Trade

tariff war
- The European Union, Switzerland and the United States have complained at the World Trade Organisation about an excise tax imposed by several Gulf Arab states on carbonated and energy drinks, according to notes of a WTO meeting and diplomatic sources. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain were asked to explain the rationale behind a 100 percent duty on energy drinks and a 50 percent tax on other carbonated beverages, notes of a July 3-4 WTO meeting show. The tax was introduced in 2017 as governments in the oil-exporting region came under fiscal pressure from a sharp drop in oil prices. The Gulf states have said the tax aims to diversify revenues and promote healthy lifestyles in countries where there are high rates of diabetes and obesity. https://www.reuters.com/article/gulf-trade-wto/eu-switzerland-us-complain-about-gulf-excise-tax-at-wto-idUSL8N1UB05T
- China said it filed a complaint to the World Trade Organization on Monday challenging President Donald Trump’s plan for tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. The announcement, from the Ministry of Commerce, came less than a week after the U.S. Trade Representative proposed a second possible tariff hike following a measure targeting $34 billion of goods. https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2018/07/16/trade-wars-china-files-complaint-wto-over-us-plan-tariffs/787305002/
- The United States has launched five separate complaints at the World Trade Organization against Canada, China, the European Union, Mexico and Turkey in response to retaliatory tariffs those countries and groups have launched against the United States. U.S. trade representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement Monday that recent tariffs implemented by the U.S. on foreign steel and aluminum are "justified under international agreements," but retaliatory measures from other countries in response are not. https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/us-tariffs-wto-1.4748459

- effect on industry

• cotton

• scmp "dispute plans seeds of change cotton trade"  1aug18

trade measures relating to pandemic
- The World Trade Organisation last week said 80 countries had enacted some kind of restriction on the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies – but only 13 of those nations followed procedure and informed the world body of the measures. Experts say they next expect countries to impose or ramp up restrictions on food exports as stockpiles dwindle during extended economic shutdowns to suppress the spread of the coronavirus, which has infected more than 3.2 million people and caused more than 230,000 deaths around the world. “We have at least two problems rising in the pandemic: restrictions on medical products and, potentially, restrictions on food. Both are driven by political imperatives to protect domestic citizens first,” said Deborah Elms, executive director of the Asian Trade Centre in Singapore.New Zealand and Singapore have gone further, signing a joint declaration that lists more than 120 essential goods for which they are looking to remove tariffs.
The two countries say the declaration – which also pledges to remove trade barriers for food – is an “open and plurilateral” initiative, meaning any country can join at any point.The pact is just one of a handful of ad hoc multilateral initiatives that have sprouted in recent weeks, amid complaints from mid-sized countries of the lack of decisive leadership on the part of the 
United States or China – embroiled at the moment in a blame game over the pandemic – as well as United Nations bodies.On Friday, Australia, Canada and South Korea – along with New Zealand and Singapore again – launched another joint statement, this time endorsing a plan to allow essential business travel and the flow of essential items among themselves.“The coalition of medium-sized countries whose main attribute is their soft power in the field of free trade is especially relevant today,” said Andres Rebolledo Smitmans, Chile’s former energy minister and a leading proponent of free trade in the South American country. David Capie, director of the Centre for Strategic Studies at New Zealand’s Victoria University of Wellington, said he believed the coming together of smaller countries was part of a wider trend that had arisen because of strained US-China ties and with neither of the superpowers looking “very appealing as a leader”. “So I think we are going to see more and more of these ad hoc efforts where groups of states come together to try and defend their interests issue by issue,” Capie said.https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3082536/coronavirus-hit-world-limits-exports-can-new-zealand-and


sanction
- cases

• 美國指控中國煙台杰瑞石油服務集團，於二○一一至一五年間違反伊朗制裁禁令，至少十一次把美國製造的設備運往伊朗，其中兩次出境美國時被發現。該公司周三與美國財政部達成協議，同意繳付二百八十萬美元（約二千一百八十萬港元）罰款和解。據悉，涉事的美國設備包括壓力泵、管道等石油開採所需器材零件。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20181214/00176_010.html

ban
- 十二世紀時，十字軍東征是宗教戰爭，教皇誥命所有與伊斯蘭教徒作貿易或提供戰略物資（木材、鐵以至食品）的基督教徒，都會被逐出教。但是，教皇可以給一些商人貿易特權，例如當時的威尼斯商人。一二九一年，當時的教皇再禁基督教國家與北非國家的貿易，表面上是因為北非各國是伊斯蘭教國家，實際上卻又是爭奪北非從非洲中部往中東和歐洲的黃金與奴隸貿易，教皇的命令代表了在西西里和西班牙基督教國家搶奪伊斯蘭教國家所控制的貿易利益。當時的修士（即今天的智囊）提議的方法，例如以戰艦巡邏海域、軍事封鎖北非的主要港口等等https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20191128/00184_001.html

wto
- history

• dec 1945 - usa invited some economies to conduct tariff negotiations and the idea of setting up international trade organisation (ito)
• feb 1946 - un ecosoc called for drafting of ito charter and usa tabled a draft
• oct 1946 - 1st drafting session held in london
• 2nd session in new york
• apr to nov 1947 - 3rd session in geneva

• 23 countries signed agreement on tariff concessions - gatt; since signing, held 8 rounds of talks

• 1947 geneva
• 1949 annecy 
• 1950-1 torquay, uk

• 1956 geneva 

•  1960-2 geneva dillon round
• 1964-7 geneva kennedy round 

•  1973 - 9 tokyo, geneva nixon round/tokyo round
• 1986-93 uruguay, geneva uruguay round  

• 1948 - 4th session in havana, cuba; signing of havana charter

• usa did not ratify the charter due to concerns about clauses limiting its legislative power; some other signatories followed suit

•  1948 - protocol of provisional application

• grandfather rights

• The Kennedy Round was the sixth session of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) multilateral trade negotiations held between 1964 and 1967 in Geneva, Switzerland. Congressional passage of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act in 1962 authorized the White House to conduct mutual tariff negotiations, ultimately leading to the Kennedy Round. Participation greatly increased over previous rounds. Sixty-six nations, representing 80% of world trade, attended the official opening on May 4, 1964, at the Palais des Nations. Despite several disagreements over details, the director general announced the round’s success on May 15, 1967, and the final agreement was signed on June 30, 1967—the very last day permitted under the Trade Expansion Act. The round was named after U.S. President John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated six months before the opening negotiations.
• The Tokyo Round lasted from 1973 to 1979, with 102 countries participating. It continued GATT’s efforts to progressively reduce tariffs. The results included an average one-third cut in customs duties in the world’s nine major industrial markets, bringing the average tariff on industrial products down to 4.7%. The tariff reductions, phased in over a period of eight years, involved an element of “harmonization” — the higher the tariff, the larger the cut, proportionally. In other issues, the Tokyo Round had mixed results. It failed to come to grips with the fundamental problems affecting farm trade and also stopped short of providing a modified agreement on “safeguards” (emergency import measures). Nevertheless, a series of agreements on non-tariff barriers did emerge from the negotiations, in some cases interpreting existing GATT rules, in others breaking entirely new ground. In most cases, only a relatively small number of (mainly industrialized) GATT members subscribed to these agreements and arrangements. Because they were not accepted by the full GATT membership, they were often informally called “codes”.
• MC5

• https://www.thecommonwealth-ilibrary.org/commonwealth/trade/after-hong-kong/implications-of-the-hong-kong-ministerial-declaration-on-duty-free-and-quota-free-access-for-least-developed-countries_9781848598805-3-en  This chapter provides an analysis of the potential implications of the statement included in the Ministerial Declaration issued at the end of the WTO Hong Kong conference, held in December 2005, to offer duty-free and quota-free market access to least developed countries. It presents the results of a desk-based study which has analysed the current market access regime applied by Canada, the EU, Japan and the USA to imports from LDCs.

- organisation

• 目前，世貿組織有四名副總幹事，分別來自尼日利亞、德國、美國和中國。德國的布勞納出任代理總幹事的可能性最高，但消息人士表示，美國一直力推本國的副總幹事沃爾夫，令情況陷入僵局。http://www.takungpao.com.hk/news/232111/2020/0802/482240.html

- people

• World Trade Organization Director-General Renato Ruggiero today announced the appointment of Mr. Keith Rockwell to the position of Director, Information and Media Relations Division. Mr. Rockwell will take up his duties in mid-September. Mr. Rockwell has had a distinguished career in journalism. He has been with the New York Journal of Commerce since 1980. In addition to various editorial positions, Mr. Rockwell has been the Journal's European Bureau Chief. Since 1995, he has been Chief of the Journal's Washington Bureau. Mr. Rockwell, who is a US national, is married with two children. https://www.wto.org/english/news_e/pres96_e/pr053_e.htm

- future

• economist 30nov19 "the umpire expires" the twilight of the WTO; "it's the end of the world..."

Doha Round
- WTO chief attempts to breathe life into Doha talks
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/194c8440-fd2a-11e3-8ca9-00144feab7de.html#axzz35oBl7NoH
- india poised to block wto deal http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/96599a64-0a76-11e4-be06-00144feabdc0.html#axzz37PmEnTTY
- india's tough trade stance wins few friends in poorer nations http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/724eab70-43ef-11e4-baa7-00144feabdc0.html
- letter by International Chamber of Commerce to FT editor 30jul14
- WTO head Roberto Azevêdo urges shake-up of organisation
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/798efb70-5546-11e4-b750-00144feab7de.html
- http://www.afr.com/news/world/hopes-of-a-breakthrough-for-stalled-wto-doha-round-appear-dim-20151214-glnk75 Hopes of a breakthrough in the stalled Doha trade negotiations at a World Trade Organisation gathering this week have faded after the conference chairwoman rejected calls for a new approach. Diplomats say failure to reach agreement on the future of the Doha framework at the WTO biennial ministerial conference, which starts in Nairobi on Tuesday and runs for four days, could scupper the chance of an agreement on the myriad issues being debated. These include support for the least developed countries. There are seemingly insurmountable divisions on the future of Doha, with nations led by the US, the EU and Japan wanting the process scrapped or reformed and developing countries such as India, China and African states wanting the framework retained.
- http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/97e8525e-a740-11e5-9700-2b669a5aeb83.html 

The World Trade Organisation is facing the biggest shake-up of its agenda in a generation after its members in effect abandoned the long-stalled Doha round.

For the first time since the round was launched amid great fanfare in 2001, the WTO’s 164 members, ending a conference in Nairobi at the weekend, declined to “reaffirm” Doha’s mandate. They also opened the door to discussing new issues and focusing more on delivering smaller packages of trade reforms. Agreements included a global ban on farming export subsidies that Roberto Azevêdo, the WTO’s director-general, called the “most significant” achievement on agriculture in the organisation’s history.

The new line in Nairobi, said one senior trade official, amounted to “the death of Doha and the birth of a new WTO”. It also marked a victory for the US and EU, who alongside other developed economies have argued that clinging to the long-stalled Doha negotiations was making the institution irrelevant in a changing global economy.

- news and opinion

• http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21611064-world-trade-organisations-whole-approach-negotiating-free-trade-needs-radical-change-no, response by john danilovich, Secretary-general
  International Chamber of Commerce http://www.economist.com/news/letters/21613153-letters-editor
• http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21611088-indias-scuppering-latest-trade-talks-leaves-no-one-better-bailing-out
• http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21611109-new-techniques-show-damage-done-subsidies-heart-global
• http://www.scmp.com/business/article/1688348/turning-20-marks-time-wto-grow
• http://www.scmp.com/business/global-economy/article/1842746/why-wto-hi-tech-tariff-deal-sign-hope-deadlocked-doha-round
• http://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1846669/trans-pacific-trade-talks-teeter-headwinds-get-stronger
• http://www.scmp.com/business/global-economy/article/1888879/world-trade-organisation-faces-moment-reckoning-nairobi Perhaps the most forward-looking parts of the agenda were the mandates on investment, competition policy, government procurement, e-commerce, trade, debt and finance, and trade and technology transfer. If these mandates had survived and prospered, it could have been said that the WTO was gearing up for the 21st century and not just busying itself with a 20th century agenda. But all the issues were either dropped or came to nothing.
  Even with its lighter load, Doha Round results have been truly elusive. Very little has emerged. The most notable result was a 2013 agreement on trade facilitation. The only outcome for most of the rest has been a declaration of intent to keep trying. The relative demise of the WTO’s negotiating function, and an apparent waning of commitment to the institution, have been accompanied by shifting power relationships that have added complexity and awakened geopolitics. In addition, a rising penchant for preferentialism in trade relationships is both a cause and an effect of a floundering WTO. Growing uncertainty at many levels has lessened the allure of a global embrace and fed creeping protectionism.
• http://www.scmp.com/business/global-economy/article/1894061/wto-fighting-battle-against-irrelevance
• http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21707940-lacking-clear-american-leadership-global-trade-agenda-floundering-hard
• ft 22oct18 a global trading system under fire 
• In a desperate attempt to prevent a descent into global trade chaos, both the European Union and Canada have proposed separate initiatives to fix the WTO. Canada hosted 13 WTO countries in Ottawa this week to discuss WTO reform. The EU’s thoughts have been released for public discussion, and will hopefully be taken up at the G20 meeting in Argentina next month. China is not directly engaged in either initiative, but this must change if it is to parry US tariffs and gain credibility as a global player committed to multilateralism. https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/united-states/article/2170339/how-china-can-save-wto-and-multilateral-trade

- trivial

• http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/news/art/20151212/19409562 因立法會流會而未能恢復二讀的《2014年版權（修訂）條例草案》再遇變數。正當主責草案的商務及經濟發展局局長蘇錦樑，頻頻約見商會尋求支持，又取消出席世貿部長級會議留港處理草案

The United States, the European Union and Japan proposed new global trade rules on Tuesday to curb subsidies they say are distorting the worldwide economy, with China their clear target.After meeting in Washington, Japanese Economy Minister Hiroshi Kajiyama, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and EU trade commissioner Phil Hogan said in a joint statement that existing World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules were insufficient to tackle market distortions from subsidies.The proposed rules are the outcome of two years of trilateral discussions, but are only a precursor to the hard work of convincing other WTO members, including China.https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3046108/us-eu-and-japan-target-china-new-global-trade-rules


agriculture
- people

• Félix Jules Méline (French pronunciation: ​[ʒyl melin]; 20 May 1838 – 21 December 1925) was a French statesman, prime minister from 1896 to 1898. Méline was born at Remiremont. Having taken up law as his profession, he was chosen a deputy in 1872, and in 1879 he was for a short time under-secretary to the minister of the interior. In 1880 he came to the front as the leading spokesman of the party which favoured the protection of French industries, and he had a considerable share in fashioning the protectionist legislation of the years 1890–1902. From 1883 to 1885 Méline was minister for agriculture, and in 1888–1889 he was president of the Chamber of Deputies. In 1896 he became premier (président du conseil) and minister for agriculture, offices which he vacated in 1898. At one time he edited La République francaise, and after his retirement from public life he wrote Le Retour de la terre et Ia surproduction industrielle, tout en faveur de l'agriculture (1905). The introduction of French protectionist measure of 1892 is named after him, the Méline tariff.Il est à l'origine de la loi du 5 novembre 1894 créant les sociétés locales de Crédit agricole. Cette loi autorise la constitution, entre les membres des syndicats agricoles, de caisses locales ayant pour objet de faciliter l’octroi de crédits nécessaires au financement de la production agricole.

