Search Results for: Chile

The relationship between the USA textile industry and its counterparts in Latin America has never been straightforward, given the US exports fabrics and fibre to its neighbours as well as importing apparel, but the Covid-19 pandemic has increased complexity in this relationship.…

The huge offshore finance leak unveiled yesterday (October 3) by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and its media partners has highlighted the pressures AML reporters face in complying with increasingly tough beneficial ownership transparency laws.

Reports generated from 2.94 terabytes of data within 12 million documents leaked to the ICIJ from the confidential records of 14 offshore service providers have been analysed by 600 journalists from 150 media outlets in 117 countries.…

INTRODUCTION

Financial crime is a minefield for the international textile and clothing industry. With extended international supply chains extending into jurisdictions where the rule of law and a reliable independent judiciary may have a weak hold, if they exist at all, textile and clothing brands and manufacturers must take care.…

THE COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruption to Peru’s important camelid fibre sectors. Its large alpaca fibre and fabric industry has suffered, but there is maybe more concern about the impact on the smaller and more vulnerable vicuña industry.

Peru is the leading producer worldwide of vicuña.…

PEACE appears to be breaking out between the European Union (EU) and the UK on one side the USA over an aircraft subsidy-prompted trade war that had led to billions of dollars of duties being levied on food and drink exported between these countries.…

The Peruvian alpaca-based fabric industry is targeting a robust post-Covid 19 recovery by strengthening its international relationships through strategic alliances. Also, by focusing on innovation, this speciality wool segment is also trying to reverse declines in production and exports worsened by claims of cruelty by alpaca farmers made by USA-based campaign group PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).…

LATIN America has been hit particularly hard by the Covid-19 pandemic – with Chile, Peru, Brazil and Colombia in the top-20 of countries regarding cases per million people – and its paint and coatings market and industry has faced a similarly rough ride.…

International efforts are stepping up to scope and map what it will take to wean chemical manufacturing off its high dependence on oil and gas feedstock for chemicals that are then used to make plastics, fertilisers and other important products.

Options include using building-block raw materials from biomass instead of fossil-fuel feedstock; boosting the yield of chemicals for a given quantity of feedstock; and, applying advanced recovery and recycling technologies in circular economy approaches.…

AFRICA is commonly hailed as the world’s next big focus of economic growth, but for the civil aviation industry, this prospect will require significant investment in new intra-African routes and related airport and ATC infrastructure. It will also require governments to remove immigration barriers preventing African air travellers flying to other countries on their home continent.…

Wrangling between Chile’s dairy farmers and major dairies and process is over milk prices is threatening to overshadow the opportunities that this Potentially strong industry has to grow, especially in export markets. On a similar latitude to Australia and New Zealand, southern Chile’s Los Lagos and Los Rios regions offer almost ideal conditions for dairy farming, with plentiful rains, lush pastures, and mild winters.…

THE LEADER of the Chilean mining association Consejo Minero has claimed that he has seen no evidence that the unrest that has wracked Chile since October may reduce investment into the country’s important mining sector, which accounts for around of a third of global lithium supplies.…

As national, regional and international legislation nudges the world away from its reliance on fossil fuels, corporations are increasingly sourcing renewable energy through the mechanism of green power purchase agreements (PPAs), whereby companies (and also utilities) act as an off-taker, making commitments for future renewable energy payments.…

AN ORGANISATION for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) report on obesity has argued that initiatives such as reformulation, can benefit the food industry, enabling companies to reduce costs and target new consumer niches. These included “attracting people from the health-conscious segment of the market”. …

Peruvian clothing manufacturers are betting on a local fibre with international renown to grow exports: alpaca. “Instead of exporting the raw materials, we want to export more value-added products,” Raúl Rivera, marketing manager of Michell & Cia, an Arequipa, Peru-based maker of alpaca fibre, yarns and garments, told just-style. …

THE EUROPEAN metal packaging sector will be hoping that the newly negotiated European Union (EU)-Mercosur trade deal is ratified quickly, given it scraps import duties imposed by Brazil and Argentina on such exports of between 12% and 35%. These are the key markets in the South American trade bloc, that also includes comparative minnows Uruguay and Paraguay, whose protective duties shadow their larger Mercosur neighbours.…

STUDENTS from top Pacific Rim research universities have embarked on an innovative programme of problem solving, designed to create fresh solutions on pressing socio-economic problems that leverage leadership skills and community contacts.

The University of Oregon (UO), in Eugene, Oregon, welcomed 50 undergraduate students from 30 universities based in the Pacific Rim region, including from the USA, Canada, Mexico, Chile, Japan, Australia, and more.…

IT has been another subdued year for the beauty and personal care product market in Latin America, as the region’s economy underperforms yet again after six years of deceleration (and in some countries outright recession), keeping a lid on sales growth. …

WOLLASTONITE has been described by a Canadian producer as “a white mineral for a greener world,” and it seems governments, businesses and industries agree – with wollastonite is set to see increased market growth in its traditional uses plus a new focus on its powerful qualities to help tackle climate change.…

WOLLASTONITE has been described by a Canadian producer as “a white mineral for a greener world,” and it seems governments, businesses and industries agree – with wollastonite is set to see increased market growth in its traditional uses plus a new focus on its powerful qualities to help tackle climate change.…

The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) took effect in December 2018, incrementally bringing down import tariffs for Vietnamese garments in a market with 495 million consumers across 11 countries.

But Vietnamese garment-makers are struggling to reduce costs to deliver pricing that is competitive enough to make the most of CPTPP.…

With a growing population of guanacos, a llama-like animal that runs wild in Patagonia, the Argentine government is analysing how best to produce and export the natural fibre it yields, at prices like those commanded by vicuña wool. But hurdles stand in the way of getting it right and there are concerns that the approach could backfire if sustainable practices are not

 in place. …

THE EUROPEAN Commission today (March 18) gave competition law approval for France’s VINCI Airports to take over control of London Gatwick Airport from current owner Ivy Topco Ltd, a Cayman Islands registered company.

The European Union (EU) executive, acting as the EU’s senior competition authority, approved the deal which would see VINCI acquiring 50.01% of the issued share capital of Ivy Topco.…

THE EUROPEAN Commission has continued to push reforms to European Union (EU) VAT legislation to boost the fight against VAT fraud. It has tabled a directive and a regulation whose goal is to establish an electronic business portal for VAT declarations allowing companies selling goods online to EU customers to administer their VAT obligations in one e-government system.…

WITH an estimated USD1.5 trillion lost to the global economy because of bribes, the World Bank is pushing for a diverse array of technology to be deployed – it is a call being answered with anti-graft systems being installed worldwide.

Reducing corruption “is a priority” for the World Bank, it said in a briefing note in September 2017.…

WITH the old certainties that the world would move steadily towards ever freer trade now crumbling, the technical textile sector is closely monitoring shifts in trade policy by key governments and international organisations.

This industry depends on the free flow of materials and finished goods – and unlike many textile segments – still has a significant manufacturing presence in mature markets, making the impact of trade policy changes complex and hard to predict.…

A new report from Transparency International has found that only 11 major exporting countries in the world significantly punish companies that pay bribes abroad. The report, called ‘Exporting Corruption’, also found that more than half of world exports come from at least 33 jurisdictions, including several European Union (EU) member states, where companies that export corruption along with their goods and services face weak consequences. …

THE OUTLOOK for European Union (EU) beef, sheep and goat meat imports looks bleak, with sales tumbling, according to an EU agricultural markets 2018 and 2019 forecast released by the European Commission.

Beef exports started falling by December 2017, and this has continued into this year, with exports almost 15% lower in the first four months of 2018 year-on-year.…

THE NEWLY signed 11-member Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) could help Vietnam boost garment and textile exports to the lucrative Australian market significantly. But the Asian clothing makers may still face big challenges in taking market share in this mature market away from China, experts warn. …

SPAIN’S personal care product market is continuing to grow after years of post-financial crisis weakness. Spain’s skincare, cosmetic and perfume industry continues to mature, and has turned in solid sales figures for 2017, reflecting the optimistic mood of the economy after the ‘lost’ years of the recession.…

THE LATIN American personal care product market, buffeted in recent years by economic and political instability, looks back on track, with trouble-spots such as Venezuela being very much an exception to overall progress.

Data released by market researcher Euromonitor International has said that the region’s beauty and personal care product sales in 2017 topped USD65 billion in 2017, growing by 42.5% between 2012 and last year.…

THE INTERNATIONAL Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) has released an ambitious policy plan designed to steer the industry towards sustainability. Called the Berlin Declaration, having been released at the fourth World Cocoa Conference, of governments, farmers, traders, grinders, processors, manufacturers, researchers, trade unions, civil society organisations, trade unions, consumer organisations, it says higher farm gate prices should be paid.…

Argentina’s auto industry had expected a near record year in 2018, but unexpected financial problems that have hit the country in the past month could push the economy into recession and dampen local demand for cars. 
These problems are a far cry from the optimism expressed on April 4, when the heads of three carmakers spoke bullishly about production and sales growth at a business conference staged in Buenos Aires by economic consultancy Invecq Consulting. …

Unlike the limited range of minerals used in fossil fuel production, many minerals, metallic and nonmetallic, are used in renewable energy technologies. However, production is often low and concentrated in a limited number of countries – creating potential strategic supply problems.…

Diversity – a theme very close to Mohamed Irshad’s heart – could not be embodied by a more appropriate person than the affable, youthful-looking 34-year-old head of global internal audit – the Americas, at French multinational Schneider Electric. Irshad is an Indian national who was born and raised in Dubai, studied in India, has lived in Paris and is now based in Canada.…

Word from US President Donald Trump that he may reverse a longstanding position and explore the possibility that the country may join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) after all, has left the fashion industry – along with much of the American business community – somewhat sceptical, while being supportive.…

BRAZIL’S textile sector would contract, should the country abandon its protectionist policies, however, its added value clothing industry would perform better, an Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) report has concluded.

Noting that average tariffs levels weighted by imports are almost twice as high in Brazil as in Colombia and more than eight times higher than in Mexico or Chile, the report highlighted how around 450 tariff lines are at the maximum of 35%, including textiles, apparel and leather.…

INDUSTRIAL minerals companies need to better manage their communications in an increasingly interconnected world, the CEO of Brazil-based Nexa Resources S.A. told this year’s Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) convention.

In comments echoed by Canadian colleagues, Tito Martins, said he felt that the industry must change the way it engages with an expanding number of potential partners, from local communities and environmentalists, as well as regulators and financiers.…

THE EUROPEAN Union’s (EU) financial watchdog, the Court of Auditors, has highlighted concerns about how Chinese knitwear exporters maybe exploiting loopholes in EU customs and VAT controls to evade paying proper amounts of these taxes.

In a report on shortcomings in EU import procedures, the court noted how Chinese traders were abusing EU customs procedure CP42, which allows an importer to bring goods into one EU member state without paying VAT, because they will be sold in another EU country.…

THE WORLD Trade Organisation’s (WTO) latest ministerial conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in December, failed to agree detailed policy for the global body, other than a commitment to negotiate a deal limiting fishing subsidies by next December (2018). A new agriculture agreement covering all food and drink remained elusive, with the USA calling for “plurilateral” agreements of “like-minded countries” going forward, that can be adopted by WTO member states after being concluded.…

NEW Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) signal a promising outlook for the Vietnamese textile industry with tariff concessions providing the biggest stimulus to figures, according to the country’s trade officials.

Attendees at the 17^th Vietnam International Textile & Garment Industry Exhibition, held late last month (November 22-25th) in Ho Chi Minh City, heard the deals will impact significantly on the national textile sector.…

THE CHILE meat and livestock industry has welcomed the launch of talks between the European Union (EU) and the South American country on upgrading the current 14-year old free trade deal between the two jurisdictions.

