater than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, but the more ambitious goal of 1.5 degrees. The previously mentioned World Bank Report noted that global action now could reduce the number of people forced to move due to climate change by as much as 80 percent.

    Secondly, while the term ‘climate refugee’ is used to describe natural persons who are displaced from their homelands by the adverse impacts of climate change, it is not a recognized term in international law. It also should be noted that while used interchangeably, ‘migrant’ and ‘refugee’ are two different concepts.

    The Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees of 1951 (Geneva Convention on Refugees), ratified by over 140 countries worldwide, only recognizes as a ‘refugee’ a person who is outside his or her country of nationality or habitual residence and who is unable or unwilling to return because of a “wellfounded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion”. Therefore, only persons falling under this definition are regarded under international law as ‘refugees’ and are entitled to the rights and protections under the Convention.

    Refugees have several rights and protections under the Geneva Convention on Refugees and other international conventions. These include the right of non-refoulement (not to be returned to the place where his/her life or freedom would be threatened due to any of the reasons listed in the Convention), right to education, employment, housing, freedom of movement, freedom of religion, inter alia.

    The UN Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, signed by over 160 countries in 2018, was the international community’s first step towards recognising the concept of climate migrants for the first time. In light of growing numbers of displaced persons due to armed conflicts, political crises and natural disasters, this international agreement sought to create a global response for better managing migration. However, not only is the agreement non-binding, but several major countries have opted not to ratify it due to immigration concerns. The agreement is also limited to migrants, and does not explicitly recognise ‘climate refugees’.

    Countries’ asylum laws also do not currently recognize or protect ‘climate refugees’. It is, therefore, of interest to see one Democratic candidate, Julian Castro, in the current US Presidential election in 2020 commit to expanding US immigration law to provide recognition and protection for ‘climate refugees’.  In a report it was noted that “while the EU has so far not recognised climate refugees formally, it has expressed growing concern and has taken action to support and develop resilience in the countries potentially affected by climate-related stress”.

    The battle will not be easy. Climate-caused displacement is coinciding with a global migration crisis and a groundswell of nationalism, xenophobic sentiment and closing borders across the world, particularly in the US and western Europe. Just this week, in a sad but unsurprising move, the Trump Administration refused to grant temporary protection to Bahamians fleeing the post- Hurricane Dorian devastation in their homeland. However, as the countries most responsible for anthropogenic (manmade) climate change, the ‘Global North’ has a moral obligation to assist those poorer countries which are the most affected and least culpable for climate change, not only in terms of facilitating our mitigation and adaptation, but assisting our displaced people.

    The reality is that unless urgent action is taken to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions to limit climate change, we all may become climate refugees one day. Caribbean countries should join with other sympathetic nations to lobby for increased global action and lasting solutions to climate change, and the climate migration crisis. This includes calling for the explicit recognition of, and protections for, climate-displaced persons both in international law and the domestic law of countries.

    Alicia Nicholls, B.Sc., M.Sc., LL.B., is an international 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.

    DISCLAIMER: All views expressed herein are her personal views and do not necessarily reflect the views of any institution or entity with which she may be affiliated from time to time.

  • Caribbean Trade & Development Digest – September 8-14, 2019

    Caribbean Trade & Development Digest – September 8-14, 2019

    Welcome to the Caribbean Trade & Development News Digest for the weeks of September 8-14, 2019! We are happy to bring you the major trade and development headlines and analysis from across the Caribbean Region and the world from the past week.

    HIGHLIGHTS

    Prime Minister of Barbados, the Hon. Mia Amor Mottley, delivered the prestigious 16th Raul Prebisch Lecture. Prime Minister Mottley’s theme was ‘Invisible yet Indispensable’. The full lecture may be watched here.

    UNCTAD held its first UN Trade Forum, with climate change as the major focal point. This week also marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the conclusion of the Uruguay Round which culminated in the formation of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

    On a personal note, I had the pleasure and honour of being a panelist at the 3rd annual BITT Conference ‘Central Bank meets Blockchain‘. I spoke on the potential benefits of BITT’s proposed blockchain-enabled Caribbean Settlement Network (CSN) for facilitating intra-regional payments and trade, regional integration and development. Kudos to my fellow panelists, to the moderator and to the BITT team on an informative and well-executed conference!