Goods

- council on trade in goods

• Major U.S. trading partners including the European Union, China and Japan voiced deep concern at the World Trade Organization (WTO) on Tuesday about possible U.S. measures imposing additional duties on imported autos and parts. Japan, which along with Russia had initiated the discussion at the WTO Council on Trade in Goods, warned that such measures could trigger a spiral of counter-measures and result in the collapse of the rules-based multilateral trading system, an official who attended the meeting said.Over 40 WTO members, including the 28 countries of the European Union – warned that the U.S. action could seriously disrupt the world market and threaten the WTO system, given the importance of cars to world trade.https://af.reuters.com/article/africaTech/idAFL8N1TZ509

Services
- IMF database on services trade restrictions http://iresearch.worldbank.org/ServiceTrade/
- http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21616891-ten-years-ago-developing-economies-were-catching-up-developed-ones-remarkably-quickly-it

Services - Hong Kong
- medical

• http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1620172/foreign-doctors-quit-hong-kong-public-hospitals-over-licence-red-tape Dr Louis Shih Tai-cho, president of the Medical Association, said it was crucial for any doctor practising in Hong Kong to have enough experience working locally before getting a general licence.

TISA
- WTO working paper http://www.wto.org/english/res_e/reser_e/ersd201311_e.pdf
- other research paper

• http://www.wti.org/fileadmin/user_upload/nccr-trade.ch/wp2/publications/TISA_P_Sauve.pdf
• http://www.esf.be/new/tisa/
• http://ictsd.org/i/news/bridgesweekly/184766/
• http://www.world-psi.org/sites/default/files/documents/research/en_psi_tisa_policy_brief_july_2013_final_web.pdf

- news

• OECD urges countries to lower barriers in services trade 

  http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d94395f0-d5ec-11e3-a239-00144feabdc0.html#axzz317DTSN9x
•  http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1536395/services-trade-deal-sketched-out-us-says

Trade facilitation
- progress stalled by india http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201407/0722/HA11722CGBA.pdf
- wto scrambles to rescue bali trade deal http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/04892a7c-1337-11e4-925a-00144feabdc0.html#axzz38S5wluJL
- http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1564555/impasse-wto-seen-boosting-appeal-bilateral-deals-china
- wto plunged into crisis as doubts grow over global role http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/bac249d0-198c-11e4-9745-00144feabdc0.html#axzz39CaPoJ6H
- 世貿推動便利化遇阻 馮國經籲繼續努力落實協議http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/financeestate/art/20140915/18866363- WTO begins talks to break deadlock over ‘consensus’ principle
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/a289ba90-51e7-11e4-b55e-00144feab7de.html
- http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/b0898366-6b0d-11e4-be68-00144feabdc0.html India and the US have ended their stand-off at the World Trade Organisation over New Delhi’s vast food security programme, breaking an impasse that had been described as the biggest crisis to hit the global trade body in two decades. The deal calls for New Delhi to allow the implementation of a global “Trade Facilitation Agreement” to cut red tape at international borders. In exchange, the US has promised to extend a “peace clause” – due to expire in 2017 – that rules out any challenges at the WTO to India’s programme to subsidise farmers and provide food to the poor until members negotiate an update to the rules., http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1639199/india-wins-us-support-massive-food-stockpiling-scheme

- WTO breakthroughs fail to mask serious structural problems
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b3a7075a-6c32-11e4-990f-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3JIKwwhlq
- http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201509/0905/HA05905CTHH.pdf china thirtieth member to accept protocol
- http://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1858225/hong-kong-red-tape-puts-china-e-commerce-hub-prospects-risk Hong Kong needs to do more to reduce red tape if it hopes to remain a leading gateway to China’s booming e-commerce market, according to DHL Global Forwarding’s Asia-Pacific chief executive, Kelvin Leung. “To avoid being marginalised, Hong Kong needs to make efforts to streamline its customs and inspection processes for goods being imported by mainland China,” Leung said. “Work such as food safety checks and the submission of forms is still duplicated in Hong Kong and on the mainland.” China is now the world’s largest e-commerce market, with transaction volume totalling 16.39 trillion yuan last year, up nearly 60 per cent on 2013. The emergence of free-trade zones, with more favourable tax and clearance policies, is stimulating the trade, and more logistics providers are turning to zones such as Qianhai, in Shenzhen, as transit depots. However, Leung said Hong Kong still had unique advantages compared to free-trade zones.
- http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21716035-first-global-trade-deal-decades-shows-why-next-one-will-be-even

Green goods
- Hong Kong to join WTO talks on green goods
http://www.ecns.cn/business/2014/07-09/123069.shtml
- https://ustr.gov/about-us/policy-offices/press-office/press-releases/2016/june/statement-wto-environmental-goods Today, Trade Ministers and senior officials from seven EGA members - Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, and the United States - met in Paris to discuss progress in the negotiations and to chart a path toward successful conclusion later this year. This group has been working closely together with the aim of concluding an ambitious EGA with all participants ahead of when G20 Leaders meet in Hangzhou in September for the G20 Summit. The Trade Ministers and senior officials welcomed the significant progress that has been made over the 13 negotiating rounds held to date. This includes recent efforts in smaller groups and different configurations to focus negotiations towards a potential EGA landing zone. The Ministers and senior officials reiterated their commitment to a high-standard, ambitious EGA that eliminates tariffs on a broad range of environmental goods, in the context of a future-oriented agreement. They committed to intensify their work together and with other EGA partners to successfully conclude the negotiations, and to find common ground on an EGA that will improve environmental protection, promote economic growth, and create green jobs, through an increase in global trade in environmental goods. The Ministers and senior officials encourage other WTO Members with a similar level of ambition and interest to join the EGA.
- http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2051836/us-china-eu-and-others-fail-reach-environmental-goods


ITA
- vocal people

• Stephen Ezell of ITIF http://www.itif.org/people/stephen-ezell, ITIF report http://www2.itif.org/2014-ita-expansion-benefits-chinese-global-economies.pdf

- news report

• SCMP 22apr14 report http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1493916/china-poised-gain-more-under-expanded-tech-tariff-cutting-deal
• IDG News Service http://news.idg.no/cw/art.cfm?id=07BDA78A-F728-90E2-E932EFBEC4D1F5C7
• SCMP 15May14 report http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1511824/apec-trade-ministers-urged-restart-talks-tech-tariff-cuts
• SCMP 21may14 report http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1516797/apec-meeting-china-delivered-faint-hope-expand-tech-tariff-pact
• China supported ITA expansion http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141105/PDF/a10_screen.pdf 
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9a1804d6-6950-11e4-9eeb-00144feabdc0.html China and the US on Tuesday reached an agreement that paves the way for the slashing of tariffs globally on high-tech goods and may mark the start of a new phase in the trade relationship of the world’s two largest economies. The deal announced in Beijing by US President Barack Obama broke a deadlock of almost 18 months in negotiations over updating the World Trade Organisation’s 1996 Information Technology Agreement to include products such as video game consoles and next-generation semiconductors. Its larger impact, however, may be on the US and China’s broader economic and trade relations and how they work together in larger forums. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/12/world/asia/china-us-xi-obama-apec.html?_r=0, http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/for-a-moment-obama-and-putin-icy-relations-aside-and-talk-as-asia-pacific-summit/2014/11/11/9f853e42-6532-11e4-ab86-46000e1d0035_story.html, http://time.com/3577450/us-china-apec-trade-deal-tariffs/, http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1637720/sino-us-breakthrough-tech-tariff-cuts-affects-us1-trillion-goods, hkej 12nov14 a19, http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1638501/china-poised-take-lead-completing-new-global-tech-tariff-deal
• http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1655879/ita-talks-press-ahead-despite-hurdles-new-tech-tariff-deal
• http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1659365/flat-panel-standoff-between-beijing-and-seoul-threatens-tech-trade
• http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/5f581672-2dce-11e5-8873-775ba7c2ea3d.html The US, China and the EU are expected to sign up this week to what would be the biggest tariff agreement struck at the World Trade Organisation in almost two decades, after a weekend breakthrough that clears the way for barriers to be dropped globally on more than 200 types of high-tech products. Negotiations over the 1996 Information Technology Agreement have been stalled since last November when US President Barack Obama announced abreakthrough in negotiations with China. That US-China agreement, however, promptedfresh stand-offs between China and South Korea and China and the EU that until this weekend have prevented what the global tech industry sees as a badly needed and long-delayed update to the rules governing the trade in everything from video game consoles to semiconductors. In a deal thrashed out on Saturday, the US agreed to grant further small concessions to China in order to help both South Korea and the EU secure their own deals with Beijing. The new compromise brokered by the US and WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo is due to be brought to the capitals of the 80 governments involved in the ITA discussions for approval before a Friday deadline. With all of the remaining major players involved in the weekend breakthrough, people close to the negotiations said that deadline was now largely procedural.
• http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21659715-world-trade-organisation-draws-close-its-first-deal-nearly-two The deal is likely to save $13.8 billion a year in tariff payments on the $1.3 trillion global trade in electronic goods, says the WTO. Removing tariffs will open up new markets, particularly China, which has the highest levies on such goods. Tariffs on semiconductors, used in electronic circuits, are as high as 25% in some countries. Although the precise effects of the deal have not yet been studied, it will increase trade in electronics between East Asia, Europe and North America. All three regions both import and export large amounts of electronics—the EU exports €82 billion ($90 billion) and imports €68 billion. Few African or South American countries participated in the negotiations, but the WTO believes that all will benefit. More trade should be good news for a global electronics supply chain that buys materials and labour from around the world. As tariffs fall on inputs like semiconductors, the rest of the developing world ought to enjoy cheaper finished electronic goods, which could very well speed innovation at home. High-tech industries played a big part in the South Korean and Taiwanese development miracles. These took place behind tariff barriers, however. Whether those developing countries that adopt ITA-II can advance without such shelter is unclear.
• http://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/1874885/industry-groups-want-wtos-global-tariff-cutting-deal-tech-products More than 80 industry groups from around the world have called on negotiators to push for a faster implementation of the expanded Information Technology Agreement (ITA), ahead of a new round of trade talks scheduled in Geneva on November 9.
  The United States, China and other major economies agreed in July to broaden the range of duty-free information and communications technology products covered by the ITA, a plurilateral trade pact, to mark the first major tariff-cutting deal under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 18 years.  Under the terms of the expanded deal, the majority of tariffs will be eliminated on 201 products — representing more than US$1.3 trillion in annual trade — within three years, with reductions starting from July 1 next year.  The so-called “staging” talks slated next week amount to a “show and tell” for ITA negotiators on how far their countries “are willing to go when it comes to assigning the specific timeframes for tariff elimination of the myriad tech products covered by the [expanded] agreement”, John Neuffer, the president and chief executive of the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), told theSouth China Morning Post on Monday.  The ITA negotiating parties met at WTO headquarters in Geneva in September for an initial round of talks to determine the phase-out timeframes, or staging, for the 201 products covered by the ITA expansion. In a joint statement, the industry associations urged ITA negotiators “to implement their tariff elimination commitments as quickly a possible, showing restraint in their requests for extended staging”.  Specifically, the groups called on all negotiating parties “to show restraint in seeking staging periods longer than three years, given the short innovation cycles for high-technology products”.  These groups included the Consumer Electronics Association, the SIA, DigitalEurope, the US Information Technology Office, Japan Electrical Manufacturers Association, Korea Electronics Association, the Hong Kong Electronic Industries Association and the Hong Kong Information Technology Federation. Neuffer said negotiators can waive the baseline tariff phase-out period of three years and simply eliminate duties on some, or all, of the 201 products covered by the updated ITA when this deal is implemented in July next year. “They can also indicate they want to stick with the default three-year staging period. Or they can opt for extended staging of five years or seven years to provide a bigger buffer for domestic producers to adapt to a tariff-free business environment,” Neuffer said. “The real-life problem with so much extended staging is that the innovation life cycles of tech products are often shorter than seven or even five years” he added. “So when the tariff relief finally comes, it has largely lost its relevance.” The expanded ITA will cut tariffs on such products as video game consoles, liquid crystal display televisions, next-generation semiconductors, printer ink cartridges, global positioning system devices, loudspeakers, video cameras, solid state drives, magnetic resonance imaging machines and computed tomography scanners.
• http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/af1b755e-a41c-11e5-8218-6b8ff73aae15.html More than 50 members of the World Trade Organisation on Wednesday concluded the biggest tariff-reduction deal in almost two decades, eliminating restrictions on the $1.3tn trade of 201 IT products. Wednesday’s expansion of the 1996 Information Technology Agreement will increase global gross domestic product by $190bn a year, according to IT experts, as the costs are cut in trading goods from GPS devices and video game consoles to next-generation semiconductors.
• http://www.scmp.com/tech/innovation/article/1892469/china-tech-prices-plummet-201-goods-us13tn-11th-hour-tariff-deal The United States, China and 51 other economies have wrapped up a landmark deal to remove annual tariffs worth US$1.3 trillion on 201 information and communications technology products around the world from July 1 next year. The years-long effort to expand the scope of the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), a global tariff-cutting pact initiated in 1996, was completed on Wednesday at the 10th World Trade Organisation (WTO)Ministerial Conference in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi after negotiators approved certain last-minute demands by China. The final stumbling block was China’s last-minute demand to include some additional text in the ministers’ declaration announcing the agreement on phasing out tariffs and achieving the “critical mass” of negotiating parties for the expanded ITA agreement to be in force. “When the negotiating parties agreed on Wednesday afternoon to insert text in the declaration to capture this idea, the deal was done,” Neuffer said. As a result of negotiations, about 65 per cent of tariffs on the covered products will be fully eliminated by July 1. Most of the remaining tariffs will be phased out in four stages over three years. This means that by 2019 almost all imports of the relevant products will be duty free. Initiatives to expand the ITA kicked off with a major WTO conference in Geneva in May 2012.