A first round of talks are expected to begin on Thursday (Nov 16), with the goal of deepening existing agreements, so that they also address non-tariff barriers such as health import controls.…

EUROPEAN Union (EU) member states and the European Commission have agreed to strengthen monitoring and information sharing systems on food fraud, to help prevent the emergence of damaging scandals such as this summer’s Netherlands egg contamination scandal. Rapid common risk assessment procedures are to be created including swift convening of Commission/member state meetings to exchange relevant scientific information.…

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) planned trade deal with Japan – its sixth most important trading partner – struck in principle at the July 6 EU-Japan Summit in Brussels and set to be operational in 2019, will benefit the EU dairy industry greatly, experts say.…

‘Colourful’,’ young’, ‘big’ and ‘clever’ are words often bandied about to describe the positive qualities of Brazil, and they certainly could be used to define La Estampa, a Brazilian textile company specialising in digital print B2B.

With a global print capacity of 25,000 metres per day, La Estampa is able to punch its weight in global digital textile markets.…

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU)-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA), on which negotiations concluded December 2, 2015, will open up “huge business opportunities” for Vietnamese garment companies, business experts agreed last month (September). They were speaking at an event jointly organised by EU business federation BusinessEurope, EuroCham [European Chamber of Commerce] Vietnam and the EU-Vietnam Business Network.…

VIETNAM’S textile and clothing and textile sector is looking to sell more product into Asian markets such as South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Japan, while solidifying its traditional export bases like the US and EU, the latest trade data indicates. 

Last year, Vietnam exported USD2.28 billion’s worth of clothing and textiles to South Korea – a 7.45% gain compared with 2015, according to Vietnam customs data analysed by the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS). …

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU)-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA), on which negotiations concluded December 2, 2015, will open up “huge business opportunities” for Vietnamese garment companies, business experts agreed earlier this month at an event jointly organised by EU business federation BusinessEurope, EuroCham [European Chamber of Commerce] Vietnam and the EU-Vietnam Business Network.…

WORK is advancing on a major expansion of Santiago’s Pudahuel International Airport to cope with Chile’s rapidly-growing aviation market. But airlines feel they are bearing more than their share of the USD1 billion construction cost.

Officially known as Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport, the facility has been Chile’s gateway to the world since it opened 50 years ago.…

The macro-economic slowdown experienced by Latin America in recent years has thrown the brakes on what had been impressive growth in the beauty and personal care sector since the turn of the century.

Much of the region is now looking for ways to stimulate the sector, tempering ambitions by aiming for more gradual growth rather than runaway success.…

THE DIFFICULTIES that have surged in the diplomatic relations between the Mexican government and the new US administration of President Donald Trump have increased uncertainty within the Mexican personal care product market and industry.

With Mexico facing US demands to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), with the risk of the US imposing temporary safeguard duties on Mexican exports to protect American manufacturers, companies in Mexico are seeking to boost domestic consumption.…

IS the Brazilian textile sector finally seeing an end to the contraction in sales and production prompted by the country’s recession? According to figures released by industry association ABIT (Association Brasileira de Industria Textil e Confecçao), the tide is turning and better times are ahead. …

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) Council of Ministers has approved a trade deal that will see EU-certification of Europe-made organic food products being recognised within Chile, without further Chilean assessments of their production. The agreement is the first of its kind between the EU and a Latin American country.…

Italy’s premier beauty trade fair celebrated half a century this year in Bologna with a host of special events that ranged from an opening cocktail party on the fair grounds to a special dance performance held in the Bologna city centre.…

EUROPEAN drinks industry associations have said they are now preparing to exploit the export market benefits that flow from yesterday’s (Feb 15) approval by the European Parliament of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the European Union (EU) and Canada (CETA).…

EUROPEAN drinks industry associations have said they are now preparing to exploit the export market benefits that flow from yesterday’s (Feb 15) approval by the European Parliament of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the European Union (EU) and Canada (CETA).…

As US President Donald Trump on January 23 pulled America out from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) with an executive order, he signalled he will instead ask Asian TPP members for bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs). This includes countries such as Vietnam that rely on apparel and textile exports.…

MOVES to curb dangerous levels of pollution from vehicle emissions are set to boost demand for new cars in Chile, just as the country’s auto market is emerging from a slump, officials predict.

The ongoing issue of poor air quality in the capital, Santiago, has prompted lawmakers to take dramatic action to limit the use of older cars on the city’s streets as part of a package of measures designed to highlight the commitment to beat the smog.…

Even as the official withdrawal of the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has been greeted by enthusiasm by American automakers, the focus is shifting to the bilateral trade deals that President Donald Trump has promised will take its place.…

THE OLIVE oil industry has traditionally been dominated by some key major European players, notably Spain, Italy and Greece, but with global consumption rising, production is emerging in countries which have previously relied on imports.

International Oil Council statistics show how new production centres are being created.…

THE US Fashion Industry Association (USFIA) has called on the new American administration of President Donald Trump to work hard to negotiate new bilateral trade deals with Asian markets now he has formally pulled his country from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal.…

The January 23 presidential memorandum from President Donald Trump, puling the USA from participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal has disappointed the American cosmetics and personal care products sector. This is not only because of the tariff barriers it would have eliminated but also because the TPP would have pushed regulatory controls in all TPP countries in the same direction.…

THE PROMISE from US President-elect Donald Trump to withdraw the USA from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement on his first day of office has prompted widespread nervousness in auto-sectors around the world.

His rejection of the deal could scupper an agreement negotiated over five years by the United States; Australia; Brunei; Canada; Chile; Japan; Malaysia; Mexico; New Zealand; Peru; Singapore and Vietnam.…

A senior Canada metal industry association has called on its government to continue ratifying the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), despite US President-elect Donald Trump’s commitment to withdraw the US from the trade deal on his first day of office.

“We definitely still support Canada moving forward with the TPP, even without the US.…

THE EUROPEAN Commission’s pledge to put meat and livestock produce second in its 2017 European Union (EU) agri-food promotion campaign (making up 15% of the programmes) has been welcomed by the industry. The announcement came during the release of a EUR133 million marketing budget for EU agri-food producers for 2017, up from EUR111 million in 2016.…

UNITED States President-elect Donald Trump’s commitment to withdraw the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal, condemning the deal as a “potential disaster for our country”, has received the thumbs-down from the cosmetics industry.

“TPP represents an important step forward for the cosmetics industry in the signatory countries, containing as it does a specific annex for cosmetics and personal care,” Cosmetics Europe director general John Chave told Soap Perfumery & Cosmetics.…

BRAZIL’S exports of pigmeat are booming, with over January to July, volume sales overseas increasing 42.2% year-on-year compared to the same time period in 2016. The Brazilian Protein Association (Associação Brasileira de Proteína Animal) says that from January to July this year (2016), 413,300 tonnes have been exported, be it frozen or processed meat, including sausages.…

South America’s cosmetics and personal care sector is looking to bounce back from a slowdown caused by the region’s macroeconomic troubles, but political pressures and regional trade alliances are driving individual country markets down divergent paths.

Over the last year, countries across the region have been buffeted by economic turmoil that has had a knock-on impact on the cosmetics sector.…

The Indonesian Textiles Association (API – Asosiasi Pertekstilan Indonesia) has told WTiN.com that it enthusiastically endorses the opening of negotiations between the European Union (EU) and Indonesia to forge a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) free trade deal.

The goal of the talks announced in July will be to create an agreement that goes beyond traditional agreements that focus on duty and quota abolition, to include removing non-tariff barriers through regulatory mutual recognition and harmonisation.…

A decline in exports has ended the boom years for the Colombian cosmetics sector, but the country still holds high hopes of establishing itself as a major regional player.

Colombia’s cosmetics and personal care sector has been thriving for well over a decade, as economic growth has fuelled a strong domestic market and the country established itself as an export hub for the north of South America.…

COSMETICS and personal care product labelling and decoration continues to play a key role in differentiating brands on the shelf and creating an experience for the consumer. While many companies are moving towards more simple, clean looks, other higher-end brands still prefer eye-catching, metallic designs.…

The recent start of commercial operations at concentrating solar power (CSP) plants in Africa illustrates the potential for utility-scale CSP to capture an increasing share in the world’s power generation mix.

These plants include the 160 megawatt (MW) Noor 1 in southern Morocco, the foundation of what may become the world’s largest CSP generation site, and the 50MW Khi Solar One in South Africa.…

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) has chiselled a new template for international organic food trade deals with its new agreement with Chile. The deal involves EU regulators recognising Chilean exports as organic when produced and controlled under Chilean controls; and Chilean regulators accepting EU food exports as organic in Chile when produced under EU organic rules.…

DETAILS have been released about knitwear and yarn tariffs that will be scrapped regarding products exported and imported between Vietnam and the European Union (EU) under their new trade deal. The full text of the agreement struck last August (2015) has been released and shows how the EU is prepared to remove its tariff barriers to Vietnam knitwear exports.…

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) has chiselled a new template for international organic food trade deals with its new agreement with Chile. The deal involves EU regulators recognising Chilean exports as organic when produced and controlled under Chilean controls; and Chilean regulators accepting EU food exports as organic in Chile when produced under EU organic rules.…

With the desire for packaging beauty being an integral part of north-east Asian consumer culture, it is perhaps no surprise that Japanese and South Korean cosmetics companies have led the way with compacts – whose popularity is spreading worldwide.

The ultimate combination of utility and design, when Japanese cosmetics companies start developing a new compact product, its packaging needs to meet two basic requirements: it has to delight the user with the way it looks, and it must be easy and convenient to use.…

The 2016 outlook for the US paints and coatings industry remains positive, with experts predicting growth thanks to a resilient US economy, a strong performance by the manufacturing industry, and notable new trade agreements.

According to IBISWorld, a global market research company, the US paints and coatings industry bounced back quickly from the financial economic crisis beginning in 2008.…

Australian and New Zealand confectionery and ice cream manufacturers have been broadly supportive of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement that was finalised towards the end of 2015, recognising the potential for securing export sales in lucrative Asian markets. That said, there is some caution, given the TPP delivers more potential for America’s juggernaut of a confectionery sector to roll into local stores.…

The Chilean chocolate market grow by almost 11% annually over the last four years to hit 2.4 kilogrammes annually per head during 2014, with Chile’s consumption overtaking Argentina for the first time, according to data from market analysts Nielsen. But while overall consumption is growing, Chileans are also becoming increasingly sophisticated in their tastes, which has given rise to a growing market for gourmet chocolates, both locally produced and imported.…

While January 6 (2016) was a big day for Chile’s fight against money laundering, with a major money laundering case drawing to close, there is concern that the country’s anti-money laundering (AML) efforts are actually weakening.

After eight years of investigation, Santiago’s 34th Criminal Court handed down the first sentence against eight individuals in the country’s largest ever money-laundering cases.…

Argentina is poised this year to increase beef exports to the European Union (EU) after its government predicted the EU would soon lift foot and mouth disease-related import restrictions for meat from its northern provinces.

