The Canadian government has launched a formal challenge against the EU over its ban on Canadian seal products. Canada asked the World Trade Organization (WTO) to establish a formal dispute resolution panel to review the EU ban and determine whether the ban complies with WTO rules. The ban was approved by the EU's 27 member states in 2009 and went into effect last year. The market for seal products has been cut by more than half in recent years.

Vietnam wood export is forecast to reach $4 billion in 2011, up 17% from 2010 and likely to increase to between $8-9 billion in 2015  Vietnam wood export is forecast to reach $4 billion in 2011, up 17% from 2010 and likely to increase to between $8-9 billion in 2015, the online newspaper VnEconomy reported on February 9, citing the Vietnam Wood and Forest Products Processing Association (VIFOREST). Nguyen Ton Quyen, General Secretary of VIFOREST, confidently said that many local firms have received orders until September 2011.

NEW DELHI: India will sign a comprehensive market opening trade pact with Japan on February 16 that would enable both the countries to reduce or eliminate duties on most of the goods and services. The country would also ink the free trade pact with Malaysia in the same week. "On 16th (February), we will be in Tokyo to formally sign the agreement and next day travel to Kuala Lumpur to sign the agreement with Malaysia," Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said at a function organised jointly by the ministry and CII here.

Feb 10 (Reuters) - India is in talks with Vietnam to resolve a row after the Southeast Asian nation rejected corn and soymeal cargoes because of an infestation of Khapra beetles, India's trade minister said on Thursday.

WASHINGTON--U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk told lawmakers Wednesday President Barack Obama will send the South Korea free-trade agreement to Congress in the coming weeks, and hopes to finalize similar deals with Colombia and Panama as soon as several issues can be resolved. The Obama administration faces a tight time frame for passage, if the Korea deal is to take effect before a pact between South Korea and the European Union comes into force July 1. If the deal passes after that date it could cause U.S. manufacturers to lose out to European competitors.

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) is aiming for a 4.5 per cent rise in tuna exports for 2011, at 120,000 tonnes worth USD 300 million, which would be an increase of 16,400 tonnes and USD 13 million compared to last year. In the eastern Atlantic Ocean region, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) agreed to a 40 per cent-cut in the bluefin tuna catch, and the Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT) will slash catches by 20 per cent in 2011.

India's restrictive trade policy is impeding foreign investment and it needs to work harder to free up its economy, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said on Monday, despite growing economic ties between the countries. India is only the 14th biggest trading partner for the United States despite its growing global weight and obstacles from outsourcing controversies to the Doha world trade round and market access have put the brakes on faster integration.

Japan and Australia will hold talks in Tokyo on Monday aimed at securing Japan's first free-trade agreement with a major agricultural exporter. Negotiations fell apart last April over calls to open up Japan's farming sector. For years Japan has protected its inefficient farming industry, and has put high tariffs on imports. But Japan's sluggish economy could be causing a shift in policy and thinking, analysts said.

The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is a double-edged sword as it brings both opportunities and challenges to Vietnamese exports, said economic experts. Dr. Nguyen Minh Phong from the Hanoi Institute of Socio-economic Development said that the FTA signing has provided Vietnam with an equal position on all aspects with member countries in the agreement and as a result, the country’s exports have seen remarkable improvements in turnover, products and markets year by year, except 2009 when the world suffered an economic crisis.

Apparel enterprises have proved to be the best in capitalising on the country’s WTO membership to increase export earnings. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, apparel exports expanded 32 percent more than the 2006 figure to 7.8 billion USD in 2007, the year Vietnam joined the world’s largest trade organisation. The value then steadily rose to 9.1 billion USD on average in 2008 and 2009, the time when orders were trimmed down due to effects from the global financial crisis.