- China

• http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.aspx?id=293682 hina hopes that the long-delayed international negotiations on adding more tech products to a tariff-free treaty backed by the World Trade Organization will be put through soon, a senior trade official said on Tuesday. "The government has been actively participating in the dialogue. We have made great efforts (during negotiations) and wish an agreement will be reached as soon as possible," said Shen Danyang, spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce.

rules of origin
- France lashes out at internet naming body Icann
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/828ad97c-f94a-11e3-bb9d-00144feab7de.html#axzz35QblRhfG
- http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21607867-europeans-want-their-food-names-back-americans-are-peeved-stressed-are-cheesemakers#sthash.1khv0FrJ.dpbs
- 菲律賓馬尼拉四間店舖，因販售產地標為「中國馬尼拉省」的一款護髮霜，前日遭市長莫雷諾（Isko Moreno）勒令停業。及後莫雷諾要求驅逐兩名中國商人出境，指他們的公司出售有關產品並作上述標示。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200822/00178_011.html

Intellectual property
- http://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1918550/hong-kongs-copyright-reform-cannot-proceed-without-trust    concession by hk when joining wto

Anti- dumping
- market distortion

• http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-17-3703_en.htm The European Parliament and the Council have agreed to change the EU's anti-dumping and anti-subsidy legislation following a proposal from the European Commission from November 2016. The main change to the anti-dumping legislation is the introduction of a new way to calculate dumping in anti-dumping investigations on imports from members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in case prices and costs are distorted because of state intervention. The changes do not target any particular country. In addition to a new methodology for calculating dumping, there will be transitional arrangements for trade defence measures which already exist as well as for ongoing investigations. A change to the EU's anti-subsidy legislation has also been agreed regarding the way the EU investigates subsidies provided by governments outside the EU which give their exporting producers an unfair advantage, causing damage to manufacturers in the EU.  

subsidy

- economist 30may2020 "the visible hand" how temporary is the EU's go-ahead for governments to prop up companies?
- Canadian lumber producers cheered the latest decision Monday from the World Trade Organization on Canada's long-standing dispute with its largest trading partner over exports of softwood lumber — a finding the United States quickly denounced as unfair, biased and flawed. The WTO dispute-resolution panel declared that the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. International Trade Commission were wrong in 2017 when they imposed countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber exports, having concluded that Canada's regulated forestry industry amounts to an unfair subsidy for Canadian producers. In particular, the panel agreed with Canada's argument that Commerce made a number of errors in determining the benchmark Canadian timber prices it used to determine whether producers north of the border were paying adequate stumpage fees to the provinces.https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/canada-softwood-lumber-1.5698013

movement of natural persons
- travel bubble

• http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20200506/PDF/a23_screen.pdf 新西蘭連續兩日「零確診」，澳洲過去一日新增25例確診，疫情皆已受控。兩國領導人5日發表聯合聲明說澳紐將盡快建立「旅遊氣泡」（travel bubble），即跨塔斯曼海的安全旅行區，恢復兩國人民往來，但繼續禁止其他國家公民入境。新西蘭總理阿德恩周二罕見以視像形式出席澳洲內閣會議，與澳洲總理莫里森商討建立一個跨塔斯曼海的兩國間「旅遊氣泡」問題。「旅遊氣泡」意指共同的安全空間，即兩國對外重新開放因新冠疫情關閉的邊界前，首先相互解除旅行禁令。阿德恩表示，「我們都將從旅行和（國家）重啟中獲益，家庭和友誼跨越塔斯曼海域」。這一安排的前提是兩國皆通過執行社交距離、大規模檢測有效阻止疫情傳播。

• Calls are mounting for Australia and 
  New Zealand to allow their Pacific neighbours into the “Trans Tasman bubble” they are setting up to kick-start economic activity, with proponents saying it will ensure they remain in the game as Chinese influence expands in the region. The arrangement would allow for freer movement of people and goods and Australian MP Dave Sharma, a close ally of Prime Minister Scott Morrison, opined last week that the “Trans-Tasman bubble doesn’t go far enough … We look out for each other in tough times. A trans-Pacific bubble would help us do just that.”https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3085104/coronavirus-australia-new-zealand-travel-bubble-fiji
•  following weeks or months of lockdown, Pacific Island nations emerge divided on how to reopen their borders. The idea of a travel “bubble” in the Pacific was first aired during discussions between New Zealand and Australia just over a month ago. Since then, there have been calls from senior lawmakers in both countries for the bubble to be extended to their Pacific neighbors. Some Pacific leaders support the proposal, while others have said it’s way too soon. https://thediplomat.com/2020/06/pacific-island-leaders-weigh-trans-pacific-bubble-with-australia-and-new-zealand/

•  Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia will open their borders to each others' citizens from May 15, creating a Baltic "travel bubble" within the European Union amid an easing of pandemic restrictions, their prime ministers said on Wednesday. The Baltic travel area would be first of its kind in the bloc, where most countries restricted entry to non-nationals and imposed quarantine on incoming travelers as the novel coronavirus spread across the continent.https://www.chinadailyhk.com/article/129682#Baltic-states-to-create-'travel-bubble'-as-pandemic-curbs-eased
• 林正財說，目前「旅遊氣泡」概念只在兩地專家組中討論，特區政府暫未推動，他認同由於澳門人口少，與香港的防控措施相近，可先與澳門建立「旅遊氣泡」作第一步。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20200509/00176_021.html
• economist 30may2020 "take these broken wings" asian travel bubbles will not be as carefree as they sound

- immunity passports

• The idea of immunity passports is gaining in popularity among Western governments. But they are fraught with problems, from their implementation to their functionality. Above all, they’re a grave threat to fundamental freedoms.The basic premise of an immunity passport is to hasten the reopening of society by allowing those who are immune to Covid-19 to move freely, leaving only those who are not immune subject to restrictions. The passport itself might be a paper certificate, such as those that Chile has been issuing, although, in Europe and America, it would more likely appear on your smartphone as an app, code or as digital certification.This has been the solution adopted in China. All Chinese people have had to register for a QR code that downloads an app. The app uses a traffic-light system that sorts people into red, yellow or green groups based on their health status and Covid-19 risk level – although how this is determined is not transparent. Users have to input a range of personal information, including the purpose of their visit to new locations. To stop them circumventing the app, they need to use its QR code to enter certain public buildings and transport. Other East Asian nations, including Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea, have adopted similar systems.And in the US, Google and Apple have announced that they are teaming up to develop contact-tracing technology based on Bluetooth, which will“help countries around the world slow the spread.” But amid all the excitement, few have stopped to question what good exactly immunity passports are supposed to do.https://www.rt.com/op-ed/488043-immunity-passports-western-governments-totalitarianism/

investor protection
- bilateral investment treaties by country http://investmentpolicyhub.unctad.org/IIA/IiasByCountry
- Critics claim that international arbitration has morphed into a weapon that multinationals wield to threaten and influence http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/27b8740e-48ce-11e4-9f63-00144feab7de.html#axzz3FQai4v3y
- Cato institute's and Philip Morris' letters to Economist (25Oct14 issue)
- ft 25jan17 cherie blair article on "A global investment court for a changing era of trade"
- cases

• http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-08/19/c_137402130.htm Tesla Motors Canada is taking Ontario's new government to court, claiming it was "singled out for unfair and arbitrary treatment" after the government cancelled an electric vehicle rebate, local media reported. The new Ontario Premier Doug Ford has cancelled several policies including the Electric and Hydrogen Vehicle Incentive Program, which was brought in by his predecessor. Aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the province, the program offered rebates of up to 14,000 Canadian dollars (about 10,700 U.S. dollars) for people who bought electric vehicles. During the transition period, the government promised anyone who bought electric vehicles through a dealership before Sept. 10 can still get rebates. Tesla Canada claimed the company was singled out unfairly because it sold vehicles directly to customers instead of through dealerships. However, people buying electric vehicles from other brands were unaffected during the transition period, the lawsuit of Tesla alleged.
• https://www.nortonrosefulbright.com/en/knowledge/publications/ded9c356/philip-morris-asia-v-australia Philip Morris Asia’s claim against Australia concerning Australia’s plain packaging laws has come to an end. The tribunal ruled (in December 2015) that it had no jurisdiction to decide the claim, which was filed in 2011, under the 1993 HK–Australia BIT.On December 17, 2015, the arbitral tribunal constituted to decide Philip Morris’s claim against Australia concerning Australia’s plain packaging laws (enacted in 2011) ruled that it had no jurisdiction to decide Philip Morris Asia Limited’s claim under the Hong Kong–Australia BIT (the Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of Hong Kong for the Promotion and Protection of Investments of 1993). The tribunal was unanimous in upholding Australia’s jurisdictional challenge.
• https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/apr/20/us-companys-attempt-to-sue-australian-government-collapses A US energy company’s controversial and unprecedented attempt to sue the Australian government has collapsed, leaving taxpayers with a $44,000 bill.
  In 2017 Florida-based APR Energy became the first company to attempt to sue the Australian government under the Australia-US free trade agreement, demanding $344m in compensation for Australia’s treatment of its gas turbines. The action was made possible by deeply controversial provisions contained in many trade deals – known as investor-state dispute settlement, or ISDS – that allow foreign corporations to sue a government for actions or policies that hurt them commercially. Such provisions allowed the tobacco giant Philip Morris to sue the Australian government over its plain-packaging laws under a Hong Kong-Australia investment treaty. Australia won the case but was left with a total $39m bill, including for the ISDS case and related proceedings in the high court and World Trade Organization.The APR Energy case – the first and only such case under the US-Australia trade deal – alleged that Australia had expropriated two gas turbines in Western Australia’s Pilbara region. The company said it was invested in the turbines and demanded compensation. “In this case, the compensation necessary to wipe out the consequences of Australia’s conduct is not less than US$260,000,000,” APR Energy said in a letter to the Australian government, according to the Australian newspaper. APR Energy issued Australia with a notice of arbitration in 2017. But Guardian Australia can reveal the case has gone nowhere, and that the Australian government now regards it as over. “Despite serving the Notice of Arbitration, APR Energy did very little to progress the claim,” a spokesman for the Attorney General’s Department said. “The Department has taken steps to clarify the status of this matter and no longer considers the proceedings to be on foot.”
• https://www.ft.com/content/d1ad7710-312c-11ea-9703-eea0cae3f0de Tesco’s planned sale of its Thai operations will be subject to close scrutiny, Thailand’s competition regulator has warned, adding that he is prepared to impose fines or ban the deal outright if any laws were to be breached.  The comments from Sakon Varanyuwatana, chairman of Thailand’s Office of Trade Competition Commission, signalled that the deal, expected to be worth $8bn-$9bn and one of Asia’s biggest M&A transactions this year, could face regulatory opposition. Three of the expected bidders already have significant Thai retail operations.  “We have to consider the operation in 360 degrees and study whether it would have any anti-competitive structure or behaviour after the merger or not,” said Mr Sakon. “We have the authority to prohibit the merger or acquisition if we believe it will lead to a monopoly.” 

