With South Korean deal, Canada secures free-trade foothold i
Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2014 10:31 amWith South Korean deal, Canada secures free-trade foothold in Asia
[ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/pol ... e17422168/ ]
NATHAN VANDERKLIPPE SEOUL — The Globe and Mail
Published Tuesday, Mar. 11 2014, 1:30 AM EDT
Last updated Tuesday, Mar. 11 2014, 1:32 AM EDT
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QUOTE: "It removes border taxes on a vast array of products, including whisky and ice wine, seafood, lumber and liquefied natural gas."
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Canada’s first free-trade pact with an Asian nation promises to offer beef farmers, salmon fishermen and whisky makers a new toehold in South Korea by sweeping away virtually all border taxes in coming years. But it fails to secure some of the protections sought by vocal opponents in the auto industry, who immediately said Ottawa gave away too much Canada's trade with South Korea
Under the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement concluded in Seoul on Tuesday by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and South Korean President Park Geun-hye, both countries pledged to eliminate duties on 98 per cent of all goods. More than nine years and 14 bargaining rounds in the making, the deal offers what Mr. Harper called an open door “to the lucrative Asia-Pacific market for Canadian businesses.” For Seoul, it is the latest in a free-trade network that includes the United States, the European Union and Australia that is positioning South Korea as a potent new trade hub in northern Asia.
Canada’s current exports to Korea are dominated by coal, and the trade deal is unlikely to affect that. But it offers new opportunities at the margins, in smaller-value products, particularly from food producers. Over 15 years, it will do away with punitive Korean duties on beef, pork and seafood. It removes border taxes on a vast array of products, including whisky and ice wine, seafood, lumber and liquefied natural gas.
It will allow Ottawa to maintain the provisions of the Investment Canada Act, which allows screening of corporate takeovers by state-owned foreign companies, and leaves supply-managed agricultural industries – in particular dairy and poultry production – untouched (although none of those products will gain duty relief in South Korea).
It stands to lift Canada’s GDP by $1.7-billion, federal officials calculate. It gives the Harper Conservatives another successful trade deal, after one with the EU in October, and can further bolster the government’s economic credentials. The Tories have put expanding international trade at the top of their economic agenda, and the pact with South Korea is viewed as a stepping stone for future deals in Asia, including with Japan.
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[ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/pol ... e17422168/ ]
[ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/pol ... e17422168/ ]
NATHAN VANDERKLIPPE SEOUL — The Globe and Mail
Published Tuesday, Mar. 11 2014, 1:30 AM EDT
Last updated Tuesday, Mar. 11 2014, 1:32 AM EDT
- - - - -
QUOTE: "It removes border taxes on a vast array of products, including whisky and ice wine, seafood, lumber and liquefied natural gas."
- - - - -
Canada’s first free-trade pact with an Asian nation promises to offer beef farmers, salmon fishermen and whisky makers a new toehold in South Korea by sweeping away virtually all border taxes in coming years. But it fails to secure some of the protections sought by vocal opponents in the auto industry, who immediately said Ottawa gave away too much Canada's trade with South Korea
Under the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement concluded in Seoul on Tuesday by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and South Korean President Park Geun-hye, both countries pledged to eliminate duties on 98 per cent of all goods. More than nine years and 14 bargaining rounds in the making, the deal offers what Mr. Harper called an open door “to the lucrative Asia-Pacific market for Canadian businesses.” For Seoul, it is the latest in a free-trade network that includes the United States, the European Union and Australia that is positioning South Korea as a potent new trade hub in northern Asia.
Canada’s current exports to Korea are dominated by coal, and the trade deal is unlikely to affect that. But it offers new opportunities at the margins, in smaller-value products, particularly from food producers. Over 15 years, it will do away with punitive Korean duties on beef, pork and seafood. It removes border taxes on a vast array of products, including whisky and ice wine, seafood, lumber and liquefied natural gas.
It will allow Ottawa to maintain the provisions of the Investment Canada Act, which allows screening of corporate takeovers by state-owned foreign companies, and leaves supply-managed agricultural industries – in particular dairy and poultry production – untouched (although none of those products will gain duty relief in South Korea).
It stands to lift Canada’s GDP by $1.7-billion, federal officials calculate. It gives the Harper Conservatives another successful trade deal, after one with the EU in October, and can further bolster the government’s economic credentials. The Tories have put expanding international trade at the top of their economic agenda, and the pact with South Korea is viewed as a stepping stone for future deals in Asia, including with Japan.
MORE:
[ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/pol ... e17422168/ ]