Tensions over trade deals exposed at Mercosur summit
December 7, 2022 GMTMONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) — A summit of the four Mercosur nations exposed tensions Tuesday as Uruguay's eagerness to seek out foreign markets collided with opposition from Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.
Finnish PM warns Russian win would empower aggressors
December 2, 2022 GMTCANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin warned an Australian audience Friday that a Russian victory over Ukraine would empower other aggressors and urged democracies against forming “critical dependencies” on authoritarian states such as China.
Mexico tells US it wants to keep talking on trade disputes
December 2, 2022 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s economy secretary on Thursday proposed yet another round of talks with the United States on a dispute over Mexico’s energy sector.
Mexico hopes to stave off a full-fledged trade complaint under the U.s.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement.
German parliament votes to approve EU-Canada trade pact
December 1, 2022 GMTBERLIN (AP) — German lawmakers on Thursday approved a free-trade deal between the European Union and Canada, moving the accord a step closer to taking full effect.
The pact, formally known as the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, was signed in late 2016.
Australia ratifies free trade deals with India and Britain
November 22, 2022 GMTCANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s Parliament passed bilateral free trade agreements with India and Britain on Tuesday, leaving those partner nations to bring the deals into force.
The deals are crucial for Australia to diversify its exports from the troubled Chinese market to India and to Britain’s need to forge new bilateral trade relations since it left the European Union.
Idaho and Taiwan sign two-year wheat trade agreement
September 19, 2022 GMTBOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho Gov. Brad Little on Monday signed a two-year agreement supporting Idaho wheat sales to Taiwan in a deal that officials say gives wheat producers a reliable buyer and Taiwan a dependable supplier.
Developing nations seek to overcome energy, currency crises
July 26, 2022 GMTDHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Business leaders and officials from eight developing nations meeting in Bangladesh on Tuesday said more cooperation was needed among them to overcome dwindling foreign currency reserves, a growing energy crisis and supply chain disruptions.
EXPLAINER: US energy sector dispute with Mexico
July 21, 2022 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — The U.S. government has forced Mexico into negotiations over what Washington considers unfair practices that are effectively excluding U.S. and other foreign companies from the Mexican energy sector in violation of the free trade agreement they signed with Canada.
Afro-Colombian politician tapped as ambassador to Washington
July 12, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — A veteran Afro-Colombian politician who studied in the Soviet Union and fled his homeland after being kidnapped by a paramilitary group has been tapped to become Colombia's first Black ambassador to the United States.
New Zealand leader makes 1st trip to UK since trade deal
July 1, 2022 GMTLONDON (AP) — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Friday made her first visit to the U.K. since both countries signed a free trade agreement, meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to boost bilateral ties and discuss Russia's war in Ukraine.
UK’s Johnson to host New Zealand’s Ardern in London
June 30, 2022 GMTLONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will host New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in London on Friday for talks on security and boosting bilateral ties.
The meeting comes after both leaders attended the NATO summit in Madrid this week.
EU, New Zealand strike free trade deal after 4 years’ talks
June 30, 2022 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union and New Zealand said Thursday they have concluded a free trade deal after four years of negotiations and sealed a partnership to reinforce their cooperation against organized crime and terror groups.
Leftist’s election to test Colombia’s alliance with US
June 21, 2022 GMTBOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — It’s one of the United States’ few enduring alliances in an often-turbulent Latin America, one built around a decades-long partnership combating the nation’s drug cartels.
But Gustavo Petro’s election as Colombia’s first leftist president is likely to test the U.S.’ special relationship with a major non-NATO ally like never before.
Israel, UAE sign free trade deal, first with an Arab country
May 31, 2022 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Israel and the United Arab Emirates signed a free trade agreement on Tuesday, the first of its kind that Israel has concluded with an Arab country.
The UAE agreed to normalize relations with Israel in a U.S.-brokered deal in 2020, the first of the so-called Abraham Accords that Israel eventually concluded with four Arab nations.