Government procurement 
- 香港工程水平再獲國際認可。發展局獲頒今年英國「新工程合約」「年度推動機構」組別大獎及「創新合約條款」組別高度讚揚獎，渠務署亦榮獲「創新合約條款」組別大獎。發展局首席助理秘書長（工務）梁立基表示，發展局及工務部門採用「新工程合約」提升項目的管理效率和成本效益，今次獲獎見證以創新合作思維推展工務工程的卓越成果。「新工程合約」獎項由英國土木工程師學會轄下「新工程合約」組織於2015年設立，旨在表揚世界各地機構以夥伴合作方式推動工程項目的卓越表現及創新實踐成就的機構。梁立基前日在英國倫敦出席頒獎禮時表示，發展局及工務部門一直致力推動以夥伴合作方式推行工務工程，包括採用「新工程合約」模式以提升項目的管理效率和成本效益。發展局表示，該局自2009年於工務工程推動試行「新工程合約」模式，鼓勵工務部門、顧問公司與承建商等業界持份者積極參與及累積有關經驗，並於2016年10月編制了適用於工務工程的《新工程合約工程及建造合約的實務指引》，供工務部門及業界參考和應用，並持續擴大採用「新工程合約」模式的工務工程種類。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2017/06/24/a17-0624.pdf

national security
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-ukraine-wto-ruling/russias-wto-national-security-victory-cuts-both-ways-for-trump-idUSKCN1RH1K9 The WTO panel ruling, the first ever on the right to a national security exemption from the global trade rules, awarded Russia a legal victory because it had successfully invoked national security. The panel also confirmed the WTO’s right to review national security claims, denting U.S. claims that national security was not subject to review, and said any such claim should be “objectively” true, relating to weapons, war, fissionable materials or an “emergency in international relations”. “An emergency in international relations would, therefore, appear to refer generally to a situation of armed conflict, or of latent armed conflict, or of heightened tension or crisis, or of general instability engulfing or surrounding a state,” it said.
- presumption of denial

• In an email to enforcement staff on Monday that was seen by Reuters, John Sonderman, Deputy Director of the Office of Export Enforcement, in the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), sought to clarify how agents should approach license requests by firms seeking approval to sell to Huawei. All such applications should be considered on merit and flagged with language noting that “This party is on the Entity List. Evaluate the associated license review policy under part 744,” he wrote, citing regulations that include the Entity List and the “presumption of denial” licensing policy that is applied to blacklisted companies. He added that any further guidance from BIS should also be taken into account when evaluating Huawei-related license applications.https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-usa-huawei/us-government-staff-told-to-treat-huawei-as-blacklisted-idUSKCN1TY07N

dispute settlement
- 世界貿易組織（WTO）的爭端解決機構（DSB），周三同意成立專家小組，就美國向進口鋼鐵、鋁材加徵關稅及其他報復性關稅，聽取其他國家的意見。另外，WTO已同意美國要求成立小組審查「中國保護知識產權措施」。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20181122/00178_009.html
- WTO上訴機構是該組織的 「最高法院」 ， 共設7位常任法官，對國際貿易爭端擁有最終決 定權及強制執行力，在過去25年共就200多個 案例做出裁決，多數都得到順利解決。上訴機 構也被譽為 「WTO皇冠上的明珠」 。 不過，美國自小布什政府以來，就開始要 求WTO按其心意改革，並使用一票否決權阻擾 命名新法官，特朗普上任後更是變本加厲。這 導致WTO上訴機構從2018年1月起僅剩3名法 官，正好是開庭審理的人數下限。本月10日， 隨着印度籍法官巴蒂亞和美國籍法官格雷厄姆 任期屆滿，該機構將只剩下中國籍法官趙宏一 人，史上被迫首次停擺。更雪上加霜的是，美 國本月還在預算問題上施壓，將明年上訴機 構的運營費用限制到此前的5%。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20191212/PDF/a22_screen.pdf
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-trade-wto/eu-china-and-15-others-agree-temporary-fix-to-wto-crisis-idUSKBN1ZN0WM The European Commission said the WTO members involved had agreed to preserve the WTO’s two-step dispute system until the WTO’s own Appellate Body became operational again.Washington froze the Appellate Body, which acts as a supreme court for international trade, by blocking appointments for over two years. Two of the body’s three members came to the end of their terms in December, leaving it unable to issue rulings.Lower level three-person WTO “panels” will still advise on trade disputes, but such cases could be left in limbo without an appeals mechanism.The EU had previously teamed up with Norway and Canada to form a separate appeals body that could resolve disputes.

- New Zealand and 18 other WTO Members have established an interim solution for hearing appeals in trade disputes between governments until the World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body becomes fully functional again. Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker welcomed the announcement that includes Australia, China, the EU and Canada. The arrangement is open to any WTO member wishing to join. “New Zealand’s participation in this interim arbitration arrangement is another clear signal of our commitment to the multilateral rules-based trading system, which is so important at this time of global economic uncertainty made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic,” David Parker said. The WTO Appellate Body lost the ability to hear new appeals in December 2019, due to an impasse over the appointment of new members to sit on it. https://nzcchk-weekly-enews-2730534

developing/developed country status
- 南韓周五召開對外經濟部門長官會議，決定在日後的世貿組織談判中，不再要求享有發展中國家待遇。副總理兼企劃財政部長官洪楠基指，此舉是為政府可在往後談判中靈活行使談判權，爭取保護大米等重要產品。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191026/00180_013.html

import/export
- HKGCC implements service to issue temp import licence hkcd 2jul14 12

ecommerce
- 總統特朗普指示郵政局取消國際郵費折扣，令中國商人無法利用廉價郵資，將貨物直接運到美國消費者手中。有關舉措將增加中國阿里巴巴集團的成本，但同時令美國亞馬遜、聯邦快遞、eBay及其他國際航運公司受惠。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180827/00180_005.html

• https://www.ft.com/content/876bc3ec-aadb-11e8-8253-48106866cd8a
  Consider this: it costs more to ship a package through the US Postal Service from Los Angeles to New York City than it costs to ship that same package from Beijing to New York. This inequity puts American small businesses and manufacturers at a severe competitive disadvantage. Donald Trump is taking action to address this disparity, which costs the USPS and American consumers millions of dollars each year. The US president recently directed the Department of State to use this week’s extraordinary congress of the Universal Postal Union in Ethiopia to renegotiate the “terminal dues” rules which govern how national postal operators compensate one another for delivering each other’s mail.

- https://beta.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/2183733/last-minute-china-decides-join-wto-talks-us25-trillion-e China will join a group including the US and the European Union in negotiating new rules to cover the US$25 trillion e-commerce market. The EU and 47 other members of the World Trade Organisation have launched the discussions, according to a Friday statement. If successful, a digital trade accord hashed out through the Geneva-based trade body would establish a baseline international regime for 21st century trade and reduce cross-border hurdles to e-commerce. China, which for years has heavily restricted use of the internet inside its borders, had resisted joining the talks until Thursday, raising concerns over the language in the statement advocating a “high standard outcome,” according to four people familiar with the talks who asked not to be identified because the discussions were private.

FTA
- http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1495402/free-trade-agreements-more-do-politics-goods-and-services (24apr14)
- 香港應否加入區域自由貿易協定？http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140815/PDF/a29_screen.pdf
- http://economists-pick-research.hktdc.com/business-news/article/Economists-Pick-Expert-Opinion/Should-Hong-Kong-join-regional-free-trade-agreements/eo/en/1/1X33GCGK/1X09YQ2S.htm
- HKTDC Kwan Ka Ming's article on how HK can extend its global trade links http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201409/0903/HA08903CADE.pdf
- 商家盼港府加快貿易談判http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/financeestate/art/20140915/18866365
- http://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/1879580/game-us-china-and-battle-trade-pacts In the 19th century, Britain and Russia vied for dominance in the strategically important Central Asia region in what was called the Great Game. Two centuries later, the modern day version of strategic rivalry is being played out in the Asia-Pacific, with the United States and China competing for supremacy. Military activity in the South China Sea has made the disputed area a hot spot for potential conflict as the two countries jostle to control sea lanes through which 40 per cent of world trade passes.

But that is not the only front - the world's biggest and second-largest economies are battling to set global trade rules. The latest round of that contest will be played out this week at the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, where US President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will join the leaders of 21 Pacific Rim nations from today in Manila, the Philippines. Apec was created to forge unity on free trade within the region but Xi and Obama will use the gathering to lobby other member nations to join their own-initiated trade blocs, which exclude each other. Xi will push the China-led Apec-based Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP), while Obama will try to enlist economies, such South Korea, Indonesia and Thailand, to the US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) cause.
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20161114/PDF/a13_screen.pdf 港應全力入FTA嗎？ by 利豐發展（中國）有限公司、利豐研究中心副總裁 洪雯博士
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20161212/PDF/a13_screen.pdf 自由貿易協定（Free Trade Agreement，FTA）對整體經濟而言利弊並存 ，但對企業的競爭力而言，影響如何？筆者對20家企業的訪談發現，FTA並非 影響香港業界競爭力的重要因素；業界亦認為，香港參與更多FTA不會帶來巨 大的機遇，而不參與亦不會給業界帶來很大的損害，因此對香港簽訂更多FTA 並無迫切需求。
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20170109/PDF/a11_screen.pdf香港有必要爭取加入更多FTA（自由貿易協定），尤其是多邊的大型FTA；最有 效的方法是搭乘內地的便車，與內地一起加入FTA，特別是目前正加速談判的RCEP（區 域全面經濟夥伴關係協定）。此外，香港亦可考慮加入內地尚未加入的多邊大型FTA。 不過，香港同時必須制定多方面經濟社會政策，應對FTA的弊端。
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2017/05/16/a07-0516.pdf李秀恒期望特區政府下一步着手研 究參與國家與「一帶一路」沿線國家 所簽署的自由貿易協定，讓香港商家 可以搭乘着國家的「順風車」，更易 把握「一帶一路」倡議的新機遇，推 動香港社會和經濟在未來更好地發 展。

rcep
- 林郑月娥表示，政府正筹备在泰国开设第三个东盟国家的经贸办事处，又希望进一步争取加入RCEP，加强在东盟方面工作。她强调现时在港上市的东盟企业非常少，希望未来能用好香港品牌，吸引东盟企业来港上市、融资，以及加强专业服务等领域合作。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20180614/PDF/a17_screen.pdf
- Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Saturday that he’s willing to conclude a mega Asia-Pacific trade agreement without India “for the time being.”

Mahathir was referring to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, or RCEP, which involves 16 countries in Asia Pacific. Negotiations have been going on since 2013, with one of the major sticking points being India’s reluctance to open up its markets. A recent report by Nikkei Asian Review said China, growing impatient with the slow progress on RCEP talks, proposed going ahead with just 13 countries — removing India, Australia and New Zealand from the deal.https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/24/malaysia-mahathir-rcep-can-go-on-without-india-for-the-time-being.html