    L-R – John Williams (CEO, Cave Shepherd Group of Companies), Racquel Moses (CEO, Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator), Marla Dukharan (Chief Economist of BITT and moderator of the panel), Alicia Nicholls (Trade Specialist, UWI) and Geoffrey Scott (Executive Director, ICBL).

    REGIONAL NEWS

    Barbados leader urges moral leadership to tackle climate crisis

    UNCTAD: Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Amor Mottley, challenged the world to reinvent the international order and do better by small island states that are on the frontlines of the climate crisis, fighting for their survival in a war they did not start. Read more

    Hefty bill for pork imports

    Barbados Advocate: A Government official is gravely concerned with the fact that millions of dollars are being spent on importing pork into Barbados. Read more

    JAMPRO targeting Latin America for Jamaican exporters

    Loop Jamaica: To increase Jamaican exporters’ access to Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) markets, Jamaica’s trade and investment promotions agency, JAMPRO, will be leading a delegation of 6 companies to the LAC Flavors trade exhibition in Cali, Colombia. Read more

    Digitally transforming the Eastern Caribbean

    World Bank: The Caribbean has been at the forefront of the resilience-building agenda. For countries in the region, most of them Small Island States located in the path of strong and recurrent hurricanes, climate change adaptation is a matter of survival. The passage of Hurricane Dorian in 2019 is a stark reminder of this vulnerability. Read more

    Region good for trade

    Newsday: Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon believes the region has evolved to transform its economies to some extent away from traditional sectors into the production of high value-added goods. Read more

    Bahamas suspends immigration crackdown

    Jamaica Observer: The Bahamas Government says it has suspended the crackdown on illegal migrants in the Abacos and Grand Bahama, as the death toll from the passage of Hurricane Dorian a week ago climbed to 45. Read more

    Dr. Rowley goes to Washington

    Trinidad Express: Within 24 hours of his arriving in Washington DC, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley met with a number of high-ranking members of the United States Congress on Thursday. Read more

    Caricom Silent While Refined Sugar Quarrel Rages

    Jamaica Gleaner: It might be working feverishly behind the scenes to cool tempers and iron out differences as it normally does in these matters, but the secretariat for regional trade bloc Caricom is not saying anything publicly about the running battle between regional sugar producers on the one hand, and manufacturers and national governments. Read more

    Greater ties with CARICOM-Africa Trading Partners

    Barbados Advocate: The changing nature of the world economy is demanding that there be greater co-operation between Barbados and its Caribbean Community trading partners as well as with African countries. Read more

    Trump admin won’t give temporary protected status to Bahamian victims of Hurricane Dorian

    CNBC: The status would have let Bahamians work and live in the U.S. until it is deemed safe to return home. Read more

    Trade issues too distant from climate issues, says Vaz

    Jamaica Observer: Jamaica has called on member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to include the cost associated with climate change in any discussion on international trade. Read more

    The Rum Market In The UK Could Grow By 8.8% In Coming Years

    The Voice: Caribbean Rum is one of the preferred drinks of the British, a fact reflected in the market, which is expected to grow in the UK by 8.8% in coming years. Revenue in the rum segment for 2019 amounts to nearly £1 million. Read more

    INTERNATIONAL NEWS

    All 16 nations set for final RCEP deal: Australian negotiator

    The Hindu: Amidst conflicting signals from the government over whether India will join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) this year, Australia’s lead negotiator for the 16-nation free trade agreement (FTA) says all countries have “committed” to completing talks in time for the RCEP summit on November 1. Read more

    Mexico may be an unexpected winner of the US-China trade war

    CNBC: China and the United States are disrupting trade in much of the world with their trade war — but Mexico may be a winner. Read more

    Wary of China in RCEP, India looks for bilateral deals amid mounting trade deficit

