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Added on the 22/11/2016 19:24:22 - Copyright : France 24 EN
United States President Barack Obama spoke about the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Vientiane on Wednesday. In his last trip to Asia as US President, Obama encouraged free trade agreements between nations. Both Democratic and Republican presidential nominees Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have voiced their opposition to the TTP agreement.
US President Donald Trump says he would consider extending the deadline for a trade deal with China beyond March 1. SOUNDBITE
Trade ministers from 12 countries announced the largest free trade deal in a generation on Monday in Atlanta. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal started with an agreement signed in 2006 between Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore.It then expanded to 12 countries, including the US and Japan, which have a population of about 800 million and are responsible for 40% of world trade, BBC reported. The agreement will impact a vast array of business sectors including agriculture, automotive, pharmaceuticals and environmental.According to the Guardian, besides eliminating or reducing over 98 percent of tariffs across a range of sectors, it will also allow foreign companies to sue governments if they feel their profits are affected.For instance, a tobacco company such as the Philips Morris would be able to sue a country for unappealing or image-damaging packaging.Critics of the trade deal say that negotiations have been dealt mostly in secret and that it gives corporations too much power.Agriculture also proved to be another sticking point with countries like New Zealand wanting more access to markets in Canada, Mexico, Japan and the United States.
Images outside Fiji's Grand Pacific Hotel where Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to hold talks with leaders and top officials from ten Pacific Island states on Monday, part of a regional diplomatic blitz that has stirred deep Western concern. IMAGES
Beijing/Shanghai, Jul 13 (EFE/EPA).- Trade between China and the rest of the world rose 27.1 percent in the first six months of 2021 to 18.07 trillion yuan ($2.79 trillion), the General Administration of Customs announced on Tuesday.China's exports denominated in yuan increased by 28.1 percent in the first half to 9.85 trillion yuan while imports expanded by 25.9 percent to 8.22 trillion yuan, according to the customs agency.Between January and June, China's trade surplus stood at about 1.63 trillion yuan, 37.4 percent higher than the figure for the first half of last year. (Camera: ARCHIVE).ARCHIVE FOOTAGE SHOWS THE CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT (CBD) OF BEIJING, AND CARGO CONTAINERS BEING LOADED TO THE CARGO SHIP IN YANGSHAN PHASE IV AUTOMATED TERMINAL, IN YANGSHAN, SHANGHAI, CHINA.
Hong Kong (CNN) As United States President-elect Joe Biden faces an ugly, potentially contested transition, foreign policy may be the last thing on his mind. But in capitals around the world, foreign leaders are already clamoring for his attention, hoping to reset relationships and restore norms that shifted under President Donald Trump. Nowhere will there be greater opportunity for a shift than in the US-China relationship, which has deteriorated to historic lows during Trump's term in office. Over the past four years, both sides have slapped the other with trade tariffs, restricted access for tech companies, journalists and diplomats, shuttered consulates, and squared off militarily in the South China Sea.