TPP
- 劉斯路article http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/09/25/a19-0925.pdf 國家主席習近平表示，中國的「一帶一路」戰略開放 包容，歡迎包括美國在內的世界各國和國際組織參與到 合作中來。而美國搞TPP的戰略目的，確有針對中國的 意味。香港是中國開放的窗口和橋樑，尤其在習主席所 提的「亞太一體化」中扮演重要角色，應考慮先行加入 TPP，然後中國內地再入，化TPP為我所用。
- http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20151007/00184_009.html 三禪建議，香港作為世貿組織成員的身份先加入TPP。香港先入，美國不好意思阻擋。香港先入，北京再入，這應該是化TPP為我所用的大智慧。
- tdc 關家明said that hk apparel and footwearvindustry will suffer felix chung said that sar govt has lost the opportunity to join tpp hkej10oct15 a2 a19
- 陳光南article 香港作為中國的特別行政區 ，經濟發展利益和中國聯 繫在一起 。中國在未來的新的世界貿易規則的制定 ，全力 參與 T P P，首先是人民幣走向市場 ，國營企業轉向混合經 濟改革 ，都是香港的黃金發展商機 。香港將可以擔當內地 國營企業上市招股 、吸收外國資金的重要橋樑和金融中心 ，香港更加可以成為人民幣走向國際化 、人民幣資本項目 開放 、自由兌換的一個試點 。特區政府應該成為一個法律 制度保障和投資環境的建設者 ，協助中國加入 T P P，維護 中國的發展權益 ，為中國的經濟發展在知識產權 、物流運 輸 、科技企業創新 、中國的投資走向世界 ，扮演更重要的 角色 。香港的專業服務人士 ，將會在未來二十年走向世界 ，在自由貿易區的服務業開放以及蓬勃發展中 ，得到更多 就業機會和創業機會 ，創造自己事業的新的里程碑 。 二 ○ 一五年和二 ○一六年 ，特區政府把工作重點放在發展經濟 ，建立新產業 ，開拓新市場方面 ，建設制度派全力爭奪立 法會財委會的主導權 ，完全是適應了新的國際自由貿易區 大發展的新形勢 。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20151013/PDF/a7_screen.pdf
- 由於中國不是TPP成員國，不少分析認為內地的貿易和經濟將因此大受衝擊，香港也難逃池魚之殃。貿發局、中銀香港等多個機構亦指出，部分在內地開廠的港商將會受到較大影響，尤其是鞋類和紡織成衣類，或會成為「重災區」，但香港本身已是全世界最自由經濟體，未來只要積極加入更多的區域貿易組織，並善用亞投行、「一帶一路」政策帶來的商機，反而可獲得更多的發展機遇。貿發局研究部環球市場首席經濟師潘永才近日接受本報訪問時表示，目前香港大部分廠家都在內地生產，由於內地不是TPP成員，產品的關稅將高過成員國很多，令其競爭力下滑，從而影響香港的出口。特別是勞動密集產品受到影響最大，因為那些產品主要「鬥平價」，比如紡織成衣和鞋類，料將會成為重災區。潘永才指出，由於這兩類產品很多都在越南生產，越南作為TPP成員國之一，今後的競爭優勢更加凸顯。港商對此先知先覺，近年來主動應對，陸續有不少廠家搬遷到越南。因為越南數年前已經是TPP成員國，「港商知道（TPP）遲早會實施，早就一直搬過去。紡織廠、紗廠、布廠都在搬」。他料TPP正式落實後更將成為催化劑，促使更多港商搬遷到越南。中銀香港經濟研究處高級經濟研究員王春新也在接受本報專訪時表示，香港業界早已開始搬遷，雖然這主要是因為內地生產的成本提高太快，但TPP正式落實後，美國市場將對中國產品形成擠出效應，以紡織品和鞋類受到衝擊較大，競爭力不強的將被替代，料將會加快業界搬遷轉移的趨勢。其中以鞋類的附加值最低，廠家搬得最快，在珠三角地區甚至「很多都搬空了」。曾俊華表示，港府會密切留意TPP，尤其是當它的章節推出來的時候，會先研究細節是怎樣，再看看下一步怎樣做。「當然我們會保持一個開放的態度去對這一個，我們亦了解他們內裡有很多的要求我們當然是做得到的，而且我們亦歡迎世界的貿易進一步自由化，這個亦會對香港有好處，我們在這方面會歡迎」。工業貿易署也書面回覆本報，稱「香港是自由貿易的堅定倡議者，我們歡迎及支持任何有助全球貿易自由化的區域倡議。 TPP成員當中很多均是香港的主要貿易夥伴，我們一直有密切留意有關TPP的發展。待TPP文本公開後，我們會對有關條文作出研究」。中銀香港經濟研究處高級經濟研究員王春新也贊成香港先加入TPP，稱香港是全世界最自由開放的經濟體，TPP的要求香港基本上都能達到。若能加入，東盟國家通過香港轉口、投資的數量都會大大增加。另外，香港也是亞洲的投資中心，截至2014年底，香港在海外投資的總資產約有5萬億美元，每年帶來1萬億港元的收入。由於TPP成員在投資上也會有優惠措施，香港加入後的投資地位也會進一步加強。貿發局研究部環球市場首席經濟師潘永才也認為，從法律角度看香港可以自己加入TPP，但美國有很多政治考慮，是否希望香港加入，是相當複雜的問題。他並指出，香港即便加入TPP幫助也不大，因為多數港商在內地生產，內地若未加入TPP，這些產品出口到美國仍是高關稅，加上香港本身已經是開放的自由港，因此加入與否幫助並不大。事實上，早在2011年，時任美國商務部副部長的Francisco J. Sanchez在香港出席活動時曾表示，美國歡迎並支持香港作為APEC的正式一員加入TPP，因為香港對APEC及自由貿易有重大貢獻。被問及中國內地與香港可否共同加入時，他稱不能代表其他經濟體回答，也不評論在「一國兩制」下，香港加入區域合作組織應採取什麼策略，但美國將努力推進TPP，並歡迎更多APEC成員加入。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/10/19/b05-1019.pdf
- http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20151105/00184_006.html香港作為特別行政區，《基本法》第一百五十一條賦予了香港「在經濟、貿易、金融、航運、通訊、旅遊、文化、體育等領域以『中國香港』的名義，單獨地同世界各國、各地區及有關國際組織保持和發展關係，簽訂和履行有關協議」。換言之，香港是否爭取加入TPP，有自主決定權。工業貿易署署長麥靖宇近日出席廠商會會董會晚宴時表示，香港是自由貿易的堅定倡議者，歡迎任何有助全球貿易自由化的區域倡議。TPP成員中很多是香港的重要貿易夥伴，特區政府一直密切關注TPP的發展，待相關文本公開後，會對有關條文作出研究，評估對香港的影響，以及香港加入的可行性。TPP目前有十二個成員，佔全球GDP約四成，佔全球貿易額約四分之一。除貨物貿易及服務貿易，條文亦包含相當廣闊的其他議題，如勞工標準、環境保護、知識產權、電子商務、國有企業等，有些頗具爭議，談判過程曾一拖再拖，故相信談判雖已完成，但細節仍需斟酌，距離落實與生效還有一段時間。故此，香港是否加入，不用急於決定。因為TPP對貿易產品的原料和產地都有限制，而香港工業早已北移，加入TPP到底是否有利，的確有待細節公布後仔細分析，才能了解。另一方面，要說服TPP成員容許香港加入，也不是一廂情願便可以的。http://www.chinadailyasia.com/opinion/2015-11/16/content_15344998.htmlHis speech, on account of it being a heated topic in recent days, naturally focused on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and the “Belt and Road” strategic initiative. The US-led TPP trade pact, as we all know, is more or less directed against China. In this case, should Hong Kong endeavor to join the TPP? In response, Mak pointed out that as a firm believer in and supporter of free trade, Hong Kong welcomes any agreement beneficial to global trade liberalization. Many of the 12 founding members of the TPP are important mercantile partners of Hong Kong. Thus Hong Kong has been paying extra attention to its negotiation process. Mak believes that the SAR government will evaluate the influence and feasibility of Hong Kong joining the TPP after its specific rules are released and researched in depth. According to Article 151 of the Basic Law, “The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region may on its own, using the name ‘Hong Kong, China’, maintain and develop relations and conclude and implement agreements with foreign states and regions and relevant international organizations in the appropriate fields, including the economic, trade, financial and monetary, shipping, communications, tourism, cultural and sports fields.” This guarantees Hong Kong the freedom to make its own decision on whether or not to join the TPP. With the decision-making power in our own hands, however, we need not rush into a decision. The TPP’s provisions on rules of origin are strictly designed to ensure that only goods that originate in the TPP region receive preferential treatment under the agreement. Many Hong Kong businesses have moved their factories to the mainland or Southeast Asia over past decades, so there might be only a few of our products that are eligible to enjoy the privileges provided by the TPP. To reap the full benefits of it, Hong Kong needs to negotiate for its admission into the pact with all TPP founding members. This is definitely not an easy job. In contrast, Hong Kong could more readily benefit from the “Belt and Road” initiative. For this reason, the city should waste no time participating in this grand economic strategy spearheaded by our own country. The first step for Hong Kong to participate in it is to clear off all trade barriers and establish trading partnership with as many countries or regions in the “Belt and Road” area as possible. This is exactly what the SAR government is trying to do. It is sparing no effort in negotiating with other governments on free trade agreements (FTAs). At the moment, negotiations are going on for three FTAs, namely the FTA between Hong Kong and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the ASEAN Framework for Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and the Hong Kong-Macao Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA).
- http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/hkedition/2015-11/13/content_22446608.htmWhen Australia introduced compulsory plain packaging of cigarette packets a few years ago, thisreduced sales and profits of tobacco companies there and that in turn occasioned one of thecompanies to sue the Australian government under a clause in the Australia-Hong Kongagreement. The clause is probably similar to the not yet public one in the TPP. There is a certainnatural justice in companies holding governments to account when they unilaterally change thetrading conditions. Some may say, however, that any company operating in a new country is acorporate citizen of the new country and therefore cannot have rights above and beyond thoseaccorded to other citizens. Such privileging of the foreign corporation is not, for suchcommentators, a matter of trade becoming freer but rather a matter of retreating tomercantilism. Mercantilism is the name for the international economic system of the pre-industrial but fully colonial era, when Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and then England andFrance licensed their corporations to impose their will on newly conquered colonies.Mercantilism, as the name suggests, is rule by merchants. It is not capitalism. It is not free trade.Free trade is an ideal state of no tariffs, no restrictions on the international movement of capital,material or people, and no differential taxation of domestic as opposed to foreign supplies. TheTPP ticks the box for tariff reduction, half ticks it for de-restriction of free movement, but nomore than that. Humanity has the United Nations (UN) and the UN has the World Trade Organization (WTO).World government is not, however, within the grasp of the UN for the foreseeable future. Nationshave slowly moved toward federated unions like the European Union, the Organization ofAmerican States, the Gulf Cooperation Council and now China's "Belt and Road", a new Silk Roadconfederation, to pursue their national economic interests. One day there may be worldgovernment and the WTO may regulate world trade in the global public interest. Until then, anynew agreement, partnership, treaty or grouping in economic affairs is likely to be a mix ofnational and mercantilist interests being advanced. It is wise and sensible for countries outsideof any new agreement to stay outside until they see if their own interests are served well byjoining the agreement. What China has said of its "Belt and Road" vision has a developmentalaspect missing from the TPP, and it is facile to see the TPP and "Belt and Road" initiatives aseither free trade projects or as mercantilist trading blocks around contending superpower hubs.They represent contrasting visions of economic leadership. Between these visions entente is notonly possible but is the natural equilibrium state. The author (
Gabriel Donleavy) is professor of accounting in the New England Business School at the University ofNew England in Armidale, Australia.

- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20151229/PDF/a15_screen.pdf 談及美國與11國簽訂的跨太平洋夥伴關 係協定（TPP），港商反應兩極化。已在越 南等TPP成員國設廠的港商高興不已，因將 來出口到美日等成員國產品關稅將大減或撤 銷，令產品競爭力大增；但內地設廠的港商 則苦不堪言，因中國非成員國而無法獲零關 稅，不利港產品出口，當中以平價成衣、紡 織及鞋類最受打擊。幸好，TPP最快要兩年 後才生效，港商可考慮在成員國設廠，或努 力轉型升級來減低影響。再者，港府應爭取 與更多國家簽署自貿協議，為港商創造有利 的營商環境。香港貿發局環球市場首席經濟師潘永才接受大公 報訪問時表示，當TPP生效後，不少產品的關稅將即時 撤銷，包括大多數紡織及服裝，故對相關行業 影響較大。他說，現時很多港商在內地設廠， 但因中國非TPP成員國而無法獲零關稅優惠，將削 弱內地及香港產品在TPP成員國的競爭力，對中、 低價產品影響最大，中、高檔次影響相對較輕微。對於港商應對TPP之方法，潘永才表示，港商可考 慮在TPP成員國設廠，或盡快轉型升級，避免產品 「鬥 平」，減低關稅之影響。他又期望，港府能與更多國 家簽訂自貿協議，因現時香港只有一項自貿協定是與 一個位列全球十大的經濟體簽訂，即CEPA。此外，香 港只與由冰島、列支敦士登、挪威和瑞士組成的歐洲 自由貿易聯盟，及智利和新西蘭訂立了自由貿易協定 ，而與東盟的自貿協定談判仍在進行之中。 潘永才表示，最好是中國與香港同時加入某一自 貿區，否則若只有中國加入，而香港沒有加入便會有 問題。 「假設中國將來加入TPP，但香港沒有加入，可 能會被身為TPP成員國的新加坡搶生意」。TPP 生 效 後 ，將來成員國間 會逐步撤銷1.8萬 項關稅，但因中 國非成員國，而 很多港商又在內 地設廠，且香港 中小企無力在越 南 等 TPP 成 員 國 另設新廠，因而 十分無奈。本身 從事成衣出口歐 美的香港中小型 企業總商會副會長巢國明形容，現時中小企處於 水深火熱中，一方面內地各成本急漲，但買家又 以越南輸美日市場零關稅為由，要求港商減價， 否則可能失去訂單，令港商成為 「夾心人」，處 境十分艱難。
- hktdc's analysis http://hkmb.hktdc.com/en/1X0A5M8Y/hktdc-research/The-Trans-Pacific-Partnership-Revisited?utm_source=enews&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=hkmb-edm
- https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/05/inequality-and-the-tpp-who-will-benefit-from-the-trade-agreement?utm_content=buffer262a0&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer
- http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201605/0518/HA16518CEAA.pdf julien chaisse of cuhk advocated that hk should join tpp
- http://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/2045246/pacific-rim-nations-urged-salvage-regional-trade-pact Asia-Pacific countries hoping the pact would be pushed through were left in shock after Trump’s victory. The ambassadors of Singapore, Japan, Australia and New Zealand in Washington cancelled a planned press conference scheduled on Thursday after Clinton’s defeat. Vietnam’s Trade Minister Tran Tuan Anh said the country would remain competitive even if the TPP did not go through.
- http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/2046623/japan-malaysia-leaders-team-keep-their-tpp-dreams-alive
- http://www.reuters.com/article/us-apec-vietnam-idUSKCN18F0MR Remaining members of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement are working on a statement to reaffirm their commitment to it, despite the withdrawal of the United States, sources close to the discussions said.
Some still hope for the eventual return of the United States to the deal ditched by U.S. President Donald Trump, because of his readiness to shift position on other issues, Malaysia's trade minister said. Talks are happening on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting, the biggest trade gathering since Trump upended the world order with his "America First" policy.
- http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-09/15/c_136612898.htm Top negotiators from the 11 remaining Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) members will hold a meeting in Japan next week to discuss changing or freezing parts of the trade pact after the withdrawal of the United States, the Japanese government said on Friday. The talks, to run for two days starting from Thursday, would be focused on parts of the pact such as government procurement and the protection of intellectual property, as the 11 member countries are aiming to complete preparatory work by November to put the deal into force, local media reported. The leaders of the 11 countries are expected to meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Vietnam in November.

• The 11 remaining nations in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) without the United States edged towards sealing a comprehensive free trade pact after New Zealand agreed to amend laws that are not subject to TPP, to enable its ban on foreign home purchases. The pact aims to eliminate tariffs on industrial and farm products across an 11-nation bloc whose trade totaled $356.3 billion last year. This week’s compromise saves member nations from having to renegotiate the ambitious trade pact to accommodate the New Zealand government’s demands for firm measures to rein in housing prices. It also brings member countries closer to an important victory in support of free trade to be finalised at an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit next week in Vietnam’s central city of Danang.http://www.reuters.com/article/us-trade-tpp-japan/tpp-talks-without-u-s-near-final-stretch-ahead-of-apec-idUSKBN1D14MB

- 談判於昨日出現突破，全體簽署國就核心項目達成共識（圖），協定改名為「跨太平洋夥伴全面及進步協定」（CPTPP）。加拿大強調許多議題仍懸而未決。有美國媒體分析認為，CPTPP失去美國這個龐大市場，對越南、馬來西亞、智利和秘魯等國家的吸引力已大減。orientaldaily 12nov17

• https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/trade/free-trade-agreements/agreements-under-negotiation/cptpp-2/tpp-and-cptpp-the-differences-explained/
• The 11 countries of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are set to sign their pact without an original partner, the United States, in March in Chile. The deal was reached on Tuesday (Jan 23) after two days of talks in Tokyo.Canada, which has sought protection of its cultural industries, and Vietnam, which is worried about labour protection rules, will exchange separate side letters with other members on those respective topics at the time of the signing. The precise content of the letters will not be revealed until then. http://www.straitstimes.com/world/6-things-to-know-about-the-trans-pacific-trade-pact-cptpp
•  沒有了美國，TPP像是「抽掉了脊樑骨」。協定前後的旗手不一樣了，原有規則雖然保留了百分之九十五，但知識產權保護、勞工標準等「最TPP的元素」有大約二十項在CPTPP中被凍結。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180126/00182_001.html
• （CPTPP）十一個成員國，周三公布協定新架構最終版本，將去除彼此百分之九十八的貿易關稅，並叫停大量之前應美國要求加上的條款。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180222/00180_016.html
• https://www.ft.com/content/423b4908-2225-11e8-add1-0e8958b189ea Leaders of the 11-strong Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal are on the hunt for new members as they prepare for a formal signing ceremony in Chile on Thursday that will illustrate how the world is moving on without Donald Trump’s America. Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and even the UK are all regarded as possible additions to a pact that lays down strong rules for trade in the most dynamic region of the world economy.
• Eleven Asia-Pacific countries have just signed the trade pact formerly known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Although the US pulled out last year, the deal was salvaged by the remaining members, who signed it at a ceremony in the Chilean city of Santiago.http://www.bbc.com/news/business-43326314
• Vietnam on Monday became the seventh country to ratify a sprawling Pacific trade pact set to come into effect later this year, despite US President Donald Trump's pullout from a deal he decried as a "job killer".
  Read more at https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/vietnam-ratifies-trans-pacific-partnership-trade-pact-10922494