New agriculture minister Ricardo Buryaile said January 20 that the European Commission would lift restrictions “in the first half of the year.”…

The UK may still be a world-beating performer for developing offshore wind energy, but more still can be done onshore, as demonstrated by China’s wind-power growth, the Global Wind Energy Council’s (GWEC’s) secretary general Steve Sawyer has argued. Indeed, unveiling GWEC’s, Global Wind Report: Annual Market Update 2014, in a webinar April 1 from Istanbul, Sawyer noted that the UK at 813 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity produces more offshore wind energy than the rest of the world combined, with Denmark “a distant second”.…

TAXES on wages in developed countries within the Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) have risen by about 1% between 2010 and 2014 even though a majority of OECD governments did not increase statutory income tax rates. A new OECD report Taxing Wages 2015 said in 2014, the tax burden paid by average OECD workers increased 0.1% to 36%.…

THE LATIN American paint and coatings sector has been facing tough times in the past year, with sluggish overall economic performance depressing demand for the industry. Even, last summer’s World Cup football fiesta in Brazil, did not give the region’s largest market any motive to celebrate.…

THE TRADE agreement currently being negotiated between the European Union (EU) and the USA could bring significant opportunities for paint machinery manufacturers if the two parties agree to align their technical standards.
The European Commission, which is negotiating the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) on behalf of the EU, has said it would like to close the gap between the two sides regarding technical regulations affecting the marketing, use and conformity assessment of machinery, as well as electrical and electronic products.…

SOUTH America’s personal care product sector has been is facing tougher times than usual – with some countries experiencing weaker sales last year and others faltering this year.
The region’s largest market Brazil is facing a rocky 2015, with a general slowdown in Brazil’s economy, expected to shrink by 1% in 2015.…

WHILE the global nonwovens industry maybe booming through investments, acquisition of new sites, expansion of capacity, more customers and exhibitions all over, the same optimism cannot be applied to emerging market former starlet Brazil. Despite its huge market with 200 million inhabitants, the nonwovens sector of South America’s economic powerhouse is looking for another deep loss of steam in 2015.…

Japan’s pork industry remains resolutely opposed to its national government watering down tariffs in discussions with the United States on the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade deal, warning that revising the existing system will “destroy” the domestic industry.

A spokesman for the Japan Pork Producers’ Association confirmed that the industry will continue to lobby the government to retain the protective tariffs that domestically raised pork enjoys at present.…

INTELLECTUAL property regulations proposed during the ongoing Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations could hinder access to medicine in developing countries, a law professor at the University of Sydney, Australia, who specialises in trade agreements and intellectual property (IP) issues has told Manufacturing Chemist.…

Chile has exported more than 7,000 heifers to China in its first major export of live cattle, which has just arrived at its destination, and the government hopes this might be the start of developing a long term beef livestock export trade.…

THE FACIAL skin care market in Chile has enjoyed double digit growth for over a decade, and is expected to continue expanding. Although this market is expected to grow at a slower rate this year, market research firm Canadean Ltd has forecast an average annual growth rate of 11% between 2013 and 2018.…

Central America’s increasing exposure to money laundering is at least being recognised by the governments on the region, who are working both individually and collectively to combat the problem.

The region has strengthened cooperation, for instance. A key initiative is the Central American Integration System (SICA), a regional political organisation which coordinates government actions for Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Belize and the Dominican Republic regarding certain policy development and programmes, notably improving law enforcement.…

THE AVERAGE tax burden in the developed countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) have continued to rise, up 0.4% in 2013, to 34.1% of GDP, compared with 33.7% in 2012 and 33.3% in 2011. A new OECD report said the largest 2013 increases were in Portugal, Turkey, Slovakia, Finland, and Denmark, which has the highest tax-to-GDP ratio among OECD countries – 48.6%, followed by France, 45%, and Belgium, 44.6%.…

Tiny Paraguay is now the world’s eighth top beef exporter says US government figures, ahead of meaty superpowers such as Argentina (11th), but their aim is to be number five by 2020 and have 20 million head of cattle available in that year alone.…

Sourcing trends in fast fashion in Europe and north America are in flux, being affected by the economic downturn, changes in consumer behaviour and growing awareness of industry practices, especially in the wake of the Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh last year.…

THE ORGANISATION for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) has concluded that five jurisdictions need to improve their tax information exchange standards – Andorra, Anguilla (a UK dependent territory), Antigua & Barbuda, Indonesia and Saint Lucia. The OECD’s Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes said these jurisdictions were “partially compliant” with its standards.…

IN the 1970s and 1980s, the governments of Latin America and the Caribbean did not have a comprehensively robust reputation for sound financial management. Many Caribbean island states had newly emerged from colonialism, finding their way as independent countries. And many Latin American countries were riven by social discord, even civil war, with many under military rule.…

Latin America’s cosmetics and personal care products sector has boomed as consumers take advantage of their rising disposable incomes. The region (including Mexico) accounted for 17% of global sales in the beauty and personal care industry, according to market analysts Euromonitor International in 2013. …

THE EUROPEAN Commission has revised guide prices for a range of poultry imports – if the value of exports exceed these levels, the European Union (EU) can impose additional duties on their sale.

Under the new rules, which should come into force in July, the EU has set a representative price for 100 kilograms of frozen chicken legs coming from Brazil at EUR135, while 100 kg of frozen boneless cuts coming from Argentina have been given a guide price of EUR294; from Brazil EUR220.50; Chile EUR315.70; and Thailand EUR254.60.…

Even during the desperate economic times currently afflicting Venezuela, quality personal care products remain vital to its consumers: “Beauty is part of the culture,” said Jean Clauteaux, president of L’Oréal’s Venezuela section. Unlike neighbouring markets, he said a key characteristic of Venezuelan consumers is their strong demand for high-end products.…

CHINA has announced that it will re-admit pork and poultry imports from Chile, having suspended them last July (2013) over concerns about dioxin contamination.

China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) has however posted a statement insisting that importers submit animal health documents and no–doxin-contamination test reports from Chile’s Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG).…

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) is strengthening its commitments for member states to criminalise financial frauds that have an impact on the EU EUR135 billion annual budget. The European Parliament’s budgetary control and civil liberties committee have now approved a draft of a new directive on the ‘fight against fraud to the Union’s financial interests by means of criminal law’.…

BANGLADESH’S readymade industry expects a 10-15% growth in exports for the current fiscal year ending June, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) acting president Mohammad Hatem has told just-style.

The first eight months of the fiscal year fetched a “morale- boosting” 16.68% rise to USD16.13 billion compared to last year’s USD13.83 billion.…

CANADIAN meat exporters have welcomed a Canada-South Korea free trade agreement announced yesterday (March 11), saying it will boost trade and help them compete for sales in South Korea’s often wealthy markets.

“The absence of an FTA [free trade agreement] with Korea was causing substantial and growing prejudice to the Canadian pork industry due to the tariff rates since all of our key competitors in South Korea have FTAs in place,” said Jean-Guy Vincent, chair of the Canadian Pork Council.…

A EUROPEAN Union (EU) scientific committee has sounded an alarm about potential health concerns regarding the use of nano-silver in clothing – the substance often used as an antibacterial in knitted socks.

The EU’s Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks has noted studies indicating that “nanosilver exposure leads possibly to genotoxicity, changes in activity of the immune system and an accumulation of silver in spleen, liver and testes.”…

NEGOTIATIONS for a renewed International Agreement on Olive Oil are intensifying in Madrid. The agreement runs out at the end of this year and its member jurisdictions, of which the European Union (EU) is the biggest, are working to forge a new agreement by December.…

SOURCING in Asia has been a merry-go-round for many buyers in recent years. As the era of low-cost Chinese manufacturing draws more or less to a close, several countries have leveraged their low cost labour to capture a significant volume of the world’s lower end knitwear manufacturing, while others have sought to extend their reach into higher value-added manufacturing by investing in infrastructure and training.…

SOURCING in Asia has been a merry-go-round for many buyers in recent years. As the era of low-cost Chinese manufacturing draws more or less to a close, several countries have leveraged their low cost labour to capture a significant volume of the world’s lower end knitwear manufacturing, while others have sought to extend their reach into higher value-added manufacturing by investing in infrastructure and training.…

A country famed for its beautiful traditional ‘batik,’ Malaysia is also home to a highly specialised textiles industry and these niche skills may prove vital for the country’s numerous finishing factories in what is shaping up to a challenging year. Economists are predicting a general slowing of the Malaysian economy, with average real gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the next five years estimated in Q4 2013 at 3.4%, revised down 0.2% from Q4 in 2012 (slightly slower than the Asian average of 3.7%), according to the Ifo Institute for Economic Research/International Chamber of Commerce’s World Economic Survey of business experts published in November last year.…

BY LEE ADENDORFF

A country famed for its beautiful traditional ‘batik,’ Malaysia is also home to a highly specialised textiles industry and these niche skills may prove vital for the country’s numerous finishing factories in what is shaping up to a challenging year.…

ALTHOUGH Colombia’s pharmaceutical sector has enjoyed growth over the past few years, new price controls could disrupt the sector’s expansion if they are poorly planned, industry representatives claim.

Their concerns focus on the reaction to maximum price controls on medication recently approved by the government.…

E-books now look more like evolution than a revolution in Spain. Overall sales of books were Euro EUR2.47 billion last year, down 10.9% on 2011 and 28.9% below 2008. E-book sales were EUR74.3 million, just 3% of the sector, representing 54,714 copies sold.…

EUROPEAN Union (EU) and Canadian confectioners can look forward to increasing their trans-Atlantic trade once a new free trade agreement between the EU and Canada comes into force, probably in 2015.

The EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), announced on October 18, will remove most tariffs for confectionery and sweet bakery products imposed by both sides on each other’s exports.…

MEXICO’S new president Enrique Peña Nieto, who came to office in December 2012, promised a less militaristic fight against the country’s increasingly violent drug trade, so his government’s implementation of a new anti-money laundering (AML) law will be watched closely.

Past president Felipe Calderón launched a severe military-led crackdown against the country’s drug cartels towards the end of 2006, around 80,000 people have since been killed in drug-related violence since.…

INDIAN consumer product company Godrej has been pushing into Africa’s hair care market with four acquisitions in the last five years, putting it in a strategic position to compete with major western companies.

Selling hair colourants, hair extensions and soaps in Africa through brands such as Inecto, Renew, Tura and Darling, Godrej is banking on Africa’s fast growing demand for cosmetics and other personal care products and is moving towards becoming an established multinational.…

THE NEW terminal at the principal international airport in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires, Ministro Pistarini International, was inaugurated in March, increasing its total capacity to 13 million passengers – last year (2012) it struggled to accommodate 8.8 million passengers.…

THE NEW terminal at the principal international airport in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires, Ministro Pistarini International, was inaugurated in March, increasing its total capacity to 13 million passengers – last year (2012) it struggled to accommodate 8.8 million passengers.…

CHILE is expected to resume exports of fresh beef to the European Union by the end of the month, according to industry sources.

“EU beef importers were impatient to resume the trade, so we welcome resumption of the certification for Chilean beef exports,” Jean-Luc Mériaux, secretary general of The European Livestock & Meat Trading Union (UECBV) told globalmeatnews today.…

THE DEMAND for lithium will increase dramatically in Europe over the next five years, according to the vice-president of the Interparliamentary Raw Minerals Group at the European Parliament. Also a leading liberal democrat MEP, Vladko Panayotov, of Bulgaria, was speaking during a European Parliament meeting on critical raw minerals organised yesterday (Tuesday) by the Beryllium Science and Technology Association (BeST).…

A SIGNIFICANT set of acquisitions by Brazilian meat major JBS has been given European Union (EU) regulatory approval by the European Commission. Acting as Europe’s international competition regulator, the Commission approved JBS’ purchase from Brazilian food processor Marfrig Alimentos of Netherlands-based Columbus Netherlands BV also known as Zenda) and six Brazilian-based companies that together form the Seara group.…

BRAZIL is an innovative technical textile producer, declares a report from a senior São Paulo’s business school the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV), despite the sector experiencing teething problems as it expands. Looking at the Brazilian textile sector as a whole, the study estimates that 77% of investment into the sector during 2012 was used to buy innovative machinery – and the technical textile sector especially has a lot of demand to meet.…

THERE was much fanfare in Managua in June when Nicaraguan officials granted a concession to build a USD40 billion canal, which would challenge the great Panama Canal. The unlikely builder: a Chinese businessman, Wang Jing, chairman of China-based Xinwei Telecom Enterprise Group and president of the newly established Hong Kong Nicaragua Canal Development Investment Co.…

Venezuela’s cosmetic craze is renowned throughout the region. A beauty culture exists that – besides boosting sales – has produced six Miss Universe winners, six Miss World winners, six Miss Internationals and one Miss Earth. But despite the extra attention given to personal care in this Andean nation, residents have recently been hard pressed to find the most basic of necessities, such as soap and shampoo.…

WHILE it is hard to generalise about a region as diverse as Latin America, the truth is that many of its consumers are more concerned about personal appearance than is typical elsewhere in the world, and that is good news for the personal care product industry.…

THE ELECTION of tobacco magnate Horacio Cartes as Paraguay’s President cy was mired by scandalous accusations of corruption, and now experts say he will do little to confront the country’s flourishing contraband cigarette trade.
Mr Cartes, 56, is a business tycoon and newcomer to politics who owns more than 20 companies, including Paraguay’s largest cigarette manufacturer Tabacalera del Este (Tabesa).…

Drinks packaging design has always been about communicating with consumers – whether it is broadcasting a brand image or delivering information. And with new technologies aiding communication in many ways, interaction is a key theme with international beverage packaging designers today.…

DESPITE the presence of anti-fraud legislation, fraud and corruption are an everyday part of life throughout South America, where fraudsters are unlikely to be convicted, let alone penalised.

