:: Across the board ::

This section contains news and analysis of sweeping developments that affect the overall push and pull towards FTAs and bilateral investment treaties. This means major trends relating to bilateralism, often with global consequences, and other cross-cutting issues. New developments arising from US politics, the WTO or South-South alliance-building, for instance, are often reported here as they tend to have systemic impacts.

last update: May 2012

Republicans prod Pelosi for action on trade deals

11-Sep-2008 Reuters

The Bush administration, Republican lawmakers and business groups pressed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday to allow votes on free trade pacts with Colombia, Panama and South Korea by the end of the year.

Trade battler tries to avoid a big crash

9-Sep-2008 IHT

Peter Mandelson once said he would be the last man standing in the marathon push for a global trade deal, but as his time as Europe's trade chief ticks away, he may have to settle for smaller prizes.

The Doha deal breaker

5-Sep-2008 Gulf Times

In our free trade gone-wild world, property rights are being applied in areas where they have never before existed and may not pertain (such as intellectual products, services, biodiversity, genetics), and governments have not learned to use their sovereignty to advance multilateralism for both their individual interests and the global common good. There must be a new starting point, based on the recognition of an added dimension in world trade -- the realisation that some goods are private (commercial), some are public (governmental), and others are common (for the benefit of people everywhere).

Bilateral trade-off

5-Sep-2008 WSJ

The latest sign that the postwar era of "multilateral" trade liberalization has ended came last week in Singapore.

CKUT - Off the hour - collapse of WTO talks

6-Aug-2008

Interview with Aziz Choudry on the collapse of WTO talks in Geneva, and what's happening with FTAs, aired on CKUT Radio's Off the Hour, Tuesday edition, 5 August 2008.

Former USTRs talk trade

5-Aug-2008 WWD

Four former architects of US trade policy, sharing nearly 20 years of negotiating experience between them and spanning three administrations, laid out to Congress last week their blueprints for a future agenda.

'Doha Round talks undermining regional integration'

29-Jul-2008 Swazi Observer

The ongoing Doha round of World Trade Organisation talks is seen to be undermining regional integration and economic development efforts by African countries, analysts have noted.

WTO decision in next 3 days may worsen FTAs' effects on developing country farmers

28-Jul-2008 TWN

The special safeguard mechanism currently being proposed for agriculture at the WTO mini-ministerial requires large increases in imports before it can be used, does not allow tariffs to be raised sufficiently and cannot be used to protect developing country farmers from import surges due to free trade agreements.

African, Latin American ministers discuss South-South trade

25-Jun-2008 Maghrebia

Trade ministers from Africa and Latin America met last week in Marrakesh to discuss the state of South-South trade. Despite recent advancements, trade between developing countries remains low.

Hard bargains: Bilateral trade pacts draw domestic objections

17-Jun-2008 FT

The fear of having other countries steal a march on Washington by signing their own deals may bring Congress back to the bilateral trade negotiating table.

:: Across the board ::

Referenced sites

21st Century Trade Agreements: Implications for Long-Run Development Policy

#A18DoA - Global day of action to defeat free trade and investment treaties

Alianza Social Continental

ICC

Movimientos.org

Pambazuka

People over profit

Peoples Global Action

Regional/Multilateral Integration Agreements

SOMO

South Centre

Stop fast track!

ISDS Case Map