- 作為美國農產品亞洲第二大出口市場的日本，將於下周日及明年二月起，分別減少《跨太平洋夥伴全面及進步協定》（CPTPP）部分成員國及歐盟農產品的關稅，並降低配額。部分受惠國是美國農業的競爭對手，受中美貿易戰影響的美國農產品或再陷危機。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20181227/00180_004.html

- ip related provision

• http://www.ipwatchdog.com/2015/11/02/tpp-what-the-government-use-of-software-provisions-mean/id=62801/

- stance taken by large trading bloc, key trading nation

• commonwealth

• 2014 paper https://www.thecommonwealth-ilibrary.org/commonwealth/trade/the-trans-pacific-partnership-and-excluded-commonwealth-developing-countries_5jz0zb2d826b-en

- impact

• 日本綜合商業企業丸紅在一月開始，在越南南部胡志明市近郊的工業園區建設製造瓦楞紙板的工廠，投資金額約120億日圓（約8.45億港元）。工廠將運用日本國內造紙子公司的技術，生產被稱為掛麵紙板（linerboard）的瓦楞紙板。公司更計劃到二○二○年度起，使到每年產能35萬噸的設備投入運行，預計實現全年超過200億日圓（約14.09億港元）的銷售額。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20190318/00202_021.html

pacific alliance
- The Pacific Alliance (Spanish: Alianza del Pacífico) is a Latin American trade bloc, with some features of further integration. It currently has four member states — Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, which all border the Pacific Ocean.On 28 April 2011, former president of Peru Alan García organized a meeting with the presidents of Chile, Colombia and Mexico. This group of political leaders issued the Declaración de Lima, a statement of intent to establish the Pacific Alliance. The initial goal of the alliance was to further free trade with "a clear orientation toward Asia", and economic integration. The four founding nations of the Pacific Alliance represent nearly 36% of Latin American GDP. If counted as a single country this group of nations would be the sixth largest economy in the world with a PPP GDP of more than US$3 trillion. According to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the countries of the Pacific Alliance together exported about $445 billion in 2010, almost 60% more than Mercosur, the other predominant Latin American trade bloc. Individually and collectively, the core countries of the Pacific Alliance have been deemed "The Pacific Pumas" by political scientists, for their model of economic and political development.^{[citation needed]} At the VII Pacific Alliance Summit in Cali, Colombia, on May 22, 2013, Costa Rica signed a trade agreement with Colombia, and later in the summit received approval for full membership from all the founding members.^[8] Costa Rica is finishing up the process so it can be readily incorporated as the Alliance's fifth member. At the same summit seven observers were admitted: the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Honduras, Paraguay, and Portugal. The Pacific Alliance currently has 49 observer states, including economic heavyweights such as Japan, China, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as three of the five Southern Common Market (Mercosur) countries and a member of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA).^[10]Analysts describe the Pacific Alliance as a tool to practise a kind of joint “nation-branding” to promote trade and investment and to enhance the international status and visibility of the member states.
- https://www.wsj.com/articles/australia-and-new-zealand-start-trade-talks-with-pacific-alliance-1498885241 (1jul17)

EU Japan US
- https://www.ft.com/content/5f0aad90-deae-11e7-a8a4-0a1e63a52f9c The EU, Japan and the US are set to announce a new alliance to take on China more aggressively over trade issues such as overcapacity in steel and forced technology transfers, in a rare effort at international economic co-operation by the Trump administration.  In a statement due to be issued on Tuesday on the sidelines of a World Trade Organization meeting, the three economies will target the “severe excess capacity” in important sectors like steel and the role of illegal subsidies, state financing and state-owned enterprises in fuelling it, according to a draft read to the Financial Times.  Also targeted are the rules in countries such as China that require foreign investors to hand over important proprietary technologies or house content and data on local servers.


HKCEPC

- 唐國強大使總結港研討會 為年底APEC峰會獻計http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/07/02/a19-0702.pdf

A regional trade deal for Asia-Pacific?
- http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1501232/beijing-eyes-new-regional-free-trade-deal-us-led-pact-falters

United Nations

- UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL)

http://research.un.org/en/docs/law/ga
- United Nations Environment Programme's Division of Technology, Industry and Economics, the Economics and Trade Branch (UNEP-ETB) http://www.unep.ch/etb/areas/index.php

• network of institutions for sustainable development http://www.unep.ch/etb/areas/nisd.php

- 獨家專訪聯合國貿發會議秘書長穆希薩·基圖伊http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140530/PDF/a33_screen.pdf
- The International Computing Centre (ICC) is the leading provider of Information Technology and Communications (ICT) services within the United Nations System. Over the last four decades, ICC has been continually expanding the services it is providing to its Partners in various parts of the world, and in various areas of ICT. http://www.unicc.org/


icc
- In October 2002, the ICC Banking Commission approved a document entitled “International Standard Banking Practice for the Examination of Documents under Documentary Credits (ISBP)”. In June 2003, several refinements to the text were issued in the form of a “corrigenda”. Note that only one of these changes (concerning paragraph 187) was a substantive change. The other changes were minor and mechanical and have no impact on the substance.https://iccwbo.org/publication/international-standard-banking-practice-isbp-corrigenda/- The ICC Uniform Rules for Collections are a practical set of Rules to aid bankers, buyers, and sellers in the collections process. The Rules have been prepared to resolve problems that practitioners have experienced in their everyday operations since 1979. URC 522 underlines the need for the principal and/or the remitting bank to attach a separate document, the collection instruction, to every collection subject to the Rules – makes it very clear that banks will not examine documents, particularly not to look for instructions – addresses problems banks experience in respect of documents against acceptance (D/A) and documents against payment (D/P) – clearly indicates that banks have no obligation to store and insure goods when instructed. http://store.iccwbo.org/icc-uniform-rules-for-collections



World Economic Forum
- http://www3.weforum.org/docs/GAC/2014/WEF_GAC_TradeFDI_MegaRegionalTradeAgreements_Report_2014.pdf


 Asian Trade Promotion Forum  http://www.atpf.org/


World Trade Institute http://www.wti.org/
- people (Patrick Low of Fung Global Institute)

financing international trade
- bank paymeny obligation - transmitted electronically between the participating banks using the SWIFT system
- rules

• uniform rules for bank payment obligations 2013 by icc

- documentary bill
- documentary credits

• unified customs and practice for documentary credits
• types - revocable and irrevocable credits; confirmed and unconfirmed credits; revolving credits; transferable and non- transferable credits; back to back credits; standby credits
• principles - strict compliance; autonomy of credit; autonomy and fraud exception; autonomy and illegality
• contracts arising out of a documentary credit transaction

• contract of sale
•  contract between buyer and issuing bank
• conract between issuing bank and the advising or confirming bank
• contract between banks and seller - examination of documents and complying presentations; waiver of discrepancies; notice of rejectiin; payment under reserve 

• governing law

• in absence of choice, presumed to be governed by the law of habitual residence of the bank, under art 4(1)(b) of rome i regulation

- standby credits, performance bonds, and guarantees

• stanby credits
• performance bonds and gurantees

- export credit guarantees
- others

• forfaiting
• internationsl factoring
• international financial leasing
• confirming houses

distribution/wholesale - retail
- china

• 陝西西安有平治車女車主坐車頭蓋維權，引起輿論哄動。國家市場監管總局上周五約談北京梅賽德斯-奔馳（Mercedes-Benz，香港稱為「梅賽德斯-平治」）公司，要求公司加強對經銷商的管理。公司負責人則表示，正在開展全面自查自糾，明確要求全體經銷商不得以提供金融服務為由收取費用。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190512/00178_011.html

force majeure
-  cases

• 日前，匯大機械製造（湖州）有限公司收到了全國首張新型冠狀病毒感染的肺炎疫情不可抗力事實性證明書。該公司作為法國標緻公司供貨商，按約定近期每周需交付10000套產品，但因受本次疫情影響，無法按時交貨。企業負責人告訴記者，如果不能及時提供無法履行合同的合法證明，企業不僅要承擔價值240萬人民幣的直接損失，還要被追償因導致客戶生產線停產2周造成的約3000萬元人民幣損失。據悉，不可抗力事實性證明是指由中國貿促會及其授權的分、支會應申請人的申請，對與不可抗力有關的事實進行證明，出具後當事人可以部分或全部免除不履行、不完全履行和遲延履行合同的責任。目前該證明書已得到全球200多個國家和地區政府、海關、商會和企業的認可。浙江省貿促會副會長許勇介紹，截至2月13日，浙江貿促系統已為209家企業出具了302份與疫情相關的不可抗力事實性證明，合同金額超過7.5億美元，涉及歐美、英國、越南、阿聯酋等70多個國家和地區。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20200229/PDF/a16_screen.pdf
• 中國前商務部副部長魏建國前天表示，中方「絕對」尊重一月時與美國簽訂的農產品採購承諾，惟因疫情影響使情況變得複雜，中國或被迫以「不可抗力」為由，不兌現其他產品的採購承諾。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200301/00178_002.html

Useful info
- http://worldtradelaw.typepad.com/ielpblog/
- credit check

• https://www.globalsources.com/SITE/import-export-service-providers.HTM

jargon
- d/p at sight  
- d/p after sight - documents against payment after sight
- cad - cash against documents
-  A retention of title clause (also called a Romalpa clause in some jurisdictions) is a provision in a contract for the sale of goods that the title to the goods remains vested in the seller until certain obligations (usually payment of the purchase price) are fulfilled by the buyer. The main purpose of retention of title ("ROT") clauses is to ensure that where goods are supplied on credit, if the buyer subsequently goes into bankruptcy, the seller can repossess the goods. They are often seen as a natural extension of the credit economy; where suppliers are expected to sell goods on credit, there is a reasonable expectation that if they are not paid they should be able to repossess the goods. Nonetheless, in a number of jurisdictions, insolvency regimes or credit arrangement regimes prevent title retention clauses from being enforced where doing so would upset administration of the regime. 


Kiv
- Global Trade Advocate: A Handbook for Managers and Association Executives
By Peter Gallagher https://books.google.com.hk/books?id=5uRa1SUOfyQC&pg=PA1&lpg=PA1&dq=Global+Trade+Advocate:+A+Handbook+for+Managers+and+Association&source=bl&ots=xR1TVg6DAp&sig=OdOImXLP7fJUg5gXZqBzN8Yilj4&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiO_bujqujNAhVDkZQKHQZ2ACsQ6AEIGTAA#v=onepage&q=Global%20Trade%20Advocate%3A%20A%20Handbook%20for%20Managers%20and%20Association&f=false


HKTDC
- global trade cooperation initiatives http://www.hktdc.com/mis/pbi/en/, Pacific Bridge Initiative http://www.hktdc.com/mis/pbi/en/s/US-index.html

Tax
- disclose full details of cigarette study http://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1597605/letters-editor-september-22-2014 Daniel A. Witt, president, International Tax and Investment Centre's letter proposed an increase in tobacco tax
- wto cases

• 泰國刑事法院前日裁定，煙草商菲利普莫里斯（Philip Morris）透過少報從菲律賓入口香煙的貨值，逃稅罪名成立，將罰款十二億泰銖（約三億一千萬港元），菲利普莫里斯表明會上訴。控方指，菲利普莫里斯於二○○三年至二○○六年間，逃稅逾二百億泰銖（約五十一億七千萬港元）。泰國特別調查局於二○○六年展開調查，檢察官在二○一一年曾放棄檢控，但在二○一三年再次立案，於前年正式提出刑事檢控。泰國刑事法院最終判菲利普莫里斯罪名成立，但判七名員工的罪名不成立，因為沒有足夠證據證明他們有刑責。菲利普莫里斯指，他們一直根據泰國及世界貿易組織（WTO）的規則行事。菲律賓曾指控泰國設立不公平的入口關稅，目的是讓泰國國營煙草企業得到好處。WTO最後裁定菲律賓勝訴，稱泰國沒有遵守世貿規則。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191201/00180_025.html

World Trade Centre Association
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140321/PDF/b12_screen.pdf
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2016/09/15/a12-0915.pdf行政長官梁振 英昨日在禮賓府 會見世界貿易中 心協會主席加齊· 阿 布 納 爾 （ 左 三）及世界貿易 中心協會代表團 全體成員。全國 政協常委伍淑清 （左二）陪同會 見。
- http://www.scmp.com/business/article/2020194/business-association-works-grow-one-belt-one-road With over 60 economies involved, China’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative is already pretty expansive – but the World Trade Centre Association thinks it could be even bigger. The non-profit business association, which counts 330 cities around the world as members, is working to encourage more countries to get involved with the project, chairman Ghazi Abu Nahl said.
- china daily 31may19 WTC los angeles host 2019 select LA investment summit

