The Taiwanese parliament has passed a bill that will effectively lift a ban on certain beef imports from the United States, and should allow the government to restart talks under the existing US-Taiwan trade and investment framework agreement (TIFA). Talks under the TIFA have been suspended since 2007, and, despite various efforts since then to recommence an economic and trade cooperation dialogue under its auspices, all attempts have foundered over ractopamine, a feed additive, that is allowed in the US, but not permitted in beef imports into Taiwan.

New Delhi: India has overtaken China in exports growth rate recording an increase of 16.1 per cent in 2011, topping the list of all major trading countries in the world, says a WTO report. 

CAN THO — The Mekong Delta has increased its exports and attracted more investment since Viet Nam joined the World Trade Organisation five years ago, a seminar attended by officials from regional provinces heard in Can Tho on Tuesday. The country's most important rice, fruit, and aquatic farming region increased seafood exports by 14-22 per cent every year. Its rice exports have also increased every year, and the region now accounts for more than 90 per cent of the country's exports of the grain.

HA NOI — Agricultural export value reached US$15.9 billion in the first seven months of this year, an increase of 12.4 per cent over the same period last year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development announced yesterday. Wood products and other forestry products saw the highest increase of 21.6 per cent, climbing to a total of $2.7 billion during the period. The export value of cash crops rose just 9.1 per cent to $8.9 billion, while seafood saw an increase of 6.5 per cent to a value of $3.4 billion.

Top Vietnamese and Russian leaders have agreed to accelerate negotiations and the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) between Vietnam and the customs alliance of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. The FTA will open up big prospects for increasing economic, trade, investment and service cooperation between Vietnam and Russia, said Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and visiting Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang in Moscow on July 26.

(Reuters) - A key congressional committee on Thursday voted overwhelmingly to lift a Cold War-era restriction on trade with Russia, but the top congressional Republican said President Barack Obama must do more to get the bill passed into law.

Chinese manufacturers have been illegally selling steel towers for wind turbines below the cost of production and will have to pay duties of 20.85 to 72.69 percent on imports, the United States Commerce Department said Friday in a preliminary ruling in an antidumping case brought by four American tower manufacturers. The department said it found similar dumping on the part of Vietnamese manufacturers and set duties at 52.67 percent for CS Wind, a major supplier to the American market, and 59.91 percent for all other Vietnamese companies.

VIENTIANE, July 27 (Xinhua) -- The Laos government has approved the preparations to ascend to membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO), local media reported Thursday. According to the state-run newspaper Vientiane Times, the application is expected to be confirmed before the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) which is scheduled to be held here in November.

SANAA, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Yemen has reached an agreement with Ukraine to end the latter's opposition to Yemen's access to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and is likely to join the trade bloc as early as October, the country's official Saba news agency reported Thursday, quoting an official of industry and trade.

SINGAPORE: Singapore has received high praise from the World Trade Organization (WTO) during its latest review of the city state's trade policy in Geneva, Switzerland. At the 6th WTO Trade Policy Review (TPR), members commended Singapore for its trade and economic policies and made suggestions on what could be improved.