France voted against, Belgium abstained. More on transatlantic relations throughout this week. Our latest EU-US pieces here.
Non classé
Flash: Super-majority for new EU investment screening mechanism in European Parliament
The European Parliament overwhelmingly voted in favour of a new ‘screening’ mechanism for foreign direct investments. The new regulation mainly enables information sharing among member states on investments into sectors deemed sensitive through a mechanism coordinated by the European Commission. The aim is to watch investments that could jeopardise security …
Flash: Advocate General says CETA investment court compatible with EU law
More analysis shortly. Here the announcement.
Flash: Trade committee gives green light to Singapore trade and investment pacts
The European Parliament’s international trade committee voted in favour of the EU Singapore trade agreement and a separate investment protection agreement this morning in Brussels. The majority for the two deals was comparatively low, with 25 MEPs voting in favour of the trade pact and 11 against. Votes for the …
Commentary: Italy’s new government risks undermining EU unity on trade and investment
Italy’s new coalition government is pushing a protectionist agenda that puts national sovereignty at the centre and may well set the country on a collision course with Brussels, Berlin and Paris, argues Nicola Casarini. The new government in Rome is promoting ‘Italy First’, a set of policies that may undermine …
Flash: Japan summit, Brexit White Paper postponed
The EU Japan summit due to be held tomorrow in Brussels was postponed to 17 July and will take place in Tokyo. The signing ceremony of the EU Japan Economic Partnership Agreement will take place then. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is held up in Japan due to damaging floods. …
Beyond Brussels: ‘Winds of change are blowing’ on WTO rules, Wolff says
Initiatives and discussions involving large groups of countries on issues such as electronic commerce and investment facilitation signal that global trade rules are set for a revamp, says Alan Wolff, deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization. “The WTO rulebook very likely will be updated to address current and …
Beyond Brussels: TPP, Trump, US safeguards, Davos, ISDS
The big news this week is the success of the 11 countries that are still part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership in reaching an agreement this week – and that President Donald Trump said the US might consider joining the pact “if we did a substantially better deal”. China and South …
In brief: China to launch case against US, EU in WTO on market economy treatment
The coming WTO dispute settlement body meeting in Geneva, scheduled on Friday, will be perhaps one of the most interesting in the organisation’s history…. China has announced it was launching a dispute settlement case against the EU and the US due to their failure to do away with unconventional …
Russia requests establishment of panel on EU antidumping measures
Russia has requested that the WTO establish a dispute settlement panel to settle a dispute it launched in 2015 on antidumping measures in the EU concerning fertilisers and metals products (background here). At stake are the EU’s so-called cost-adjustment methodologies, which have been rebuffed by the WTO in a …
