Trade

News  |  October 5, 2020

U.S.–Kenya FTA negotiations underway

The U.S. and Kenya formally launched negotiations on the US–Kenya FTA on July 8, 2020. If concluded, the agreement would be the first bilateral trade agreement between the U.S. and a sub-Saharan African state.

News  |  September 19, 2019

RCEP ministers: 2019 deal in sight, market access talks advancing swiftly

Negotiations for the RCEP trade and investment deal should be finalized by the end of 2019 and have seen notable progress on market access negotiations and services-related annexes, according to a statement issued in August by ministers from the 16 countries involved in the process.

News  |  April 23, 2019

RCEP ministers take stock of negotiations, press for 2019 outcome

Ministers from the 16 countries negotiating RCEP gathered in Siem Reap, Cambodia, on March 2 for an intersessional meeting to take stock of negotiations and reaffirm their revised goal of concluding the talks this year.

News  |  December 21, 2017

EU–Japan EPA negotiations finalized without investment; EU–Mexico updated FTA nears completion

On December 8, 2017, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced the finalization of the negotiations of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the European Union and Japan.

Sustainability Toolkit for Trade Negotiators: Tapping the Potential of Trade and Investment Agreements for Achieving Environmental Goals

Developed by IISD and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), this toolkit is designed to help trade and investment negotiators by showing how specific provisions can better support sustainable development objectives.

News  |  June 12, 2017

India opposes “trade and investment facilitation” item in WTO General Council agenda

A meeting of the WTO General Council was suspended on May 10, 2017 after India objected to the adoption of the proposed agenda, which included a “trade and investment facilitation” item.

Working by Design: New Ideas to Empower U.S. and European Workers in TTIP

This paper provides an overview of how the European Union and the United States promote labour rights in trade and investment agreements. It then warns that language in the investment and regulatory coherence chapters may contradict the language in the labour rights chapters. Finally, the paper suggests ways that TTIP can be redesigned to benefit workers and promote employment, based on interviews with 23 eminent scholars as well as original ideas from the author.

News  |  August 4, 2015

European Parliament supports TTIP, but rejects current ISDS model

On July 8, 2015, the European Parliament adopted a non-binding resolution guiding the European Commission on the negotiations of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with the United States.