The U.S. Chamber of Commerce praised the beginning of U.S.-Kenya trade talks July 7 in Nairobi. Scott Eisner, president of the U.S.-Africa Business Center at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, issued a statement that said: “A deepening U.S.-Kenya commercial relationship will benefit the U.S., Kenya, and the entire African continent. It is our hope that when complete, the agreement will not only be the first of its kind between the U.S. and a sub-Saharan African country, but also lay the groundwork to strengthen and deepen our relationships with economies across the continent by providing the necessary legal protections and enduring, reciprocal trade. With the African Growth and Opportunity Act set to expire in 2025, a Kenya free trade agreement will provide American businesses the certainty they need to continue investing in this growing market.”
A letter from 41 trade groups -- including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the U.S.-China Business Council, and others in information technology, apparel, agriculture and pharmaceuticals -- asks both Chinese and American lead negotiators to “redouble efforts to implement all aspects of the Agreement, including purchases of U.S. manufactured goods, energy products, services, and agricultural goods, where implementation seems to be lagging.”
The Australia-Indonesia trade agreement took July 5, eliminating or reducing tariffs on 99% of Australian exports, Australia's trade ministry said that day. The deal is expected to provide a range of new export opportunities for Australian farmers and companies, especially in the agriculture, education, tourism, energy and mining sectors, the ministry said. Exports of meat, dairy and horticulture will specifically benefit, and grain exporters will be able to ship 500,000 tons of wheat and barley to Indonesia tariff-free, it said. “This is the most comprehensive bilateral trade agreement Indonesia has ever signed, and will give our exporters a competitive edge in what is one of the fastest growing economies in the world,” Australia's Federal Trade Minister Simon Birmingham said in a statement.
Testimony by Liz Truss, the United Kingdom's international trade secretary, revealed that no chapters have been closed yet in negotiations with the U.S., and suggests that barriers to U.S. exports of poultry and beef and price controls on pharmaceutical drugs continue to be sensitive areas for the British. Truss was updating Parliament about the second round of negotiations on a free trade agreement with the U.S.
Twelve countries, including China, vowed to continue refraining from imposing export controls and other trade restrictions that would damage global supply chains during the COVID-19 pandemic. The July 2 joint statement, issued by China’s Commerce Ministry and signed by Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Chile, Uruguay and others, said, “it is in our mutual interest to ensure that trade lines remain open, including via air and sea freight, to facilitate the flow of goods.” The countries said they recognize “the importance of refraining from the imposition of export controls or tariffs and non-tariff barriers,” and that existing restrictions on medical supplies should be removed.
The free trade deal between the European Union and Vietnam will take effect Aug. 1, the EU said June 30. The deal is expected to eliminate almost all tariffs on goods imposed by the two countries (see 2002120029) and remove non-tariff barriers to allow Vietnamese companies to more easily export to the EU (see 2001020014).
European Union Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan said although it's not easy managing the trade relationship with the U.S., the EU and U.S. are still talking. “We’ve resumed conversations with the U.S. some weeks ago,” he said. “We’re up for a small confidence-building deal with the United States -- we have a lot of things we agree on. We’re waiting for the timing when President [Donald] Trump has made up his mind whether he wants to have a deal or not. If he does, we’re ready.”
Cambodia and South Korea plan to begin negotiating a free trade deal next month, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council said June 23. South Korea is hoping to diversify its export destinations away from its two largest export markets: China and the U.S., which are embroiled in a trade war, the report said, adding that the novel coronavirus outbreak has been an added incentive to go outside its usual supply chains. Cambodia is hoping to expand on its trade with South Korea, which included exports of nearly $335 million in 2019. The two sides agreed to begin negotiations after concluding a trade feasibility study started last year (see 1912120018).
The Distilled Spirits Council, on the two-year anniversary of retaliatory tariffs on American whiskey on June 22, said that the drop in exports to the European Union of $256 million isn't the full measure of the damage done to their business sector. The EU put 25% tariffs on whiskey and bourbon in response to the national security tariffs on European steel and aluminum. The EU has said it will increase the tax on American whiskey to 50% next June.
The European Commission and Japan signed an agreement to help boost aviation trade, the EC said June 22. The EC said the deal will expand market access for exports of EU aeronautical products to Japan and “significantly reduce” the time it takes for exporters to receive approval for those exports. It will also remove “unnecessary duplications of evaluation and testing activities” for aircraft products, it said.