Boris Johnson to discuss Ukraine response with Indian leader
April 21, 2022 GMTNEW DELHI (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday he is seeking to deepen trade and defense ties during his visit to India, and will also bring up the situation in Ukraine during talks with his Indian counterpart.
EXPLAINER: Why is US upset about Mexico’s electricity law?
April 16, 2022 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s Congress is set to vote on a constitutional reform promoted by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador that would undo much of the market opening in electrical power carried out by his predecessor.
Philippines, like New Zealand, rejects Myanmar in trade pact
February 18, 2022 GMTMANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippines has followed New Zealand’s decision to reject the inclusion of Myanmar in the world’s largest free trade pact as international opposition to the military takeover that sparked violence and democratic setbacks in the Southeast Asian nation broadened into trade and diplomatic sanctions.
New Zealand won’t engage Myanmar in largest free trade bloc
February 17, 2022 GMTBANGKOK (AP) — New Zealand said Thursday it will not deal with Myanmar under a major 15-nation trade agreement, the world's largest that took effect this year, citing the deadly violence and democratic setbacks in the Southeast Asian country after the military seized power last year.
US files 1st USMCA environment case on Mexico over porpoise
February 10, 2022 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — The U.S. Trade Representative’s Office filed the first environmental complaint against Mexico Thursday for failing to protect the critically endangered vaquita marina, the world’s smallest porpoise.
Biden selects Los Angeles to host next Summit of Americas
January 19, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — The Biden administration has chosen Los Angeles to host a summit of leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean that is a key part of its outreach to a region increasingly being courted by U.S.
India, Britain launch talks on free trade deal
January 13, 2022 GMTNEW DELHI (AP) — India and Britain on Thursday launched talks on a free trade deal that is expected to boost bilateral trade by billions of dollars in one of the most ambitious negotiations after Brexit.
Mexico asks USMCA dispute resolution panel on auto content
January 6, 2022 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — The Mexican government on Thursday requested a dispute resolution panel under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement because it claims the United States is improperly interpreting stricter regional content rules under the pact.
Australia, Britain sign free trade agreement
December 17, 2021 GMTSYDNEY (AP) — Australia and Britain signed a free trade agreement Friday that will eliminate almost all taxes on exports between the countries.
The FTA was signed at a virtual ceremony by Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan in Adelaide and Britain’s Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan in London.
US, EU say deal on steel tariffs will help on climate change
October 31, 2021 GMTROME (AP) — President Joe Biden said Sunday a new U.S. and European Union trade agreement would crack down on “dirty steel” that produces carbon emissions that are blamed for climate change and also patch up a trans-Atlantic rift over Trump-era steel and aluminum tariffs.
UK, France urged to cool down escalating fishing spat
October 30, 2021 GMTPARIS (AP) — Britain and France faced calls Saturday to sort out their post-Brexit spat over fishing rights in the English Channel, which threatens to escalate within days into a damaging French blockade of British boats and trucks.
EU-UK talks, fishing threat kick Brexit back into high gear
October 15, 2021 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — The Brexit brawl kicked into high gear Friday on sticking points over Northern Ireland and French fishing, coming almost a year after a deal on a free trade agreement was supposed to have officially sealed the separation between the European Union and the United Kingdom.
Australia-EU trade talks delayed amid submarine deal fallout
October 1, 2021 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — A round of free trade talks between the European Union and Australia has been postponed by one month in the wake of a dispute over the Australian government's decision to cancel a multibillion-euro French submarine deal, EU and Australian officials said Friday.
China vows to keep Taiwan out of Pacific Rim trade group
September 29, 2021 GMTBEIJING (AP) — Beijing said Wednesday it will block Taiwan’s application to join a Pacific Rim trade initiative, citing as its reason the island's refusal to concede that it is a part of China.
The Cabinet’s Taiwan Affairs Office on Wednesday said Taiwan’s participation in regional trade cooperation is based on the “one China principle.”