World Trade United Foundation 世貿聯合基金總會
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140325/PDF/b17_screen.pdf
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140416/PDF/b15_screen.pdf
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140417/PDF/b13_screen.pdf
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/05/10/a10-0510.pdf
- 澳洲舉行和平祈禱大會 http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140812/PDF/a22_screen.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/08/13/a30-31-0813.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140815/PDF/a17_screen.pdf
- 曾志偉獲聘世貿基金榮譽主席 http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20140825/PDF/b7_screen.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/08/26/b07-0826.pdf
- 世貿聯合基金總會舉行發展年會 118位委員出席 http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/09/23/a21-0923.pdf
- 世貿基金會辦國慶招待會http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141013/PDF/b6_screen.pdf
- 李家誠黎明助世貿聯會傳遞正能量http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141023/PDF/a23_screen.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/10/25/b05-1025.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/10/28/a25-1028.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141031/PDF/a25_screen.pdf
- 世貿聯合基金總會國情班圓滿舉辦http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/11/20/aa02-1120.pdf, 世貿聯合基金國情班結束http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141124/PDF/a18_screen.pdf
- 世貿聯合基金會晚宴聯歡http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141127/PDF/a23_screen.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/11/28/b08-1128.pdf
- 世貿聯合基金總會國情班圓滿舉辦http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2014/12/02/a21-1202.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141203/PDF/a27_screen.pdf
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20141213/PDF/a23_screen.pdf 日前，由世貿聯合基金總會（簡稱：世貿基金）和澳洲中華總商聯合會（簡稱：澳中聯）共同舉辦的 「中澳文化節計劃交流會晚宴」 暨聘任頒授儀式，在澳洲墨爾本圓滿舉辦。來自中澳各界的朋友共商兩國關係和諧發展前景，增進相互了解和友誼，拓展各領域互利合作。上議院議長布魯斯．阿特金森（Hon.Bruce Atkinson MLC）和中國駐墨爾本總領事館張曉宏領事代表中領館分別致辭祝賀。
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150105/PDF/a5_screen.pdf世貿聯合基金總會2015年就職典禮暨榮譽大使頒獎禮昨日在香港會展中心隆重舉行。大會廣邀香港社會各界賢達，眾多外國嘉賓逾2000人出席，場面盛大，星光熠熠。行政長官梁振英為就職禮監誓，並頒發就職聘書。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/01/03/a09-0103.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150103/PDF/a11_screen.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150103/PDF/a12_screen.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/01/06/a16-0106.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/01/09/a12-13-0109.pdf, http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/01/09/a14-0109.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150109/PDF/a11_screen.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150109/PDF/a12_screen.pdf
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150212/PDF/b11_screen.pdf 近日，世貿聯合基金總會訪問團參 訪香港立法會，立法會主席曾鈺成接見並宴請。世貿 聯合基金總會訪問團成員包括主席陳晴，榮譽主席、 澳洲維多利亞州上議院議長布魯斯．阿特金森（ Hon. Bruce Atkinson MLC），名譽主席、澳洲維多 利亞州州長顧問廖嬋娥，第一副主席、香港行政會議 成員李慧琼，第一副主席、全國人大代表陳勇，秘書 長、立法會議員鍾樹根等一行40餘人。會晤中，訪問 團成員展開了熱烈友好的交流，並參觀立法會大樓， 詳細了解立法會的運作情況。
- 近日，全國政協第十屆和十一屆副主席、民盟中央原第一副主 席、中華全國婦女聯合會副主席張梅穎，於釣魚台國賓館會見世貿聯合基金總 會中央議會主席白瑪奧色法王，世貿聯合基金總會榮譽主席、澳洲中華總商聯 合會常務副主席、澳洲維多利亞州上議院議長布魯斯．阿特金森（Hon Bruce Atkinson MLC），中國法學會法制文學研究會會長岳宣義將軍一行， 就民主、法治，政協參政議政、民主協商及反腐等進行了廣泛的交流。takung 14feb15 a21 http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/02/17/a13-0217.pdf
- 世貿聯合基金總會 「青年創新科技發展基 金」將於近期正式成立，注資千萬培養創新及 科技界的青年精英。為年輕一代建立嶄新的創 業平台，培養扶持攻克難關，創新高尖端的科 學技術，為社會的進步與發展作出貢獻，並開 展籌建 「世貿交易平台」，除了澳洲和韓國辦 公室，並設立了港澳台辦公室深圳辦事處、廈 門自貿區12000呎辦事處和文化交流中心、泉 州辦事處，配合中央一帶一路、自貿園區的國 際戰略。 http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150309/PDF/23_screen.pdf
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/03/23/a18-0323.pdf 受深圳創新和創業環境良好氛圍的吸引， 世貿聯合基金總會創新及科技委員會昨日帶領 香港 50位企業和創業人士赴深圳，與羅湖區聯 合舉辦深港 IT業交流會，吸引了深港兩地 150 多名互聯網、電子商務及其他 IT企業家代表參 加。會上，世貿基金同步啟動首期 1,000萬元的 青年創新科技發展基金，用於支持深港青年基 於 IT領域的就業和創業等，並與羅湖區電子商 務產業聯盟共建深港 IT創客空間。據悉，該空 間面積達 5,000平方米，今年將投入運營，搭建 創新載體和平台，鼓勵和支持深港兩地青年創 新創業。
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/03/27/a11-0327.pdf 3月 21日，世貿聯合基金總會創新及科技委員會深港 IT交 流會暨青年創新科技發展基金啟動儀式，在深圳羅湖區科技 創新局成功舉辦，來自世貿基金總會的深港兩地近 200多名 互聯網、電子商務、IT企業精英代表參加。會議上，世貿聯 合基金總會啟動 1000萬港幣的「青年創新科技發展基金」， 用於支持深港青年基於 IT領域的就業和創業等，並與羅湖區 電子商務產業聯盟共建深港「國際創客空間」。據悉，該空 間面積達 5000平方米，今年將投入運營，搭建創新載體和平 台，鼓勵和支持深港兩地青年創新創業。http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201503/0327/HZ31327CHBB.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150327/PDF/b13_screen.pdf
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/04/09/a17-0409.pdf 3月 29日至 31日，世貿聯合基金總會(世貿總會)創新及科技委員會、社會服 務委員會、青年委員會、婦女委員會在香港舉辦三場春茗晚會，三千多位嘉賓 共襄盛舉。香港特別行政區行政長官梁振英出席主禮 29日春茗並發表講話，大 力支持世貿總會為青年鋪路搭橋，繼續建設繁榮安定社會，相信世貿總會創新 及科技委員會定能夠協助香港與內地的創新及科技發展更上一層樓。
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/04/21/b06-0421.pdf 日前，為慶祝中韓建交 23周年，以文化 為紐帶深化中韓友好合作互聯，世貿聯合 基金總會創辦人兼中央議會主席白瑪奧色 法王、行政主席陳晴、第一副主席陳勇、 秘書長鍾樹根等率領韓國國會訪問團在韓 國進行了系列交流活動。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/04/27/a29-0427.pdf
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/05/14/a16-0514.pdf 由世貿聯合基金 總會主辦的「國際創客空間」青年創新及科技 發展論壇暨米蘭世博會中國企業聯合館全球戰 略共建夥伴簽署儀式，5月 9日在深圳隆重舉 行。來自中國內地、港澳台，美國、澳大利 亞、韓國等多個國家和地區的科技網路、服務 設備、教研文娛、經貿投資的代表，以及海內 外的上百家各界商會和組織共 500餘人共襄盛 會。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150515/PDF/a23_screen.pdf 晚宴星光熠熠、冠蓋雲集，來自世貿總會 的愛心大使金玉婷、莫爾根、尕讓鄧真、央金 卓嘎、陽蕾、張珊萌、陳娟分別獻唱，中央電 視台主持人楊一、北京電視台主持人李慧玲主 持盛會；並邀世貿總會創辦人兼中央議會主席 白瑪奧色法王，永遠榮譽主席、全國政協外事 委員會副主任、全國工商聯副主席盧文端，行 政議會主席、聯合國經社理事會常委、聯合國 副秘書長顧問陳晴，榮譽主席兼第一副主席、 香港行政會議成員主席李慧琼，榮譽主席兼第 一副主席、全國人大代表陳勇，名譽主席兼秘書 長、香港立法會議員鍾樹根，中央駐港聯絡辦 公室教育科技部巡視員謝偉民、九龍工作部副 部長王小靈，2015意大利米蘭世博會中國企業 聯合館執行委員會副主任黃耀誠、副秘書長周 皓岩，香港特區政府署理政府資訊科技總監林 偉喬，世貿總會愛心大使麥長青等出席主禮。http://news.takungpao.com.hk/paper/20150521.html
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/05/20/a31-0520.pdf 世貿聯合基金總會與米蘭 世博會中國企業聯合館全球戰略共建夥伴新聞發布會，日 前在香港盛大召開，同場舉辦慶祝國際母親節聯歡晚會， 來自海內外各界代表1,500餘人共慶同歡。 據悉，世貿聯合基金總會作為米蘭世博會中國企業聯合 館唯一全球戰略共建夥伴，攜手共同推動展現「中國力 量」。參展企業將在佔地110萬平米的意大利2015米蘭世 博園中，將受到未來 5個月 2,500萬人次的現場關注。獲 得全球矚目的意大利 2015米蘭世博會盛事，更是創造無 限品牌價值和發展的機遇，滋養「中國種子」發展壯大。 推動文化大發展大繁榮是國家十二五規劃的重要戰略之 一，在國家軟實力不斷提升的同時，世貿總會旨為協助中 國企業積極地開拓國際市場，在米蘭世博會這一多邊的重 大舞台上，種下一顆「希望種子」，不僅推動經貿科技的 融合發展，同時在推動中華文化走向世界方面作出貢獻。
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/06/16/a18-0616.pdf 本港非牟利機構 世貿聯合基金總會（世貿總會）將於 7月起推出 青年培育計劃，由內地電子商務專家教授為期 3 日的工作坊，讓合共 600名香港青年學習創業技 巧及善用網上商貿平台。 「世貿總會」14年前於本港成立，理事會成員 包括多名全國人大代表、政協委員、本港立法會 議員、大學教授等，全國政協外事員會副主任盧 文端是其中一名創辦人兼中央議會主席。 「世貿總會」青年創新及科技發展基金將於 7 月起推出青年培育計劃，期望於 5 個月內資助 600名香港學員，到深圳學習為期 3日的電子創 業課程。負責計劃的全球阿爾法全腦開發研究院 首席資訊科技總監葉毅文表示，課程會由內地電 子商務專家負責教授，提供創業的概念與技巧， 並教授利用電子商業平台擴大發展空間。他表 示，「世貿總會」會與地區團體、科技團體及大 學合作，期望讓有興趣創業、主要修讀商科或電 腦的香港青年參與，並希望日後將培育計劃恆常 化。http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201507/0714/HZ18714CHBB.pdf, http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150718/PDF/a13_screen.pdf
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20150813/PDF/a23_screen.pdf 世貿聯合基金總會 （世貿總會） 「國際創客空間」 創客 奇幻工作室啟動儀式，日前在深圳隆 重舉行，深圳羅湖區科技創新局、世 貿聯合基金總會共同為其掛牌。啟動 當天有二十多個高科技研發專案入駐 ，雲集國內外百餘高新科技、互聯網 企商投資人。
- http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201510/1014/HZ19A14CHBB.pdf set up workshop in shenzhen
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20151106/PDF/a13_screen.pdf 10月25日，第十七屆中國上海國際藝術 「青年藝術創想周」 新聞發布會，暨上海戲劇學院與世貿聯合基金 總會戰略合作簽約儀式在滬圓滿舉行，世貿總會創辦人白瑪奧色法王為小室哲哉等多位國際藝術家及單位頒發 「青年藝術創想周特別貢獻獎」 。當天，著名歌唱家楊洪基，著名演員張鐵林、呂良偉還獻上本屆 「青創周」 大師課壓軸講演。而記者也在發布會上獲悉，在未來的5年中，上海戲劇學院與世貿聯合基金總會將共創國際 舞台，為中國文藝的繁榮發展和青年人才的輸送培養貢獻力量，讓精彩的藝術公益講座長久不落幕。
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/11/16/b03-1116.pdf 第十七屆高交會今日在深圳 市拉開帷幕。本屆高交會羅湖 區以「時尚羅湖、創新羅湖」 為主題，突出互聯網元素及電 子商務，並首次設立「創客園 區展示區」。展區設在會展中 心 1 號館，設有 35 個展位，共 38 家創新性企業及創客機構、 產業園區機構參展。
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20151202/PDF/a12_screen.pdf 世貿聯合基金總會舉辦的 首屆 「海峽兩岸青年創客匯」 在深圳耀世呈現！ 「習馬會」後的首次最大兩岸青年盛會，玩轉圜保科技與時尚元素，雲集大陸香港 台灣政商領袖，百家媒體明星大咖前來助陣！展現青年創客作品、促進海峽青年交流的 「生命共同體」，世貿總會與時尚芭莎、大公網絡集團、合一集團（原優酷土豆）、天 泉澤木簽訂戰略合作，展開大陸香港台灣明星大咖現場講座，同時頒發慈善大獎，其間 天泉鼎豐獲頒米蘭世博會大獎，更聯袂夏姿．陳大秀讓我們看到HighFashion與HighTech 碰撞出的無限可能。
- http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/international/art/20151209/19404986 活躍於本港政經圈，得特首和建制派議員捧場的藏傳佛教「白瑪奧色法王」（本名吳達鎔)，因替演員張鐵林在香港會展中心「坐床」（藏傳佛教中轉世靈童正式繼任活佛的重大儀式）惹爭議，被內地踢爆非活佛。白瑪奧色昨日發表聲明道歉，稱即日辭去所有職務、法王銜頭和認證。白瑪奧色自稱四川噶陀寺（藏傳佛教四大派別中寧瑪派最重要的寺廟）的直美信雄仁波車（於2012年圓寂）親自確認其轉世，並委任他協助管理全球1,300餘座寺廟，莫紮仁波車也曾認證其為活佛。月初莫紮仁波車、噶陀寺、及四川甘孜州民族宗教委員會、先後發表的三份聲明，直指吳活佛身份造假，所展示的所謂轉世認證實際上是授權他施主身份的信；噶陀寺即日起不許白瑪奧色再用噶陀之名，同時撤銷其「香港世界噶陀法脈分會」常務副理事職務，指他自行把該香港分會改名為「世界噶陀法脈總會」，利用噶陀之名開展各種活動。香港是白瑪奧色最大舞台。他2013年創辦世貿聯合基金總會（其實是間本港登記的有限公司），自詡：「唯一的國際最具影響力的精神智慧導師」，活動總有眾多本港政商名流站台。惹火上身的10月4日國慶祈福大法會就有民建聯主席李慧琼和鍾樹根、陳勇等議員任主禮嘉賓。《蘋果》記者昨致電鍾樹根，他說「畀面」去主禮，至於活佛真假，鍾說：「佛教嘅嘢我真係唔理解。我本身就無宗教信仰，問返啲朋友先。」鍾雖稱與白瑪奧色不熟，但他是世貿聯合基金總會秘書長，李慧琼更是該會榮譽主席兼第一副主席。世貿聯合基金總會1月4日就職典禮也在會展宴開20席，行政長官梁振英為就職禮監誓，主禮嘉賓還包括：基本法委員會副主任梁愛詩，全國政協委員霍震霆，全國人大代表吳秋北，行會成員葉劉淑儀、李慧琼，時任中聯辦副主任王志民攜多個部長出席。活動星光熠熠，黎明、張鐵林獲頒形象大使，呂良偉、曾志偉、胡軍分別獲頒和平大使及慈善大使。文匯網昨已刪除相關報道，大公網仍能看見。