“Penalties don’t really have an effect on fraudsters,” said Fernando Gamiz, an analyst at the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), with over 20 years of experience working on South American fraud.…

The Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD), a technical agency of the Organisation of American States (OAS), is playing an increasingly influential role in the Americas in terms of fighting drug-trade linked money laundering. Specifically, CICAD has a central role in the unfolding of the Hemispheric Plan of Action on Drugs 2011-2015 which was adopted by the OAS in 2011, and includes key anti-money launderingAML components.…

A REGULATION aimed at ensuring the rollout of broadband networks across the European Union (EU) is achieved more cheaply and swiftly has been proposed by the European Commission. It tries to force member states to ensure new buildings are broadband ready, while telling incumbent telcos to give access to their physical networks to broadband service providers.…

DECLINING demand from the USA and European Union (EU) for Bangladesh knitwear has not dampened the world’s second largest clothing exporter from aiming high. Rather, Bangladesh is planning to more than double its current knitwear exports, to USD20 billion by 2020, seeking out new markets.…

THE UNITED States government has unveiled details of proposed flexibilities it wants to introduce into the planned Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement which will allow importers to buy scarce clothing, textiles and yarns from outside the bloc.

Speaking at a New York conference yesterday (Wed, Jan 9), Kim Glas, deputy assistant secretary for textiles and apparels of the US Department of Commerce stressed proposals that may appease concerns of US garment and clothing importers concerned about restrictive ‘yarn forward’ rules in the draft TPP.…

Latin America’s robust economy and fascination with beauty has made it a very lucrative region for cosmetics and perfume companies.  However corruption, weak border control and smuggling networks are helping to make the piracy of cosmetics and perfumes into a pervasive problem, causing major loss of revenue to both governments and companies alike.…

BY ROBERT STOKES, IN MALAGA

RANDOM House is bullish about selling more English and Spanish language titles in Spain and Latin America as a result of its planned merger with Penguin Books and outright purchase of Spain’s Random House Mondadori (RHM).…

BY ROBERT STOKES, IN MALAGA

RANDOM House is bullish about selling more English and Spanish language titles in Spain and Latin America as a result of its planned merger with Penguin Books and outright purchase of Spain’s Random House Mondadori (RHM).…

BY ALAN OSBORN

Significant questions about the re-elected US Administration’s readiness to stand up for American textile interests in the upcoming negotiations for expanding the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal are looming in the wake of President Barack Obama’s re-election. Important decisions will be needed soon about the terms for including Vietnam in the TPP and its associated yarn forward rule of origin.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

PAINT and coatings companies using nanoparticles in the European Union (EU) will not have to contend with a special nanotechnology environmental health law after the European Commission opposed creating such legislation. This follows a long review, where some environmentalists have pushed the idea, citing the unusual behaviour of nanoparticles, notably how they migrate within consumers’ bodies.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

PLASTICS companies using nanoparticles in the European Union (EU) will not have to contend with a special nanotechnology environmental health law after the European Commission opposed creating such legislation. This follows a long review, where some environmentalists have pushed the idea, citing the unusual behaviour of nanoparticles, notably how they migrate within consumers’ bodies.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) Council of Ministers has today approved a shake-up of its special low duty system for poor exporting countries, which is expected to change tariffs paid on a wide range of metals paid on their entry into the EU.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) Council of Ministers has today approved a shake-up of its special low duty system for poor exporting countries, which is expected to change tariffs paid on a wide range of industrial minerals paid on their entry into the EU.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) Council of Ministers has today approved a shake-up of its special low duty system for poor exporting countries, which is expected to change tariffs paid on steel and iron and relate ore paid on its entry into the EU.…

BY ROBERT STOKES, IN MALAGA

12 SEPTEMBER 2012

SPAIN’s ailing book industry has seen things go from bad to worse throughout 2012 as the country moved centre stage in the Eurozone crisis, government austerity measures hit hard, and unemployment hovered around 25%.…

BY CARMEN PAUN AND WANG FANGQING

A PLANNED free trade agreement (FTA) between the European Union (EU) and Japan could end the Japanese BSE-linked ban on EU beef and veal imports, say industry representatives.

The European Commission has asked the EU’s 27 member states for a mandate to start negotiations with Japan by the end of the year, and these will cover non-tariff issues such as sanitary and phytosanitary rules as well as duties.…

BY JONATHAN DYSON, IN BOLIVIA

THE INDUSTRIAL production of lithium carbonate and lithium-ion batteries in Bolivia has moved a step closer following the formation of a joint venture between Bolivia’s state-owned mining corporation Comibol and a South Korea consortium led by the country’s state-run mineral development corporation Korea Resources Corp.…

BY JONATHAN DYSON, IN LIMA

PERU’S clothing and textile industry has been moving up market to carve out sales in a sector whose low end continues to be dominated by Asian suppliers, and the country’s dyeing and finishing sector is benefiting.…

BY JONATHAN DYSON, IN LIMA

PERU’S clothing and textile industry has been moving up market to carve out sales in a sector whose low end continues to be dominated by Asian suppliers, and the country’s dyeing and finishing sector is benefiting.…

BY MJ DESCHAMPS

WHILE cities such as Milan, Paris, New York City, and London have historically been seen as the global ‘fashion hubs’ – acting as meeting spots for high-end designers, fashion shows, luxury retail outlets and fashionistas – the rise of fast fashion has been diffusing that concentration a bit; making cutting-edge trends more accessible to the rest of the world.…

BY JONATHAN DYSON, IN LIMA

A GROWING demand for personal care products in Peru, paired with the country’s rising GDP (6.9% in 2011, and forecast to grow another 5.5% in 2012), is creating significant new opportunities for both international and domestic cosmetics brands, who are reaping the benefits of Peru’s strong economic growth.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD AND JONATHAN DYSON, IN LIMA

SOME of world’s most coveted fibres, Vicuña, Guanaco, Alpaca and Llama, all hail from rugged Andean region in South America. Vicuña fibre, known locally and in the trade as the "gold of the Andes" and "the fabric of the gods" is a key part of the global high-end luxury market for rare and superfine fibres.…

BY LEAH GERMAIN

THE STEADY decline in the price of lithium-ion battery packs is firming up the market for electric cars, making it likely that this new use of lithium will continue to grow.

Recent data shows that the installed cost of lithium-ion batteries will fall more than one-third by the end of 2017.…

BY MARK ROWE

WHEN the European Union (EU) set up the world’s first carbon trading market in 2001, the Emissions Trading System (ETS), advocates heralded a new dawn: carbon pollution could be brought under control in a way that benefited the environment while not damaging industrial interests.…

BY MARK ROWE

WHEN the European Union (EU) set up the world’s first carbon trading market in 2001, the Emissions Trading System (ETS), advocates heralded a new dawn: carbon pollution could be brought under control in a way that benefited the environment while not damaging industrial interests.…

BY JONATHAN P DYSON, IN CANCÚN

A rapidly growing number of students in Mexico are attending private universities, but there are increasing concerns about the quality of many of the new institutions. While the majority of Mexican students still attend public universities, with around 2 million students – 70% of enrollment – restrictions on places at public universities have opened up significant opportunities for private institutions.…

BY LEAH GERMAIN

DESPITE winning import duty concessions under the newly enforced free trade agreement between the US and South Korea, American beef producers will still not be able to export beef over the age of 30 months. The import of older beef remains banned under Korean health rules to prevent the spread of BSE.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) is to further reduce its maximum rates for mobile roaming tariffs from July 1, and also introduce cap EU mobile data service charges for the first time. Under a deal struck between the European Parliament and the EU Council of Ministers, these would cost no more than Euro EUR0.70 cents from that day, with the cap falling to EUR0.45 cents in 2013 and EUR0.20 cents in 2014.…

BY LEAH GERMAIN

THE USA’s Under-Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sánchez has told just-style he is optimistic about the impact on the American textile and clothing sector of new bilateral trade deals struck by the Obama administration with South Korea, Panama and Columbia.…

BY MJ DESCHAMPS

FROM fabrics that moisturise and kill bacteria to bizarre weather and media scandals, the global style sector in 2011 certainly had its share of unusual news and unpredictable developments.

The year started off with the backlash of December’s massive snowstorms disrupting post-Christmas shopping along the northern east coast in the US, causing an abrupt halt to a two-month spending spree which began at the beginning of November 2010.…

BY NADJA DROST

AMIDST a global gold rush spurred on by historically high prices, Colombia, with vast tracts of unexplored gold deposits, is emerging as a major source of the precious metal.

But Colombia’s gold boom is providing the country’s numerous illegal armed groups with sundry new ways to finance their wars as well as launder their ill-gotten profits.…

BY NADJA DROST

THE COLOMBIAN government’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIAF) is asking that all gold buyers, refineries, exporters and importers in the South American country be legally required to report to the agency, in order to better detect suspicious financial activity.…

BY MJ DESCHAMPS

THE UNITED States garment industry is supporting a "yarn forward" rule of origin proposed by the US Trade Representative (USTR) during the latest round of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement negotiations. Both the US and Vietnam want to join the TPP trade agreement, which currently includes Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore.…

BY MJ DESCHAMPS

THE UNITED States Trade Representative has proposed a ‘yarn forward’ rule within negotiations for Washington to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement, to protect the US textile industry from Vietnam’s state-subsidised textile enterprises. America and Vietnam want to join the TPP, currently including Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Commission has launched a Euro EUR1.5 million study into concerns that European Union (EU) animal welfare and food safety rules could harm the global competitiveness of EU meat and other livestock sectors.

Brussels has asked research teams to bid for a major study comparing compliance costs for EU and non-EU country meat producers.…

BY MJ DESCHAMPS

United States House of Representatives members linked to the textile industry are urging USA Trade Representative (USTR) Ron Kirk in a letter received yesterday (June 1) to ensure an proposed expanded multi-lateral Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement does not flood American markets with Vietnamese clothing.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

ARGENTINA, Uruguay and Iran are among almost 100 countries expected to lose tariff breaks for their food exports to the European Union (EU), under a planned reform of the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) system, which lowers EU import duties for emerging market and developing countries for more 6,200 tariff lines, including many food products.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

BRAZIL and Argentina are among almost 100 countries expected to lose tariff breaks for their cosmetics exports to the European Union (EU), under a planned reform of the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) system. The European Commission wants to focus import duty concessions on poorer countries and so those regarded by the World Bank as high-or-upper middle income states would no longer qualify from January 2014.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

LATIN America is proving to be one of the most intriguing and exciting markets globally for beauty and personal care products. "The Latin American cosmetic market grew 20% in 2010, so now it is a market of US dollars USD64 million – almost as big as the north American market," said Mr Jaime Concha Prada, who recently served as president of CASIC, the Chamber of the Latin American Cosmetics Industry.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

BRAZIL and Argentina are among almost 100 countries expected to lose tariff breaks for their knitwear exports to the European Union (EU), under a planned reform of the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) system.