Australia won’t allow UN climate goals in UK free trade deal
September 9, 2021 GMTCANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia's government confirmed Thursday that it refused to allow climate change goals to be written into a proposed free trade deal with Britain, as pressure mounts on it to make more ambitious commitments to cut carbon emissions.
Workers at Mexico GM plant end contract, oust union in vote
August 19, 2021 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — Workers at a General Motors plant in Mexico have voted to end a collective bargaining contract negotiated by an old guard union accused of intimidation tactics in earlier votes. It was an early display of the effectiveness of labor mechanisms negotiated under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement.
US firm agrees to measures to ensure free union vote
August 11, 2021 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — The U.S. parent company of a Mexican factory said Tuesday it has agreed to measures to ensure a free labor vote amid a battle by workers to unseat an old-guard union.
The Cardone company operates the Tridonex auto parts plant in Mexico’s border city of Matamoros, across from Brownsville, Texas.
Australia flags democracies’ trade swing from China to India
August 9, 2021 GMTCANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian special envoy and former Prime Minister Tony Abbott said a free trade agreement between his nation and India would signal the “democratic world’s tilt away from China.”
Mexican union complains of harassment at leafleting event
August 3, 2021 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — Supporters of an independent union in northern Mexico said Tuesday they have been harassed while trying to hand out leaflets by beefy representatives of an old-guard union.
The mainly women handing out the leaflets said that state police stood by and may have helped prevent them distributing literature outside the Tridonex auto parts assembly plant starting in late July.
US raises concerns on Mexico’s nationalistic energy policy
July 8, 2021 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — The U.S. trade representative said Wednesday that she has raised the concerns about Mexico’s energy policies that favor state-owned Mexican companies.
Katherine Tai spoke following meetings with Mexico’s economy secretary and Canada’s top international trade official to mark the first year of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement.
British FM heads to Southeast Asia looking for closer ties
June 21, 2021 GMTBANGKOK (AP) — Britain's top diplomat arrived in Southeast Asia late Monday on a three-nation visit as his country looks to promote closer ties and trade with the region following the U.K.'s exit from the European Union.
China defiant after EU warning over trade agreement
May 21, 2021 GMTBEIJING (AP) — China on Friday rejected European Parliament demands that it lift sanctions against European Union legislators in order to save a trade deal between the two sides.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said the sanctions were justified and demanded that the European side “immediately stop interfering in China’s internal affairs (and) abandon its confrontational approach.”
US files first trade complaint with Mexico under USMCA
May 12, 2021 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — The United States filed its first labor complaint with Mexico Wednesday under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, after an old-guard union was caught allegedly destroying ballots at a General Motors plant in northern Mexico...
US downplays prospect of post-Brexit trade deal with UK
May 6, 2021 GMTLONDON (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has downplayed any prospect of an imminent trade deal with a post-Brexit Britain.
In an interview with BBC radio broadcast Thursday, Blinken said any deal would take “some time” and that U...
UK announces plan for ‘quantum leap’ in relations with India
May 4, 2021 GMTLONDON (AP) — Britain said Tuesday it's agreed to increase cooperation with India in areas including trade, science and health as Indian authorities battle a surge in coronavirus infections that threatens to overwhelm the nation's health care system...
Mexican union vote halted at GM plant; vote fixing alleged
April 23, 2021 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico faced its biggest challenge yet Friday to labor-freedom reforms under the U...
Iran, Indonesia foreign ministers discuss trade, economy
April 19, 2021 GMTJAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed trade and economic issues in a meeting in Jakarta on Monday with his Indonesian counterpart, the two countries said...
Britain’s Boris Johnson presses Biden for new trade deal
January 24, 2021 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson made clear to President Joe Biden on Saturday that he's eager to forge a new U...
UK warns of ‘bumpy’ post-Brexit transition despite deal
December 28, 2020 GMTLONDON (AP) — First came the Brexit trade deal. Now comes the red tape and the institutional nitty gritty...
