Anthony Woolwich
From 3 December 2018, businesses operating in the EEA need to comply with the new Geo-Blocking Regulation.
In general, the Regulation prohibits businesses from unfairly discriminating against consumers or other businesses on the grounds of nationality, place of residence or place of...
December 2018 Vol.9 Ed.11
The state of globalisation
From the UK’s Brexit challenge and US unilateralism, to trade wars and European immigration concerns, the unifying theme that preoccupied liberal policy-makers in 2018 was the political threat to economic globalisation and how best to share the benefits of an interconnected world.
For the last Bulletin of 2018, we invited contributors to review the state of globalisation. They address the increased importance of the regulatory component in...
http://www.allaboutshipping.co.uk/2018/12/01/the-bulletin-up-in-the-air/
Commenting on political declaration on the future relationship between the UK and the EU, Richard Ballantyne, Chief Executive of the British Ports Association said:
“The British Ports Association was supportive of the aspirations of the Government’s “Chequers” proposals over the summer as it committed to an agreement that ensured frictionless trade. This was to be achieved by agreeing a common rulebook with the EU, meaning there would be little or no need for new cumbersome regulatory checks at...
http://container-news.com/bpa-responds-eu-uk-political-declaration/
If approved by the European Parliament, the EU – Singapore Free Trade Agreement, the EU – Vietnam Trade and Investment Agreement, and the EU – Japan Economic Partnership Agreement will enter in force in 2019.
With these three agreements, most of tariffs on products will be removed either immediately after entry into force, or within a number of years (from 3 to 20 years, depending on the country and the product). Products can benefit from preferential tariff treatment of these agreements upon...
http://container-news.com/eu-trade-agreements-asian-countries/
UK PM Theresa May
Commentary: Five options if UK rejects May deal
By Charles Grant in London
UK Prime Minister Theresa May has clinched her deal with the European Union and persuaded most of her cabinet to support it. But after EU leaders sign off the deal at a summit on 25 November, May has promised the House of Commons a ‘meaningful vote’; it is hard to see how she can win it. However, even if May falls, the arrival of a new Conservative party leader would not change the parliamentary arithmetic...
Brussels, 19th November 2018 – Seas At Risk is deeply disappointed by the decisions on fishing limits for deep sea fish stocks for 2019-2020 taken by the Fisheries’ Council of Ministers tonight. This was the very last opportunity fisheries ministers had to end overfishing of deep sea species by 2015 or at the latest by 2020, as legally required under the Common Fisheries Policy. However, the ministers failed to achieve this.
Andrea Ripol, Policy Officer of Seas At Risk said: “The ministers...
As President Donald Trump throws global relationships into turmoil in pushing his “America First” agenda, Southeast Asia’s biggest economy has seen an opening to increase its European trade ties.
The EU has recently pulled off trade agreements with Vietnam, Japan, Singapore, Canada, across Africa and even Cuba and is actively negotiating deals with Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, China and the Philippines. A deal with Indonesia would boost two-way trade by $4 billion a year — there was $30...
Martin Dorsman
European shipowners welcome the agreement reached on BREXIT yesterday. “ Our primary concern on the short term, the frictionless trade, seems to be taken care off. A no deal scenario was just not an option and a clear lose-lose situation for shipowners and clients at both sides,” commented Martin Dorsman, Secretary-General of ECSA.
ECSA hope political leaders in the UK and EU now take the necessary steps to translate the political agreement into reality. “We very much welcome the...
http://www.allaboutshipping.co.uk/2018/11/15/ecsa-welcomes-brexit-deal/
Bob Haken
Norton Rose Fulbright insurance partner Bob Haken commented:
“What the Political Declaration does say about financial services in general is that there will be commitments to “preserving financial stability, market integrity, investor protection and fair competition, while respecting the [UK’s and the EU’s] regulatory and decision-making autonomy, and their ability to take equivalence decisions in their own interest”. This focus on equivalence is unfortunate for the insurance industry...
The European Commission published two reports summarizing the progress made during the latest negotiating rounds for the EU-Indonesia and EU-New Zealand trade agreements.
The sixth round of negotiations for an EU-Indonesia free trade agreement took place from 15 to 19 October in Palembang, Indonesia. Negotiators made good progress across the board, particularly on the chapters on customs and trade facilitation, rules related to trade in food, animal and plant products, technical barriers to...
http://container-news.com/eu-free-trade-negotiations-progress/