The European Commission announced yesterday (May 10) it wanted to focus import duty concessions on poorer countries and so henceforth those regarded by the World Bank as high or upper middle income states would no longer qualify from January 2014.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Iran are among almost 100 countries expected to lose tariff breaks for their plastics exports to the European Union (EU), under a planned reform of the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) system.

The European Commission announced yesterday (May 10) it wanted to focus import duty concessions on poorer countries and so henceforth those regarded by the World Bank as high or upper middle income states would no longer qualify from January 2014.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

BRAZIL and Argentina are among almost 100 countries expected to lose tariff breaks for their textile and clothing exports to the European Union (EU), under a planned reform of the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) system.

The European Commission announced yesterday (May 10) it wanted to focus import duty concessions on poorer countries and so henceforth those regarded by the World Bank as high or upper middle income states would no longer qualify from January 2014.…

BY ALAN OSBORN

DEFINING a niche drink is an arbitrary matter and what may pass as niche today may well be considered mainstream tomorrow. Flavoured vodka, for instance, had a relatively specialised following in Europe until a few years ago – now it is classified as an official spirit drink under European Union (EU) regulations.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE RUSSIAN government received unusual praise from a Revenue Watch Institute and Transparency International assessment of public disclosures of oil, gas and other mineral management. It placed Russia third, out of 41 countries, behind Brazil and Norway. Mexico and Chile were fourth and fifth.…

BY BARBARA BIERACH

WHILE the Reserve Bank of Australia has a licence to print cash, two subsidiaries wanted one too, it seems – only using international sales agents to bribe foreign public officials over banknote printing contracts. Barbara Bierach reports from Sydney.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

A EURO EUR6million research project will see scientists collect, isolate and classify marine organisms, including sea anemones, tunicates and micro and macroalgae, from the world’s seas and oceans, and look for active biochemicals with potential medical uses. The 2010-1014 MAREX project is coordinated by the University of Helsinki, Finland, working with researchers from Belgium, Britain, Chile, Finland, France, India, Italy, Lebanon, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

CLIMATE control concerns will be integrated into all investment and advisory services offered by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), of the World Bank. It has created a new ‘Climate Business Group’ to undertake this work and grow IFC climate-related investments to more than US dollars USD3 billion within three years.…

BY NADJA DROST

THE SURGING price of gold has unleashed a gold rush in Colombia, and international criminal networks are using the burgeoning trade in the precious metal to clean the proceeds of crime. In a country with as intimate a connection with the illicit drugs trade and terrorism as Colombia, the risks posed to anti-money laundering authorities are significant.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE GERMAN government is giving Euro EUR1.2 million to a UN project expanding and upgrading small and medium-sized generic pharmaceutical manufacturers in Asia and Africa. It is run by the UN Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and aims to spread medicine manufacture across a continent where production is mainly concentrated in South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD, KARRYN MILLER, GARRY PIERRE-PIERRE, KEITH NUTHALL

FOR niche spirits, obscure can be good – and so products made in countries not renowned for their spirits production can gather export market cache. Latin America and the Caribbean are regions where effort by buyers can pay dividends.…

BY WANG FANGQING

A NEW China-owned wine company in Chile will try to overcome perceptions among Chinese consumers that Chilean wine is a low-grade tipple. China’s largest food trading company, the state-owned COFCO Group, has paid US dollars USD18 million to purchase part of Viña Bisquertt, a Providencia, Chile-based winery.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

THE ORIGINAL inhabitants of Latin America, who dominated the region prior to the Spanish and Portuguese conquests, have often had a rough deal regarding tertiary education. But initiatives are underway to right this wrong. This May the Peruvian National Congress’ Education Commission approved a proposal to create a National Aymara University, the first institute for higher learning in Peru designed to serve so-called ‘indigenous’ peoples of the country.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

THE ORIGINAL inhabitants of Latin America, who dominated the region prior to the Spanish and Portuguese conquests, have often had a rough deal regarding tertiary education. But initiatives are underway to right this wrong. This May the Peruvian National Congress’ Education Commission approved a proposal to create a National Aymara University, the first institute for higher learning in Peru designed to serve so-called ‘indigenous’ peoples of the country.…

BY MARK ROWE

IS the recession’s worst over for the jet fuel aviation industry? Passenger traffic during this late spring and summer has risen sharply compared with flights year-on-year, giving hope to an industry that Giovanni Bisignani, director general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), described last year as "structurally sick".…

BY KARRYN MILLER

The success of Tesco and Sainsbury’s private label drinks products in Britain cannot be denied. In a time when many companies are tightening their belts and streamlining their product mix, these supermarket retailers are expanding their own-label (to use the standard UK term) drinks range – and consumers are benefiting.…

BY JOHN PAGNI

Russia has a strong drinks sector, for spirits, beer and juices, especially. Alcoholic beverage makers are having to deal with flat sales on the domestic market and a government determined to reduce alcohol consumption, forcing quality producers to look for export sales to boost profits.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

While most of the alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages produced in Brazil are consumed domestically, the exception is the juice sector. Brazil is one of the world’s top three producers of tropical fruit, according to Brazilian Fruits Institute (IBRAF), and an important global provider of fruit juice.…

BY WANG FANGQING

Given the fast-growing domestic consumption of branded drinks, Chinese beverage manufacturers are racing to expand their production.

The Beijing-based Huiyuan Group (NOTE – SPELLING IS CORRECT), China’s leading fruit juice manufacturer (and which Coca-Cola failed to purchase last year), announced a massive investment of Chinese Yuan CNY5 billion (US dollar USD731 million) in April 2010 to develop a sparkling fruit juice line.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

Wine is not a particularly popular alcoholic beverage in most of Latin America, and only 1.94 billion litres were consumed in the region in 2009, according to Euromonitor International. Wine is also the only major beverage segment that has dropped in consumption per capita in Latin America in the last five years, from 3.8 litres in 2005 to 3.6 litres in 2009 (compared to almost 50 litres consumed per capita per year in France for example) said beverage information specialist Canadean.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

The most important markets for bottled water have traditionally been developed economies like Western Europe and the United States. However, growth in these markets has recently flattened out, exacerbated by the global economic crisis and growing environmental concerns over the product.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

INTRODUCTION

LATIN America has never been a strong player in the global drinks marketplace, but maybe, as much of the region struggles towards unprecedented prosperity, this could change. Mexico has shown the way with the international profile of its beers, notably Corona, and its world-beating Tequila and Mezcal industries.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

INTRODUCTION

LATIN America has never been a strong player in the global drinks marketplace, but maybe, as much of the region struggles towards unprecedented prosperity, this could change. Mexico has shown the way with the international profile of its beers, notably Corona, and its world-beating Tequila and Mezcal industries.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

A decade ago, Latin America was considered to be one of the beer industry’s toughest markets, due to frequent bouts of economic uncertainty and political turmoil. But a lot has changed in the region since the year 2000, and recently instead of recoiling from this region, the biggest beer companies in the world have been fighting tooth and nail for shares of it.…

BY ALISON MOODIE

SUB-SAHARAN Africa is still struggling to make its way in the global textile and clothing industry – but companies are convinced that without the USA’s African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) the outlook would be bleaker. One decade ago this May, this tariff preference programme was launched by the US: it gives qualifying African countries zero tariff exports for the huge US market – and statistics show that the sub-Saharan textile and clothing industry has benefited.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

INTRODUCTION

There are signs around the world that the textile market is beginning to recover from the global economic crisis, and developing markets will be leading that recovery. Asia is, of course, at the forefront, but many countries in Latin America have also weathered the crisis and have come out in a surprisingly decent position, with their dynamic textile and apparel industries well positioned for future expansion.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

LAST year in Latin America, British American Tobacco (BAT) and Philip Morris International (PMI), the region’s two dominant companies, battled to maintain profits through declining volumes. Overall, Latin America was profitable for both companies. For BAT, profits were mainly attributable to a strong performance in Brazil, and improved premium brand sales, however volumes sales declined throughout the region.…

BY DEIRDRE MASON, PACIFICA GODDARD, GAVIN BLAIR and KEITH NUTHALL

NEW technologies devour new resources and the move towards hybrid and electric vehicles could make some currently impoverished countries rich. As the world moves away from fossil fuels, the soft metal lithium will become increasingly in demand as a critical component of auto batteries for green cars.…

BY DEIRDRE MASON, PACIFICA GODDARD, GAVIN BLAIR and KEITH NUTHALL

NEW technologies devour new resources and the move towards hybrid and electric vehicles could make some currently impoverished countries rich. As the world moves away from fossil fuels, the soft metal lithium will become increasingly in demand as a critical component of auto batteries for green cars.…

BY MARK ROWE and KEITH NUTHALL

THIS April, the UK will launch a feed-in tariff for electricity, which the government said will accelerate take-up of green energy among the general public. According to the European Commission’s energy directorate-general, the European Union (EU) already uses at least 20% more energy than is justified, which has led to twin concerns – the need to reduce consumption of fossil fuels and to encourage consumers to switch to green energy tariffs and sources.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

CHINA has come under increased pressure to scrap export restrictions on certain key non-ferrous metals, with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) establishing a disputes panel to adjudicate complaints about these rules. With the European Union (EU) being joined by the United States and Mexico as formal parties to this dispute, the outlook could be serious for China if it loses.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD, ANCA GURZU, GAVIN BLAIR and KEITH NUTHALL

NEW technologies devour new resources and the move towards hybrid and electric vehicles could make some currently impoverished countries rich. As the world moves away from fossil fuels, the soft metal lithium will become increasingly in demand as a critical component of auto batteries for green cars.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

THE CIGARETTE market in Argentina remained strong in 2008: the retail volume increased 3.12% from 2007 to 42.47 billion sticks, valued at Euro 1.72 billion, a 17.6% increase from 2007, according to the Argentine ministry of the economy.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

Despite recent efforts by the Chilean government to discourage and reduce smoking, Chileans continue to be amongst the heaviest smokers in Latin America. In fact, the cigarette market in Chile expanded in 2008: Chileans purchased 14.78 billion cigarettes compared to 13.97 billion in 2007 according the United Nations Statistics Division.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

AN INITIATIVE boosting the ability of Latin American and Caribbean countries to prevent precursor chemicals from being diverted from legitimate uses to illegal narcotic production has been launched. The UN Office in Drugs and Crime and European Commission’s three-year PRELAC project will cover: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Trinidad & Tobago and Venezuela.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

Despite recent efforts by the Chilean government to discourage and reduce smoking, Chileans continue to be amongst the heaviest smokers in Latin America. In fact, the cigarette market in Chile expanded in 2008: Chileans purchased 14.78 billion cigarettes compared to 13.97 billion in 2007 according the United Nations Statistics Division.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

CORRUPTION begets fraud and fraud begets corruption, and there are few harder crimes to tackle than complex frauds rooted in institutionalised and culturally tolerated corruption. As a result, the work of international organisation Transparency International has been key in fighting fraud worldwide, especially that linked to corruption.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

IT has long been outmoded and inaccurate to split the world into two camps: industrialised developed economies, and largely agricultural developing countries. The growth of the 1990s and the current decade means there is a wide range of social and economic sophistication and wealth amongst the poorer of these two old-fashioned categories.…

By Thompson Ayodele, in Lagos

As the Group of 20 top industrialised and developing economies prepared to meet in London, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon warned them that "the economic crisis may soon be compounded by an equally severe crisis of global instability." A key problem is that trade is deteriorating every day and political pressures demand import restrictions to protect employment. This is no way out: such protectionism would make this particular depression ‘Great’. 