Breakthrough: UK and EU reach post-Brexit trade agreement
December 24, 2020 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — Just a week before the deadline, Britain and the European Union struck a free-trade deal Thursday that should avert economic chaos on New Year's and bring a measure of certainty for businesses after years of Brexit turmoil...
Virus-linked isolation of UK eases but backlog persists
December 23, 2020 GMTDOVER, England (AP) — Gridlock at an English port kept thousands of truckers and travelers stranded Wednesday despite a deal with France to lift a two-day blockade imposed because of a new variant of the coronavirus that had isolated Britain and raised fears of food shortages...
EU-UK trade talks floundering over fish as cutoff day nears
December 20, 2020 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — With yet another Brexit deadline disappearing in the rearview mirror, a breakthrough on fishing rights remained elusive for the European Union and Britain on Sunday — leaving both without a trade agreement that would dull the cutting edge of a chaotic, costly economic break on New Year's Day...
Australian PM says China coal ban would breach WTO rules
December 15, 2020 GMTCANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s prime minister said Tuesday that China would be violating World Trade Organization rules and a bilateral free trade agreement if it banned Australian coal...
EU’s chief negotiator still hopes to clinch EU-UK trade deal
December 14, 2020 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — European Union chief negotiator Michel Barnier said Monday he still firmly believes that a post-Brexit trade agreement is possible, and whittled down the major outstanding disputes to be settled ahead of the New Year to just two...
Brexit sends ripples of uncertainty down France’s coast
December 11, 2020 GMTBOULOGNE-SUR-MER, France (AP) — Long lines of trucks carrying stockpiles for British companies jam the highways leading to France's northern port of Calais, while in the coastal town of Boulogne-sur-Mer, French fishermen pull in their lines and fear that battles over fishing rights will soon erupt...
Thousands march in Taiwan against US pork imports
November 22, 2020 GMTTAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Thousands of people marched in Taipei's streets on Sunday demanding the reversal of a decision to allow U...
US, Taiwan step up economic cooperation in new dialogue
November 21, 2020 GMTTAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The U.S. and Taiwan are stepping up cooperation in a newly created economic dialogue, in another move from the outgoing Trump administration to increase official exchanges with the self-ruled island...
APEC leaders, including Trump, agree on free trade
November 20, 2020 GMTKUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Leaders from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, including U...
Brexit trade negotiations suspended because of COVID-19 case
November 19, 2020 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — As if the Brexit trade negotiations were not tortuous enough, the coronavirus added a twist at a crucial stage on Thursday when top-level talks had to be suspended because an EU negotiator tested positive for COVID-19...
ASEAN, China, other partners sign world’s biggest trade pact
November 15, 2020 GMTChina and 14 other countries agreed Sunday to set up the world’s largest trading bloc, encompassing nearly a third of all economic activity, in a deal many in Asia are hoping will help hasten a recovery from the shocks of the pandemic...
Most Canadians hope for Trump defeat after insults, attacks
October 30, 2020 GMTTORONTO (AP) — Donald Trump called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “weak” and “dishonest” and attacked Canada's vital trade...
US legislators complain to Trump on Mexico energy policy
October 24, 2020 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — Standing in front of a reopened coal-fired power plant, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Saturday defiantly rejected complaints by a group of 43 U...
Japan, Britain sign free trade deal for post-Brexit era
October 23, 2020 GMTTOKYO (AP) — Japan and Britain signed a free trade agreement on Friday, the the first such major post-Brexit deal, reducing tariffs on goods like Yorkshire lamb sold in Japan as well as auto parts for Japan’s Nissan plant...
AP Explains: Why are UK and EU still arguing over Brexit?
October 23, 2020 GMTLONDON (AP) — It’s more than four years since Britain voted to leave the European Union, and almost a year since Prime Minister Boris Johnson won an election by vowing to “get Brexit done...