    Business Today: In 2018-19, India had trade deficit with 11 out of 20 RCEP countries. In 2017-18, it had a trade deficit of $104 billion with all RCEP countries; more than half of this ($57.86 trillion) was with China. Read more

    A Latin American Brexit? Analysing Brazil’s threat on Mercosur

    Buenos Aires Times: Jair Bolsonaro has said Brazil could leave Mercosur if Argentina, the second-largest economy in the customs union, pivots to the left after presidential elections in October. But how feasible is such a break? Read more

    South Korean Duties on Japanese Valves Violate Rules, WTO Finds

    Bloomberg: The World Trade Organization on Tuesday ruled for a second time that South Korea’s anti-dumping duties on Japanese valves violate international trade rules, according to a decision published on the WTO website. Read more

    Trump Advisers Consider Interim China Deal to Delay Tariffs

    Bloomberg: Trump administration officials have discussed offering a limited trade agreement to China that would delay and even roll back some U.S. tariffs for the first time in exchange for Chinese commitments on intellectual property and agricultural purchases, according to five people familiar with the matter. Read more

    WTO on brink of crisis due to inaction over dispute-settlement reforms, Birmingham warns

    Sydney Morning Herald: Trade Minister Simon Birmingham has warned inaction over reform of the World Trade Organisation’s dispute-settlement system has taken the body to the brink of crisis. Read more

    A New Phase in Japanese-South Korean Relations as Trade Becomes Weapon in Political Row

    Nippon: Japanese and South Korean relations entered a new phase when the Japanese government announced on July 1 that it was going to “normalize” its export control measures, in effect curbing its trade with South Korea. The move linked a political conflict between the two countries with the economy in a way that has not been seen before. Read more

    Trade rep sends responses on revised NAFTA deal to Democrats

    Politico: U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on Wednesday formally responded to House Democrats’ concerns about the new North American trade agreement, marking a step forward in negotiations between the Trump administration and Capitol Hill. Read more

    Britain agrees post-Brexit trade deal with southern Africa

    Reuters: Britain has agreed a deal with six southern African countries including South Africa, the continent’s most developed economy, that will ensure continuity of trade conditions after Brexit, the British High Commission in South Africa said on Wednesday. Read more

    New EU trade commissioner is Phil Hogan

    BBC: Irishman Phil Hogan has been named as the EU’s new trade commissioner. His appointment was announced at a press conference by the incoming head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. Read more

    Trump poised to hit EU with billions in tariffs after victory in Airbus case

    Politico: The United States has gotten the green light to impose billions of euros in punitive tariffs on EU products in retaliation for illegal subsidies granted to European aerospace giant Airbus. Read more

    Countries dependent on commodities should diversify economies to survive climate crisis, says UN report

    UNCTAD: Economic and export diversification is the best response to the challenges posed by climate change in developing countries that depend on commodities, according to UNCTAD’s Commodities and Development Report 2019. Read more

    WTO NEWS

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  • Caribbean Trade & Development Digest – September 1-7, 2019

    Caribbean Trade & Development Digest – September 1-7, 2019

    Welcome to the Caribbean Trade & Development News Digest for the weeks of September 1-7, 2019! We do apologise again for the delay in last week’s digest and are happy to bring you the major trade and development headlines and analysis from across the Caribbean Region and the world from the past two weeks.

    I will be a panelist at the upcoming 3rd annual BITT “Central Bank meets Blockchain” Conference. Learn more here!

    Statement on Hurricane Dorian

    To our readers in The Bahamas, the CTLD Blog would like to extend our extreme sadness about suffering and devastration wrought by Hurricane Dorian on the northern Bahamas, particularly the Abaco Islands and the island of Grand Bahama.

    We stand in support of our Bahamian brothers and sisters, and urge our readers to please support a reputable charity of your choice currently providing relief supplies and/or monetary donation to assist the many persons who are displaced, and to aid in the massive rebuilding effort ahead.

    We have every confidence that like the mystical phoenix, The Bahamas will rise again.

    HIGHLIGHTS

    China has requested WTO dispute consultations with the United States concerning additional duties imposed by the United States on imports of Chinese goods that took effect on 1 September.