Everyone says trade is the best way out – but on their own terms: last November, the G20 leaders signed a pledge against protectionism yet, in the second half of 2008, 17 out of the G20 passed 47 restrictions of trade, the World Bank claims. …

BY KEITH NUTHALL, EMMA JACKSON and ALAN OSBORN

FEW things say more about the growing enthusiasm for nuclear power than the rush of young students eager to make a career in the industry. It is happening mainly in America but other countries are now beginning to see the same development.…

BY LUCY JONES

KNITWEAR featuring Barack Obama’s image stole the limelight at the Paris fashion week last autumn but whether the love will be returned to the global knitwear industry has yet to be seen.

Indeed, there is cause for concern, because Obama used protectionist rhetoric on the campaign trail.…

BY MARK GODFREY

BARRY Lee is probably typical of Chinese wine drinkers. The auto-sales accountant started off drinking a local Great Wall red at an office lunch, then got curious and went to a Beijing branch of the French Carrefour supermarket chain where he spent RMB78 (US$11.40) on a bottle of Chilean red.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

WHILE net revenues for tobacco product sales in some key countries in South America have experienced growth in the last few years, in general the regional tobacco product market is stagnant. Producers blame increased excise rates, public health awareness, and new and more rigidly enforced regulations for the gloom.…

By ALAN OSBORN

For long the Cinderella of the engineering industry, nuclear power appears to be regaining its popularity as a career choice with a surprising increase in university courses, mainly but not exclusively in the US. In some countries, like France, enthusiasm has never faltered and a clear career pattern in nuclear sciences has been established for years.…

By Alan Osborn

FEW things say more about the growing enthusiasm for nuclear power than the rush of young students eager to make a career in the industry. It is happening mainly in America but other countries are now beginning to see the same development.…

BY MARK ROWE

THE PSYCHOLOGY of colour has fascinated philosophers and scientists down the ages, so it is perhaps unsurprising that the world’s paint companies devote much of their time to working out why consumers prefer certain colours for certain everyday items – and why these tastes vary so much across the world.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE CHILEAN government has admitted defeat in trying to contain an outbreak of infectious salmon anaemia virus in Atlantic salmon within its country, saying that it was now being found across the country. Following its reported appearance in August 2007, Chile has now informed the Aquatic Animals Commission (of the Office International des Épizooties animal health organisation – OIE) that the "event is unlikely to be contained and is now considered to be endemic."…

BY MARK ROWE

THE RUSSIAN fishing fleet is to undergo the greatest restructuring of the industry since the end of the Soviet Union in 1991. Under the plans, which were approved by the Russian parliament – or Duma – this summer, a new, unifying state fishery corporation will have centralised control for all activities related to the industry.…

BY ALAN OSBORN

FEW things say more about the growing enthusiasm for nuclear power than the rush of young students eager to make a career in the industry. It is happening mainly in America but other countries are now beginning to see the same development.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

CHINA’S entry into the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 2002 and the recent end of quotas in the US and European markets have created gigantic changes in the textile industry worldwide, with developing markets like those in Latin America expected to suffer the most from these shifts.…

BY PACIFICA GODDARD, in Caracas

LATIN AMERICA has long been notorious for its high levels of corruption, especially through money laundering, bribery and the illicit drug trade. And although the recent years of relative stability and democratisation in the region have brought economic progress, this has also widened the opportunities for fraudulent activities and fuelled an increasing sophistication by which they are performed.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

WORLD Trade Organisation (WTO) governments will try mediation to resolve disagreements over food health standards, avoiding referrals to protracted and sometimes fruitless formal disputes proceedings. They have agreed to use the chair of the WTO sanitary and phytosanitary measures committee as an honest broker.…

BY KARRYN CARTELLE

AS the world’s wild finfish and seafood stocks continue to dwindle and environmental pressure for sustainable fishing practices rises, South Korea’s fishing fleet is adjusting with the times.

South and North Korea’s combined expansive coastline spans 8,693 kilometres (South Korea’s mainland alone commands 2,413km).…

BY RACHEL JONES, in Caracas

BIOGRAPHY

Olga Sandoval, 29, Licensed Nurse, University Hospital (Hospital Clinico Universitario), Caracas, Venezuela

Nursing License, Central University of Venezuela (UCV). Worked for two years in the San Roman Urological Clinic and seven years at the University Hospital, including one year of intensive care training.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Pesticides Action Network (PAN) pressure group has claimed independent tests have revealed wines sold in the European Union (EU) may contain residues of 10 potentially harmful pesticides. It examined 40 EU-purchased bottles from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Austria, Germany, Italy, Portugal, South Africa, Australia and Chile – 34 conventional and six organic: the conventional wines contained 148 pesticide residues in total, having one to 10 pesticides each – an average-per-bottle exceeding four.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

IMPROVED cooperation between fisheries authorities in the European Union (EU) and Russia is to be established, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Brussels and Moscow. The deal covers fishing grounds in the Baltic and the north Atlantic and involves better contacts between the European Commission and Russia’s state committee for fisheries.…

BY LUCY JONES, in Dallas; ALAN OSBORN, in London; KARRYN CARTELLE, in Tokyo; BILL CORCORAN, in Johannesburg; PAUL COCHRANE, in Beirut; RACHEL JONES, in Caracas; MARK ROWE; and KEITH NUTHALL

WITH the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Doha Development Round being slow to proceed since its 2001 launch – and only this year approaching something resembling and end game – free traders wanting to encourage global commerce have looked to bilateral and regional trade deals.…

BY RACHEL JONES, in Caracas

SINCE biotech oil crops were first commercialised over a decade ago, their use has experienced yearly double-digit growth worldwide, with Latin America being something of a nursery for this growth. Globally, the area of biotech crops grew by 13%, or by 12 million hectares, in 2006, to reach 102 million hectares, according to the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA).…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

AS the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Doha Development Round moves towards completion, a big push is underway to see a wine and spirits geographical indication register established within final deal. A WTO special group for the issue met yesterday (Mon Dec 3) and supporters of the register pushed for full negotiations on the issue, ending technical discussions that have dragged on for years.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

AS the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Doha Development Round moves towards completion, a big push is underway to see a wine and spirits geographical indication register established within final deal. A WTO special group for the issue met yesterday (Mon Dec 3) and supporters of the register pushed for full negotiations on the issue, ending technical discussions that have dragged on for years.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

DIPLOMATIC grumbles have started to emerge about the European Union’s (EU) REACH chemical control system, with claims being made at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) its complexity could break EU commitments under the WTO’s technical barriers to trade agreement.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

AS the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Doha Development Round moves towards completion, a big push is underway to see a wine and spirits geographical indication register established within final deal. A WTO special group for the issue met yesterday (Mon Dec 3) and supporters of the register pushed for full negotiations on the issue, ending technical discussions that have dragged on for years.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

DIPLOMATIC grumbles are emerging about the European Union’s (EU) REACH chemical control system, claiming its complexity could break EU commitments under the being made at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) technical barriers to trade agreement. A meeting of the WTO technical barriers to trade committee heard Argentina, Brazil, the USA, South Korea, Australia, Japan, Canada, Taiwan, Chile, China, Mexico and Thailand raise concerns that REACH could impose illegally difficult tasks on exporters.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

DIPLOMATIC grumbles have started to emerge about the European Union’s (EU) REACH chemical control system, with claims being made at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) its complexity could break EU commitments under the WTO’s technical barriers to trade agreement.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

CLAIMS are being made at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) that the complexity of the European Union’s (EU) REACH chemical control system could break EU commitments under the WTO’s technical barriers to trade agreement. Argentina, Brazil, the USA, South Korea, Australia, Japan, Canada, Taiwan, Chile, China, Mexico and Thailand claim REACH could impose illegally difficult tasks on exporters.…

BY KARRYN CARTELLE

THE SIGNING of a bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the United States is expected to fuel an already booming seafood trade. And with the Koreans having a host of other FTAs in the works, it appears this seafood-producing nation will use free trade agreements to push its seafood products to every continent.…

INTERVIEW – TONY NOWELL, ZESPRI.

BY KARRYN CARTELLE

THE WORLD leader in kiwifruit – New Zealand’s Zespri International – appeared on the scene in 1997, a whole 45 years after the first kiwifruit were exported from its home country’s shores. But despite such a late start the company has experienced rapid growth, securing the dominant position in the kiwifruit marketplace.…

BY MONICA DOBIE, in Ottawa, and KEITH NUTHALL

IT would almost be hard for Canada not to be one of the seafood industry’s largest global players. After all, surrounded by the Arctic, Atlantic and Pacific oceans and the Great Lakes as well, Canada has the world’s longest coastline (244,000 km).…

BY RACHEL JONES, in Caracas

A NUMBER of factors have contributed to a booming Latin American market in soap, perfume and cosmetics – most importantly, regional economic growth and a healthy overall GDP. Hair care is the region’s biggest seller, but an increase in life expectancy has created a growing demand for skin care products, especially those related to anti-aging and sun protection.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE WORLD Trade Organisation (WTO) has created a disputes panel to rule on the vexed question of whether India’s import duties on wines and spirits are so punishing, they break WTO rules. The panel will hear complaints from the United States, whose drinks industries have long chafed at the aggregated duties that range between 150% and 550%.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE WORLD Trade Organisation (WTO) has created a disputes panel to rule on the vexed question of whether India’s import duties on wines and spirits are so punishing, they break WTO rules. The panel will hear complaints from the United States, whose drinks industries have long chafed at the aggregated duties that range between 150% and 550%.…

BY MONICA DOBIE
ETHICALLY conscious consumers are spending more money on buying certified fair trade wine, although the marketing of other drinks certified to promote social development in poorer countries has been slower to grow.

Fair trade wines volumes are now respectable, with the London-based Fair Trade Foundation saying consumption is highest in the UK, with worldwide sales volumes totaling 618,000 litres in 2004 (bought entirely in Britain), and 1.39 million in 2005, with Britons buying 1.12 million of the share.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A MAJOR American golf clothing chain has failed to secure European Union (EU)-wide trademark rights to its name, because European Court of Justice (ECJ) judges found it insufficiently distinctive. Golf USA Inc franchises more than 100 golf clothing and equipment stores in 32 US states and 11 other countries: Belgium, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Ireland, South Korea, Mexico, Spain and Sweden.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE UNITED States Trade Representative (USTR) has released a series of detailed reports outlining the threats posed by counterfeiters worldwide and the inability of many governments to fight the problem.

Its sheaf of intelligence includes comprehensive warnings from cigarette giant Philip Morris, a company that has adopted a high profile in fighting counterfeiters and smugglers.…

BY RACHEL JONES, in Caracas
VENEZUELA’S economy, fueled by its vast oil wealth, has grown by about 9% in 2006, making it one of the fastest-growing in Latin America, resulting in increased consumption and production of paints and coatings. However, the boom has not been all good news for the sector, it has also caused problems related to inflation and currency controls, specifically in regards to the importation of primary materials for production.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
AN AMERICAN anti-piracy group has warned that the Czech Republic and Costa Rica have joined the well-known major sources of counterfeit clothing such as China and Brazil. And in a report, the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition adds that the “vast majority” of pirated clothing exported from the Czech Republic was actually made in China.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

A WORLD Trade Organisation disputes panel has declared Chile is effectively operating an illegal price band system controlling the price of sugar imports, breaking the WTO agriculture agreement.

ENDS…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

WITH global trade ever increasing, and the power of brands to generate massive profits made starkly clear with every company report, the counterfeiting of goods is one of international organised crime’s major boom areas. The European Commission has been researching the threat posed from around the world.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

WITH global trade ever increasing, and the power of brands to generate massive profits made starkly clear with every company report, the counterfeiting of goods is one of international organised crime’s major boom areas.