China world trade corporation
- http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/china-world-trade-corporation-attends-the-world-trade-centers-associations-36th-general-assembly-in-shanghai-55421167.html China World Trade Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: CWTD), today announced its attendance at The World Trade Centers Association's 36th General Assembly. The event was held in Shanghai on September 20-23 2005, and was attended by hundreds of international business leaders, entrepreneurs and World Trade Center members. Mr. William Tsang, Chairman and President of China World Trade Corporation (CWTC), Mr. John Hui, CEO and Vice Chairman of CWTC and Mr. Chaoming Luo, Director of CWTC attended the event and had an opportunity to meet with the Mayor and Vice Mayor of Shanghai, local and international entrepreneurs, and other WTC representatives and to discuss improving the services and programs within the World Trade Center organizations.
- ad in cgcc mag dec2015 issue

香港世界貿易組織研究中心http://www.hkwto.org/wtopage/ch7.html
- 香港世界貿易組織研究中心成立典禮於2001年5月7日假座香港生產力促進局舉行，當時的香港特別行政區行政會議召集人暨中心贊助人梁振英先生主持開幕儀式。不少學術界、法律界及政府部門的嘉賓蒞臨是次盛會。
- http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2015/07/04/a06-0704.pdf 香港世界貿易組織研究中心、浙江大學光華法學院，將於本月24日在香港會展主辦「一帶一路」國際論壇，並邀得特區財政司司長曾俊華、世界貿易組織上訴機構委員張月姣發表演講，另外20位「一帶一路」沿線國家的專家學者也會來港參與，這是國家「一帶一路」戰略提出以來，香港第一個大型主題研討會。有份協辦的經民聯立法會議員、香港基本法教育協會會長梁美芬昨日表示，本月24日舉行的「一帶一路」國際論壇，講者陣容鼎盛，包括曾俊華、張月姣、中國外交部駐港前副特派員李元明等，另外20位「一帶一路」沿線國家、亞投行成員國的專家學者，亦會專程來港參與，他們分別來自英國、瑞士、斯里蘭卡等國家。論壇由香港世界貿易組織研究中心主席王貴國主持，由早上9時半開始分4節進行，演講題目包括「一帶一路」與當代國際法、「一帶一路」與全球經濟、地緣政治及文化、「一帶一路」的挑戰與願景等。

World Chinese Entrepreneurs Convention
http://www.wcec-secretariat.org/en/

Design Gallery showcase

- 2014/15: Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Qingdao
- since 2010: TMall
- 2014: JD.com

NGO
- Hinrich Foundation http://www.hinrichfoundation.com/

• scmp 6mar19 "the wheels within deals" students from 7 universities took part in a diplomacy training event
• 曾代表美國參與北美自由貿易協定（NAFTA）談判的全球貿易研究機構Hinrich Foundation研究員奧爾森直言，現時美國政府認定與中國經濟融合是戰略錯誤，更多是便宜了中國，而中國政府近日提出的「雙循環」則顯示，當局了解中國未來廿年不能像過往廿年般依賴貿易和外需。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20200902/00202_001.html

China
- entrepot trade

• 文錦渡口岸是出入境水果、蔬菜、活禽畜等鮮活產品的特色口岸。臨近春節，除了每天出境產品數量比平時增加25%之外，水果進口到內地的數量也翻了3倍。記者了解到，內地進口水果一般都經過香港中轉，經文錦渡口岸到達內地。2015年，文錦渡海關驗放進口水果3.7萬票，總值14.8億美元（約115億港元）。記者探訪文錦渡海關入境查驗場時，一家物流公司進口的車厘子剛剛到達。公司負責人告訴記者，目前車厘子主要來自智利等南美國家，龍眼等則是從越南等地進口，產品經過香港中轉到達內地。文錦渡海關負責人透露，目前該關查驗進口水果每天約300單，是平時數量的3倍。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2016/02/05/a14-0205.pdf

trade war
- http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21715659-trade-war-would-be-catastrophe-not-everybody-winners-and-losers In the short run, countries woven into China’s supply chains, such as Taiwan and South Korea, would lose out from the stifled demand for their wares. But other countries could win, if any tariff was restricted to China. Toy manufacturers in Mexico and clothes-stitchers in Vietnam could enjoy a surge in demand. Numbers crunched by Deutsche Bank suggest that a 10% fall in American imports from China could leave a gap which, if plugged by Mexico, could boost Mexican exports by almost 3%. Assuming they can get through the wall, of course.
- steel

• 中國日前與俄羅斯、歐盟及挪威等向世界貿易組織（WTO）投訴，要求調查美國實施的鋼鋁關稅；美國則反投訴中國向美國實施報復性鋼鋁關稅。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20181020/00178_024.html

- trade deal used as chips in international struggle/negotiation

• https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-49450495 France and Ireland say they will not ratify a huge trade deal with South American nations unless Brazil does more to fight fires in the Amazon. French leader Emmanuel Macron said President Jair Bolsonaro had lied to him about his stance on climate change. There are currently a record number of fires burning across a wide area of the Amazon rainforest. Environmental groups say the fires are linked to Mr Bolsonaro's policies, which he denies.

• 惟與南美洲關係良好的西班牙政府不支持此做法，並指當局一直為達成協議付出最大努力，形容協議將為雙方帶來巨大效益。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190826/00180_022.html

preferential treatment
- cases

• The Republic of Korea (RoK) is expected to import 50% of its total quota of 55,112 tonnes of rice from Vietnam in the tender scheduled this May with a preferential import tax rate of 5%. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the RoK committed to apply a preferential tax rate of 5% for the quota volume of 408,700 tonnes of imported rice for 10 years, starting from 2020, including rice imports from Vietnam. Meanwhile, the tax rate applied to imported rice outside the quota is 531%. The RoK will hold several tenders for the rice quotas of each country. The quota of imported rice will be divided into several tenders.https://en.nhandan.com.vn/business/item/8545802-rok-to-offer-5-preferential-import-tax-on-over-55-000-tonnes-of-vietnamese-rice.html

???
- 雖然中美貿易戰至今未有議和迹象，惟雙方經貿合作照舊，其中美國洛杉磯高速管道列車科技公司（HTT），更成功奪得中國首個「超級高鐵」工程合約。參與建造時速逾一千公里的超級高鐵，落戶貴州省銅仁市，工程費用約一百零一億元人民幣（約一百一十八億港元）。這是繼阿布扎比和烏克蘭後，HTT取得的第三項海外超級高鐵建造合約。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180722/00178_001.html

News/studies
- http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1512231/study-shows-global-connections-crucial-hong-kongs-future
- Nation standing by multilateral system for trade http://www.chinadailyasia.com/business/2014-06/11/content_15139937.html

journal/magazine
- international trade journal published by international trade institute of texas a&m international university

history
- A charter fair in England is a street fair or market which was established by Royal Charter. Many charter fairs date back to the Middle Ages, with their heyday occurring during the 13th century. Originally, most charter fairs started as street markets but since the 19th century the trading aspect has been superseded by entertainment; many charter fairs are now the venue for travelling funfairs run by showmen.In Roman times, fairs were holidays on which there was an intermission of labour and pleadings. By the 7th century, a regular fair was being held at Saint-Denis under the French Merovingian kings.^[1] In later centuries across Europe, on any special Christian religious occasion, particularly the anniversary dedication of a church, tradesmen would bring and sell their wares, even in the churchyards. Such fairs then continued annually, usually on the feast day of the patron saint to whom the church was dedicated. In England, these early fairs were called a wake, or a vigilia, and many formed the basis for later chartered fairs.^[2] In an era in which communications and travel were difficult and often dangerous, local markets and fairs were central to commerce and trade.In England, fairs began to develop in the early Norman period, reaching their heyday in the 13th century.^[4] During the 12th century, many English towns acquired the right from the Crown to hold an annual fair, usually serving a regional or local customer base and lasting for two or three days.Between the 12th and 15th centuries, the number of markets and fairs across England burgeoned. Although the terms "fair" and "market" were often used synonymously, key differences distinguished them. Markets were held daily in the more populous towns and cities or weekly in rural districts, and sold fresh produce and necessities, while fairs operated on a periodic cycle, and were almost always associated with a religious festival. Towards the end of the medieval period, the position of fairs began to decline. One important shift was that the major merchants, particularly in London, began to establish commercial primacy by the 14th century over the larger magnate customers; rather than the magnate buying from a chartered fair, they would buy from the merchant. As an example of this shift, the household accounts of Henry III show that the monarch bought 75% of his requirements from the great fairs; by the time of Edward II, the majority was being bought directly from the major merchants.^[22] The rise of international trading confederations such as the Hanseatic league during the 15th century, improved communications and the growth of a larger England merchant class in the major cities, especially London, gradually eroded the value of the chartered fairs.^[23] Foreign merchants, upon whom the great chartered fairs had to some extent depended, were being crowded out by English merchants, particularly in critical areas such as the cloth trade.^[24] The control of the crown over trade in the towns, especially the emerging newer towns that lacked central civic government, was increasingly weaker, making chartered status less relevant as more trade occurred from private properties and took place all year around.^[25] Nonetheless, the great fairs remained of importance well into the 15th century, as illustrated by their role in exchanging money, regional commerce and in providing choice for individual consumers.^[26]The evolution of the canal and eventually the railway system in England during the 19th century finally pushed the fair system into near extinction, although in recent years many have been revived as cultural, rather than primarily economic events.
- mercantilism

• theory orginated in 15th c, grew in 16th and 1st half of 17th c, receded since 2nd half of 17th and 18thc.  It stemmed from italy, then spreaded to spain, portugal, netherlands, uk and france
• key people: john hales, jean bodin, antonio serra, thomas mun
• spain

• The Royal Tapestry Factory (Spanish: Real Fábrica de Tapices de Santa Bárbara) is a manufacturing plant located in Madrid, Spain, which was founded in 1720.The factory was founded by Philip V after Spain lost its Belgian territories, and their tapestry workshops, as a result of the Peace of Utrecht. The project was one of a number of mercantilist initiatives undertaken in the eighteenth century in the Madrid area to supply luxury goods. Another example was the Real Fábrica del Buen Retiro porcelain factory. Like its French counterpart the Gobelins Manufactory, the Royal Tapestry Factory supplied the court with tapestries. While still in his 20s the painter Francisco Goya was commissioned to provide designs (known as cartoons^[1]) for tapestries to furnish El Escorial and El Pardo, two of the palaces in the Madrid region.^[2] Many of the Goya tapestry cartoons are displayed at the Museo del Prado.

- fta

• The Cobden–Chevalier Treaty was an Anglo-French free trade agreement signed between the United Kingdom and France on 23 January 1860. It is named after the main British and French originators of the treaty, Richard Cobden MP and Michel Chevalier. It has been described as the first modern trade agreement. In a Parliamentary session of 1859, Cobden's friend and political ally John Bright asked why, instead of spending money on armaments against a possible French invasion, did not the Government attempt to persuade the French Emperor to trade freely with Britain. Upon reading this speech Chevalier wrote to Cobden and arranged to meet him in England. He discovered that Cobden was planning to visit Paris for family reasons in the winter. Chevalier urged Cobden to meet with the Emperor to try and persuade him of the benefits of Free Trade. In September, Cobden visited the Chancellor of the Exchequer, William Ewart Gladstone and they both agreed that a commercial treaty between Britain and France was a good idea.

• After talks with Chevalier and the French Minister of Commerce Eugène Rouher in Paris, Cobden had his first audience with the Emperor on 27 October 1859. They discussed free trade and the Emperor informed him that he could alter tariffs by decree if it were part of an international treaty but that he was worried that free trade would throw French workers out of their jobs. Cobden replied that free trade tended to increase rather than diminish the demand for labour and that because of his tariff reforms Sir Robert Peel came to have great fame and reputation in Britain. The Emperor replied: "I am charmed and flattered at the idea of performing a similar work in my country; but it is very difficult in France to make reforms; we make revolutions in France, not reforms". On December 9, Chevalier told Cobden that Rouher had drawn up a plan for a commercial treaty which would be submitted for approval from the Emperor the next day. However the Emperor was concerned over the definite advantages France would gain in adopting free trade: Britain was so dependent on trade that she was constantly in fear of war whilst France could endure war with much less inconvenience. Persigny, the French ambassador to Britain, warned the Emperor that war with Britain was a real possibility unless some kind of alliance with Britain was signed, and that with such an alliance in being it did not matter what other European states thought. Rouher presented the Emperor with his commercial plan with sixty pages of favourable arguments, which the Emperor approved. The Emperor announced the treaty in a letter published on 15 January 1860 and it caused fury among the protectionist interests. Princeton University economist Gene Grossman described the treaty as the "first modern trade agreement."

- https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/history_e/history_e.htm

trade agreement signing ceremony
- 中美周三將簽署首階段貿易協議。有美國白宮官員指出，美方已經邀請至少二百人見證簽署儀式，但兩國仍未完成協議翻譯工作。另有中方官員表示，雙方過去一個多月就文本及措詞辯論，期間出現一些小問題，但不會延遲達成協議。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200112/00180_009.html

event
- world department store forum  http://www.wdsf2017.org/en_home.cfm
- manufacturing

• https://manufacturingindonesia.com/