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Free Trade a Hot Topic in US Election Season
Candidates for the US Congress in 2008 campaigned on trade more than they ever have in the past, a new study suggests, drawing on growing sentiment within the US electorate that lowering barriers to cross-border commerce is bad for the American economy. But the extent to which campaign messaging translates into policy changes remains to be…
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WIPO Copyright Discussions Focus on Exceptions and Limitations
Exceptions and limitations to copyright protection took a central place in the deliberations of WIPO’s Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR), which met last week. Under the chairmanship of Jukka Liedes of Finland, the committee spent a substantial part of its meeting examining exceptions and limitations for educational activities, libraries and the visually impaired.…
- In Brief
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G20 Urges Bigger Role for Emerging Economies in Crisis Response
Poor countries are most vulnerable to the effects of a financial crisis largely not of their making, the Group of 20 industrialised and emerging economies recognised last week. Meeting in Sao Paulo to discuss the financial crisis and diminished global growth prospects ahead of the group’s first-ever leaders’ summit in Washington on 15 November, the finance…
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EU Outlines Strategy on Raw Materials
The European Commission has announced a wide-ranging plan aimed at improving and securing access to raw materials, amidst growing fears that the financial crisis could prompt a surge of protectionist policies around the globe. “We must act, to ensure that access to raw materials for enterprises will not be hampered. We need fair play on external…
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White House Denies Linkage of Colombia FTA to Stimulus Package
President Bush did not suggest a political quid pro quo on a free trade deal with Colombia, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino insisted on Tuesday. The New York Times and The Washington Post reported on Monday that President Bush had said in a private meeting with President-elect Barack Obama that he might support an economic…
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India, South Korea Strike Free Trade Deal
India and South Korea have concluded a comprehensive free trade agreement that is forecast to come into effect next year, an Indian official said on Tuesday. “The India-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) will be finalised on 18 November after which it will be taken up by the cabinet,” Dinesh Sharma, joint secretary of the ministry…
- WTO in Brief
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World Trade Growth Drops to 6 Percent, WTO Reports
World trade dropped to 6 percent growth in 2007 according to a WTO report released last week, down from 8.5 percent the previous year. The slow-down was caused in large part by weakened import demand from developed countries, but is still better than the expected 5.5 percent growth predicted by the preliminary assessment last April. Exchange…
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Jordan TPR: Already Strong Performance Could be Bolstered by Further Reforms
Economic reforms in Jordan have helped the country boost its GDP, dampen inflation and cut its public debt, a WTO review of the country’s trade policies concluded this week. Jordan’s GDP has grown by an average of 5.9 percent per year since 2000, the year that the Middle Eastern country joined the WTO, the Trade Policy…
- Events
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Events
Coming up: 13 November – 19 November 13 November, Washington DC, USA. REFLECTIONS AND PROJECTIONS: A TRADE TRANSITION MEMO FOR THE NEW ADMINISTRATION. US Undersecretary of Commerce Christopher Padilla will offer observations on trends for his successors as decision-makers of US trade policy at this event sponsored by the Washington International Trade Association. Some specific topics…
- Resources
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Resources
SUSTAINABLE BIOENERGY DEVELOPMENT IN UEMOA MEMBER COUNTRIES. By The West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) and The Hub for Rural Development in West and Central Africa. October 2008. Energy is essential to development. Countries with access to abundant and affordable modern energy have significantly larger gross domestic product (GDP), higher per capita income levels,…