It is a serious problem for legitimate business, especially those based in developed countries with tough piracy controls, who are seeking to export to poorer countries where intellectual property crimes are a low priority.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Commission has warned of a continued boom in counterfeits of clothing and accessory products entering the European Union (EU), with more than 10.9 million fake items seized by customs officials last year. This is 140% more than the numbers of seizures in 2004.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Commission has warned of a continued boom in counterfeits of clothing and accessory products entering the European Union (EU), with more than 10.9 million fake items seized by customs officials last year. This is 140% more than the numbers of seizures in 2004.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

INDIA has been branded a serious hotspot for counterfeit books, in a global European Commission survey of countries where product fakes are manufactured. The Commission’s directorate general (DG) for trade gathered information from companies, diplomatic missions and trade federations.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

CHILE and India have been highlighted in a European Commission piracy survey as international blackspots for the counterfeiting of cosmetics and related products. Cosmetics companies "invoke frequent infringements of their design rights and utility models" in Chile, said the survey report, collated by the Commission’s directorate general (DG) for trade.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

CANADA, in alliance with Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan, has successfully scuppered plans to place chrysotile asbestos on the ‘watch list’ of the United Nations’ Rotterdam Convention, a move that would have allowed importing countries to insist on prior consent before admitting any cargoes of this mineral.…

BY LIZ HALL

SIX years ago, government representatives from nine South American countries gathered in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, to sign a document of great importance to those concerned with fighting money-laundering (ML) and terrorism financing (TF).

On December 8, 2000, representatives of the governments of the following countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay, signed the Founding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) formally establishing GAFISUD, a regional body modelled on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

FISH farmers in southern Chile are being offered space technology to protect themselves from Harmful Algal Blooms that swarm off the country’s southern coasts, costing the region’s 360 fish farms millions of dollars in lost stocks. The blooms not only poison healthy seawater, they suck in oxygen, asphyxiating caged fish that cannot escape.…

STORIES BY KEITH NUTHALL

FISH farmers in southern Chile are being offered space technology to protect themselves from Harmful Algal Blooms that swarm off the country’s southern coasts, costing the region’s 360 fish farms millions of dollars in lost stocks. The blooms not only poison healthy seawater, they suck in oxygen, asphyxiating caged fish that cannot escape.…

BY ALAN OSBORN

INTRODUCTION

WE’RE barely a third of the way through 2006 but it’s already clear that the year is going to be a hugely important one for European Union (EU) legislation affecting both the alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks industries.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

FURTHER global restrictions on the tobacco industry are to be developed, the first Conference of the Parties to the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control has decided. Meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, diplomats established working groups to develop legally binding protocols, using the convention as their authority, that further limit cross-border tobacco advertising and smuggling.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE INTERNATIONAL Finance Corporation (IFC), of the World Bank, is buying US$10 million equity in independent Argentina and Chile oil and gas producer GeoPark Holdings Limited. The money will strengthen its capital base, corporate governance, environmental and community development policies.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE OFFICE International des Épizooties (OIE), the world animal health organisation, has reported further outbreaks of American Foulbrood disease amongst Chile honey bees. The OIE said 16 apiaries were infected December 18 to 31.

ENDS
…

BY ALAN OSBORN

IN line with the growing recognition in the 1980s of anti-money laundering campaigns as a weapon against terrorism and increased knowledge global drug supply routes, (implicating a number of Latin American countries), governments of the western hemisphere concluded that greater formal co-operation was necessary in fighting dirty money.…

BY ALAN OSBORN

IN line with the growing recognition in the 1980s of anti-money laundering campaigns as a weapon against terrorism and increased knowledge global drug supply routes, (implicating a number of Latin American countries), governments of the western hemisphere concluded that greater formal co-operation was necessary in fighting dirty money.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

OBSTACLES have been thrown into the path of imports into Chile of wines made outside the European Union (EU) and which are sold using controversial and contested geographical indications such as sherry, Bordeaux and port. These have come in changes agreed by the EU Council of Ministers to a 2002 EU-Chile agreement on trading wines.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) Council of Ministers has made permanently legal across the EU experimental wine-making practices that have been under trial. They include the treatment of must and fermenting wine with charcoal, employing L-ascorbic acid, adding dimethyldicarbonate (DMDC) and using yeast mannoproteins.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE MULTILATERAL Investment Guarantee Agency, or MIGA, is the international organisation companies turn to when they want to invest in a jurisdiction where their assets might not be that safe. Mining companies have long used MIGA to cover risks that are too tasty for the private insurance industry, and the agency has issued 58 guarantees for the sector since it was formed in 1988.…

Keith Nuthall
THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) Council of Ministers has authorised the European Commission to launch negotiations with the Chilean government over updating EU-Chile agreements on the trade in wines, spirits and aromatised drinks. These deals have been in force since February 2003, and contain lists of mutually protected geographical indications, traditional expressions, official descriptions of quality for marketing purposes and a list of trademarks.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) Council of Ministers has authorised the European Commission to launch negotiations with the Chilean government over updating EU-Chile agreements on the trade in wines, spirits and aromatised drinks. These deals have been in force since February 2003, and contain lists of mutually protected geographical indications, traditional expressions, official descriptions of quality for marketing purposes and a list of trademarks.…

Keith Nuthall
THE EUROPEAN Union’s (EU) ‘association agreement’ with Chile is likely to be deepened by allowing EU wines, spirits and aromatised drinks to enter the Chilean market duty free. The EU Council of Ministers has approved the move, which would be agreed at a future EU-Chile association council meeting.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
UNESCO, the UN’s scientific and cultural organisation, has launched a filter removing arsenic from water and which could, it claims, save tens of millions of lives from a pollutant created by many mines. Unveiled at its headquarters in Paris, UNESCO said the filter was “simple and ecologically sound”, using as an absorbent recycled iron oxide coated sand produced as a by-product in groundwater treatment plants “available at no cost almost everywhere”.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
UNESCO, the UN’s scientific and cultural organisation, has launched a filter removing arsenic from water and which could save tens of millions of lives. Unveiled at its headquarters in Paris, UNESCO said the filter was “simple and ecologically sound”, using as an absorbent recycled iron oxide coated sand produced as a by-product in groundwater treatment plants “available at no cost almost everywhere”.…

BY DAVID HAWORTH, in Brussels
PROPOSALS for a new European Union (EU) wine regime, which are currently under review, will be unveiled in 12 months’ time according to the recently installed European Commissioner for agriculture, Mrs Mariann Fischer Boel.

In a wide-ranging interview in her Brussels office she admitted that the present arrangements are not working.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE LONG-RUNNING World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiations over creating a geographical indications register for wines and spirits have taken a turn for the worse, a feat barely imaginable considering the talks’ snail-like progress. A special meeting of the WTO Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) council ended in deadlock, with the usual two camps sticking to their guns over whether the register should have legal teeth or not.…

BY LIZ HALL
SPAIN’S paint and coating industry has every right to be self-congratulatory at present: the widespread investment and business improvements of recent years have paid off with the sector securing a well-earned place alongside its counterparts elsewhere in the developed world.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE MULTILATERAL Investment Guarantee Agency, or MIGA, is the international organisation companies turn to when they want to invest in a jurisdiction where their assets might not be that safe. Mining companies have long used MIGA to cover risks that are too tasty for the private insurance industry, and the agency has issued 58 guarantees for the sector since it was formed in 1988.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
HONDURAS has won a disputes case at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) with the Dominican Republic being ruled in breach of WTO rules by unfairly restricting the import of Honduran cigarettes. A disputes panel found fault with a special foreign exchange fee, an “economic stabilisation surcharge” and an insistence that importers physically fix within the Dominican Republic tax stamps to packs.…

Keith Nuthall
UNUSUAL frank pessimism has been voiced by diplomats about securing an agreement at the long-running World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks on creating a multilateral register for geographical indications on wines and spirits. Officials have said that the supporters of legal powers protecting traditional terms, (led by the EU), “remain far apart” from those calling for a voluntary ‘guidance’ register, (headed by the USA).…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
UNUSUALLY frank pessimism has been voiced by diplomats about securing an agreement at the long-running World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks on creating a multilateral register for geographical indications on wines and spirits. Officials told the Drinks Bulletin that supporters of legal powers protecting traditional terms, (led by the EU), “remain far apart” from the proponents of a voluntary ‘guidance’ register, (headed by the USA).…

BY ALAN OSBORN
THE EUROPEAN Commission is to investigate alleged increased shipments of farmed Atlantic salmon into the European Union (EU) to see if temporary protective safeguard duties should be erected. The probe follows complaints by Britain and Ireland who said imports of farmed salmon, mainly from Norway, and to a lesser extent from the Faeroe Islands and Chile, had increased by 14.7 per cent in January-September 2003 compared to the same period in 2002.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE BEST place to break the law is where the closest policeman is 100’s of miles away. And where might that criminal utopia be? Siberia, the Sahara, the Amazon? No, it’s the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, on the developed world’s doorstep, where fishing crime is becoming a real problem.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
ALL but one of the commonly used forms of asbestos have been added to a United Nations blacklist, enabling countries to block further imports without being challenged in global tribunals such as the World Trade Organisation. Amosite, actinolite, anthophyllite and tremolite were added to the Rotterdam Convention Prior Informed Consent (PIC) list by an intergovernmental negotiating committee, meeting in Geneva, Switzerland.…

BY PHILIP FINE

THE GOVERNMENTS of 34 countries from the Americas will be struggling today (Wed19/11) to come to a draft trade agreement, much of which centres on agricultural subsidies. The Free Trade Area of the Americas meeting being held in Miami has seen two competing camps vying for control.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL in Paris, ALAN OSBORN in London, MARK ROWE in Singapore, ED PETERS and DON GASPER in Hong Kong, RICHARD HURST in Johannesburg, MONICA DOBIE and PHILIP FINE in Montreal, MATTHEW BRACE in Brisbane and ALEX SMAILES in Port of Spain.…

Alan Osborn
Negotiations over a wine and spirits registry at the World Trade

Organisation are deadlocked and it now looks highly unlikely that the list

will be agreed by trade ministers in Cancun next month. This downbeat

assessment follows a meeting of WTO members earlier this month which

officials said was inconclusive “as no country showed any flexibility.”…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
CHILE has moved to create a disputes panel at the World Trade Organisation, asking it to order Uruguay to abolish its Specific Internal Tax system, which Santiago claims levies much heavier taxes on imported tobacco, cigarettes, alcohol and other generally excisable goods, than on domestically produced lines.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
CHILE has been given until December 23 to scrap a price band system, using variable import duties to maintain domestic sugar prices. A World Trade Organisation arbiter made the ruling after Chile lost a WTO dispute over the system, brought by Argentina.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
CHILE has moved to create a disputes panel at the World Trade Organisation, opposing Uruguay’s Specific Internal Tax system, which Santiago claims levies heavier taxes on imported alcohol, (including wines, spirits, beer and mineral waters), than on domestically produced lines.…

BY ALAN OSBORN
FRANCE, Italy, Spain and Portugal are blocking a move by the European Commission to allow the import into the EU of Australian wine flavoured by the addition of oak chips. This is a faster and cheaper process than the traditional method of ageing wine in oak barrels.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
AS with many projects inspired by the start of the next 997 years and the last three, the framing of the United Nations’ (UN) Millennium Development Goals was an ambitious enterprise.