    The Brexit chaos continues. The UK parliament has passed a bill seeking to prevent the UK Government from leaving the EU on October 31, 2019 without a deal. However, Prime Minister Johnson has indicated his intention to still seek a suspension of Parliament for 5 weeks. There is also speculation that he intends to ignore the No deal bill.

    The Caribbean has rallied around The Bahamas. A CARICOM delegation has gone to The Bahamas, please see here. Cuba has also sent doctors and teachers to The Bahamas in the aftermath.

    REGIONAL NEWS

    T&T Braces for Brexit

    Jamaica Observer: Trade Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon says the Dr Keith Rowley-led Administration is looking at bringing legislation to Parliament to enact a treaty signed between Cariforum and the United Kingdom to prevent any sudden imposition of tariffs if the UK leaves the European Union (EU). Read more

    Caribbean countries ramp up oil production

    Amsterdam News: Some Caribbean Community countries are rushing to ramp up oil and gas exploration, motivated by the runaway success Guyana has had since first discovering commercial quantities back in mid 2015. Read more

    IMF says Barbados making good progress on economic reform programme

    Barbados Today: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Barbados continues to make good progress in implementing its ambitious and comprehensive economic reform programme. Read more

    ‘Horror stories’ of migrant workers

    Royal Gazette: Migrant workers have shared “horror stories” claiming abuse, xenophobia, unfair discrepancies in working contracts and having their travel documents seized, according to a union leader. Read more

    Minister signs World Intellectual Property Organisation instruments

    LoopTT: Foreign and CARICOM Affairs Minister Dennis Moses signed Instruments of Accession to a Convention and three Treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization on behalf of the country. Read more

    Cuba and South Africa strengthen bilateral relations

    Radio Havana: The 15th meeting of the Joint Consultative Mechanism South Africa-Cuba met Thursday with delegations led by Vice Ministers Alvin Botes and Marcelino Medina, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Read more

    Deputy PM Outlines Impact Events Like CARIFESTA Have on Federation’s Artists

    St Kitts & Nevis Observer: Deputy Prime Minister and Federal Minister of Culture, the Honourable Shawn Richards, said while appearing on the “Working for You” programme Wednesday, events such as the Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) have a great impact on the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis’ artists. Read more

    INTERNATIONAL NEWS

    Brexit: MPs willing to go to court to enforce delay

    BBC: MPs, including Tories expelled from the party, are preparing legal action in case the PM refuses to seek a delay to Brexit. Read more

    RCEP Ministerial: Trade experts, economists warn that pact would hit vulnerable sectors

    Hindu Business Line: As Trade Ministers from sixteen member countries of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) prepare to meet in Bangkok on Sunday to give a final shape to the ambitious trade and investment pact, a number of economists, trade experts and industry and farm bodies have underlined the need for India to opt out as they fear that it would hit sensitive industrial and farm sectors. Read more

    Prayut urges Asean to back micro-sized businesses

    Bangkok Post: Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has urged Asean countries to support “micro-SMEs” by keeping their owners abreast of digital technological know-how and to ensure they have access to financial resources. Read more

    U.S. Democrats concerned about enforcement of new NAFTA, Pelosi tells Trudeau

    Financial Post: U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi told Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday that Democrats are especially concerned about enforcement of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) free trade agreement and Mexico’s implementation of labour standards, a spokesman for Pelosi said. Read more

    US-China trade war: Supply chains affected in Thailand

    Al jazeera: For countries like Thailand, its largest export market is China. The economy here relies heavily on its big neighbour to the north. So businesses could be forced to recalibrate their supply chains. Read more

    The US-China trade war is helping drive the massive fires burning the Amazon rainforest

    Business Insider: The Amazon rainforest is burning, and it’s sparking outrage around the world. One reason for this growing ecological tragedy may be the escalating US-China trade war. Read more

    Exclusive: New Study Says U.S. Can’t Win the Trade War and Neither Can China

    TIME: The escalating U.S.-China trade war is unwinnable by either side, according to new research shown exclusively to TIME. Read more

    WTO NEWS

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