Imposing statistically measurable targets for international organisations and national governments in making improvements in global poverty, education, gender equality, health, the environment and education, they have proved tough to attain.…

BY MONICA DOBIE
THE CANADIAN fishing industry is currently enjoying a significant upswing in profits thanks to a surge in fish and seafood consumption and new accessible global fish sources. Three of the country’s main processors in its often hard-pressed Atlantic provinces have reported strong profits despite a decline in traditional fish catches.…

BY ALAN OSBORN
THE EUROPEAN Commission has decided not to seek a renewal of anti-dumping duties on farmed Atlantic salmon from Norway which are due to expire this month (April) and has decided against imposing similar duties on farmed salmon from the Faroes and Chile.…

BY PHILIP FINE

THE UNITED States is offering to eliminate tariffs on imported mining equipment and unspecified "energy products" as part of their initial offer to create the proposed 34-country Free Trade Area of the Americas. Those sectors join a number of other goods, including steel, and environmental and wood products, for which Washington wants to offer duty free access to its markets under a reciprocal agreement, as well as improving market access for a range of services, including "energy services."…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE ARGENTINE government has launched the first stage of disputes proceedings at the World Trade Organisation, launching formal talks with Chile over Santiago’s imposition of 14 per cent temporary safeguard duties on fructose. Argentina claims that Chile broke the WTO’s GATT agreement by imposing the duties.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE GROCERY Manufacturers of America group has applauded a new trade agreement between the United States and Chile. The GMA says the pact will spur freer trade of processed food to south America, and singles out the agreement’s proposed reductions in tariffs for such items as breakfast cereals, pasta and french fries.…

BY ALAN OSBORN and MARK ROWE, in London, MONICA DOBIE and PHILIP FINE in Montreal, MATTHEW BRACE in Brisbane, and RICHARD HURST in Johannesburg

Introduction

Europe

Cuts to EU catch quotas

New sources of fish

Affect on fish producers

Wild alternatives to cod

Farmed cod

North America

USA – Healthier local stocks

USA – Demand up

USA – Fish imports

Canada – Farmed fish exports

Canada – GM issues

Australasia

Australia – New wild sources

Australia – Aquaculture

Australia – Wild fish innovation

Australia and New Zealand – sustainability

South Africa – Export increase and conservation

Japan – Local and regional supply

Japan – Maintaining quality

Japan – Non-Asian sources

Introduction

ONCE it was said, cod was so abundant that fishermen in some parts of the world boasted they could walk on the backs of the fish to find their catch.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A RESTRICTED trade in knitted products from wool culled from captured wild vicuna in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile has been approved by a conference of parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A PROPOSAL to liberalise the global trade in artificially propagated orchids been approved by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Its member governments – meeting in Santiago, Chile – exempted six species from trade controls.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A PROPOSAL to liberalise the global trade in artificially propagated orchids been approved by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Its member governments – meeting in Santiago, Chile – exempted six species from trade controls.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A RESTRICTED trade in wool from captured wild vicuna in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile has been approved by a conference of parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The United Nations (UN) convention’s members agreed in Santiago, Chile, to lift a ban in trading these small beasts “for the purpose of allowing international trade in wool sheared from live animals…bearing the label vicuna Argentina, Bolivia or Chile.”…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
*A supermarket boom in sub-Saharan Africa is raising food production and distribution standards, which many small farmers cannot meet, said the UN’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). It called for the funding of cooperatives, micro-loans and training, especially in South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana and Swaziland.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A RESTRICTED trade in cloth from wool culled from captured wild vicuna in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile has been approved by a conference of parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
AN ATTEMPT by Chile to maintain domestic sugar prices by using variable import duties has been declared contrary to World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules by the appellate body of the WTO disputes procedure. Chile’s price band system was challenged at the WTO by Argentina, with the support of both the US and the EU.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE RICHES that can be made from the illegal ivory trade are well known, but what of illicit imports and exports of rare flowers. Shipping protected orchids to Europe, Japan and north America can make criminals a lot of money.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE UNITED States has joined forces with Australia, Argentina, Canada, New Zealand and other large drinks exporters, in proposing that a register of geography-linked names of wines and spirits – now being discussed at the World Trade Organisation – should be voluntary, carrying little legal weight.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE ARGENTINE government has launched the first stage of disputes proceedings at the World Trade Organisation, launching formal talks with Chile over Santiago’s imposition of 14 per cent temporary safeguard duties on fructose. Argentina claims that Chile broke the WTO’s GATT agreement by imposing the duties.…

BY MATTHEW BRACE
A FEAT of legal logistics is about to be performed on the remote South Pacific island of Pitcairn.

Midway between New Zealand and Chile, Pitcairn was settled by the Bounty mutineers in 1790 and their descendents still populate this tiny British colony.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL, ALAN OSBORN, MONICA DOBIE AND PHILIP FINE

IF there is one striking characteristic about Washington’s Bush Administration, it must be its almost unprecedented ability to infuriate the entire world with its unilateralism, especially its self-serving trade policies.

For years, the US government has actually played Mary Poppins on food production subsidies, claiming that its handouts do not encourage farmers to overproduce when prices are low.…

BY MATTHEW BRACE, in Sydney
A CHILD sexual abuse case will focus attention on one of the world’s most remote and famous islands: Pitcairn – a tiny British colony between New Zealand and Chile – which was settled by the Bounty mutineers in 1790.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A MOVE to liberalise the global trade in artificially propagated orchids has been made by the USA, which has formally proposed that six species are exempted from controls under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
APPLICATIONS have been made by the Australian government for the trade in two species of Pacific toothfish to be controlled under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). These species, Dissostichus eleginoides and mawsonii, which are also known as Chilean sea-bass, would be included on its Appendix II list, requiring traders to acquire special permits to deal in them.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
SWITZERLAND has complained to a key World Trade Organisation committee that its beef imports are being unfairly restricted by the USA because of concerns that they are contaminated with BSE. It has claimed at the WTO Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Committee that the US should not, for example, be insisting on the onsite inspection of Swiss meat plants, because the Office International des Épizooties has classified Switzerland as having a low incidence the disease.…

Keith Nuthall
THE EUROPEAN footwear industry has been encouraged to take advantage of the new Euro 16.2 billion European Union Sixth Framework Programme for research, to develop high added value products and exploit new information technologies in a bid to defend its hard-pressed position on world markets.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A MOVE to liberalise the global trade in artificially propagated orchids has been made by the USA, which has formally proposed that six species are exempted from controls under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).…

BY MARK ROWE
LAUNCHED in America in 1954, Kent is now sold in more than 70 countries and remains the pioneer of the micronite filter. BAT’s premier free-standing lights brand has been earmarked to add competency to BAT’s portfolio in the premium, lights and Adult Smokers Under the Age of 30 (ASU30) segment of the market.…

KEITH NUTHALL
APPLICATIONS have been made by the Nicaraguan and German governments for the trade in two hardwood species to be controlled under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). These species are, respectively, big-leaf mahogany (also known as Brazilian mahogany) and the tree-of-life (also known as pockwood or sonora guaiacum).…

BY MARK ROWE
THAI canneries are looking to invest in re-exporting north American wild salmon as a means of boosting revenue. Companies are planning to promote exports of wild salmon, which have been processed in Thailand in favour of farmed salmon, usually supplied from Norway, Chile and Scotland.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
AN AGREEMENT supporting research into new technologies for food distribution has been signed by the EU, Argentina, Chile, Cuba, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela.…

Keith Nuthall
MEMBER governments of the World Trade Organisation have agreed to embark on two-phase talks to meet the 2003 deadline for completing negotiations on a multilateral registration system for geographical indications of wines and spirits.

The WTO’s TRIPS (trade related aspects of intellectual property rights) council has broadly agreed that a single draft document should be written by early next year, even if this included alternative options.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE CHILEAN government has expanded the safeguard duty investigation on steel imports that it launched in December, so it can take into account the chain of events sparked by the Bush administration’s imposition of wide-ranging steel tariffs.

In a statement to the World Trade Organisation, Santiago said that the decision was taken “on the basis of the emergency measures adopted in recent weeks by a group of producer countries, the implications of which on the domestic industry can not yet be fully appreciated.”…

Keith Nuthall
MEMBER governments of the World Trade Organisation have agreed to embark on two-phase talks to meet the 2003 deadline for completing negotiations on a multilateral registration system for geographical indications of wines and spirits.

The WTO’s TRIPS (trade related aspects of intellectual property rights) council has broadly agreed that a single draft document should be written by early next year, even if this included alternative options.…

BY MATTHEW BRACE
THE SEAS around Australia are among the cleanest in the world, partly thanks to the ingenuity of local scientists, who are pioneering two projects to ensure local waters remain healthy, while assisting other more stressed ocean regions.

One involves an electronic mapping system developed by the Australian Marine Safety Authority (AMSA), which is being used to predict the effects of dangerous chemicals in the ocean.…

Keith Nuthall
WINES of SA, a non-profit organisation responsible for the promotion of South African wines, has reported that South African wine exporters are to begin targeting east Asian markets as a key to future growth.

The recent move will build on the industry’s existing successful penetration of the European markets coupled with the signing of the wine and spirits agreement between South African and the EU.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A HOLISTIC global campaign against HIV/AIDS has been agreed by Rome-based UN agencies: the Food and Agriculture Organisation, the International Fund for Agriculture Development and the World Food Programme. The trio will work to minimise the effect on food production of AIDS epidemics in countries where the disease is particularly widespread, namely Cambodia, China, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE UNITED Nations General Assembly will be asked to consider the plight of seafarers so poorly paid that they work in conditions amounting to “slavery,” when it considers relating to oceans and the Law of the Sea next month.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission has cleared a planned Spanish publishing joint venture between Germany’s Bertelsmann and Arnoldo Mondadori Editore SpA, of Italy, combining all the book publishing divisions and imprints in Spain and Latin America of Random House and Mondadori.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
FORMAL disputes proceedings at the World Trade Organisation between Chile and Peru over a new Peruvian tax regime for cigarettes have been shelved, following the striking down of the tax by the Constitutional Court of Peru.

In a ruling with no appeal, Peruvian judges backed an application by the British American Tobacco Co, which claimed that the tax “granted preferential treatment to a category of cigarettes.”…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A DISPUTES panel is to be set up at the WTO, following the failure of talks to resolve complaints made by the Chilean government about the sales tax regime for cigarettes in Peru, which it claims discriminates against its tobacco exports.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
COPPER production is expected to continue forging ahead, fuelled especially by surging Chinese demand, the World Commodity Survey 2000-2001, published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, (UNCTAD), has predicted.

The annual survey, covering market trends of the trade in most major and minor metals, says that supplies should increase by seven per cent this year, with a number of mining expansion and development projects reaching maturity.…

BY KATE REW
US Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta last week signed an international agreement with senior transportation officials from Singapore, Brunei, New Zealand and Chile, which will open air markets in the Asia-Pacific region.

The new Open Skies agreement, which is the first to involve the United States, has five participating member countries and is open to other countries.…

BY KATE REW
THE UNITED States and four Asia-Pacific countries have helped pioneer a groundbreaking multilateral agreement, which follows the “Open Skies” principles previously used in bilateral agreements struck by Washington.

US Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta last week signed the agreement with senior transportation officials from Singapore, Brunei, New Zealand and Chile, which will open up pan-Pacific air markets.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
NICARAGUA, Guatemala and Costa Rica have joined formal consultations launched at the World Trade Organisation by Columbia with Chile, over safeguard duties imposed by the government in Santiago on sugar exports. Columbia has questioned whether the duties are justified by economic difficulties being suffered by the Chilean sugar sector.…

BY MONICA DOBIE
EUROPE, in wine terms, has pedigree. It is, after all, the home of the longest established commercial wine-making tradition. But these days, its primacy is being challenged by colonial upstarts, in the shape of New World vineyards, and guess what; the new kids on the block seem to be ganging up on the oldsters.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE CHILEAN government has requested formal talks at the World Trade Organisation with Peru, over a sales tax regime for cigarettes, made from dark, premium bright and standard bright tobacco. The taxation varies for each of these categories by between S/0.025 (Peruvian Sol) to S/0.100 per unit, with higher amounts being charged for brands that are sold in three or more countries than for those sold in fewer countries.…