The meeting was held at the MOE’s headquarters in Abu Dhabi. It was attended by Juma Mohamed Al Kait, Assistant Undersecretary Foreign Trade Affairs; and Sultan Ahmed Darwish, Director of Trade Negotiations and WTO; while Australia was represented by Arthur Spyrou, Ambassador to the UAE and a number of members from the Australian diplomatic mission.

Both parties discussed the growth and development in terms of economic relations between the two countries, particularly in the expansion of non-oil trade as well as the outstanding cooperation in the aviation sector.

H.E. Al Saleh emphasised the keenness of the UAE to strengthen the framework for mutual cooperation with Australia, which is characterised by an exceptional partnership that defines cooperation between the two countries at all levels. This is reflected in the remarkable growth of non-oil foreign trade volume, which had exceeded $2.1 billion during the first nine months of 2016, and more than $2.8 billion in 2015.

Al Saleh further explained that the level of bilateral economic relations have been remarkable and that the next level would bring a number of new types of opportunities by diversifying sources of economic and commercial bilateral relations. In order to expand the development trends of the two countries, he noted that sectors such as agriculture and industry, renewable energy, tourism, information and communications technology are among the priority sectors of both countries.

The UAE’s total investments in Australia by the end of 2015 has reached $12.55 billion, including $2.93 billion of direct investments accounted for.

Secretary Adamson said that Australia is keen to enhance joint cooperation with the UAE and build a framework and model of cooperation and exchange experiences and expertise in priority sectors, following on the economic agenda of the two countries.

Adamson expressed interest for the expansion of joint investments, especially in light of the growing interest by Australian companies in establishing market presence in the UAE because of its competitive advantages and attractive business climate as well as being an important commercial gateway for access to markets in the region. On the other hand, the Australian government is keen to attract more UAE investments to the Australian market in various sectors.

Adamson also discussed the ongoing preparations for the upcoming visit of the Minister of Economy, leading a high-ranking economic delegation, to Australia this year, which will form part of the country’s consistent efforts to deepen economic and trade ties between the two countries and explore the most viable investment opportunities for the private sector.

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January 27, 2017: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that he would keep pitching a multinational trade pact that US President Donald Trump’s administration has vowed to exit. Abe added that he would like to strengthen US-Japan ties as the new administration takes over.

“I believe President Trump understands the importance of free and fair trade. So I’d like to pursue his understanding on the strategic and economic importance of the TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) trade pact,” Abe told a session of parliament’s lower house.

Donald Trump took office on January 20 and his new administration’s strategy is to protect American jobs, which would start with the withdrawal from the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact.

Trump signed an executive order in the Oval Office pulling the United States out of the 12-nation TPP. “We’re going to stop the ridiculous trade deals that have taken everybody out of our country and taken companies out of our country,” the President said as he met union leaders in the White House’s Roosevelt Room. “Great thing for the American worker,” Trump said as he signed the order on his third full day in office. The Republican says the trade deal would have damaged US manufacturing.

The TPP has been signed by America but is yet to be ratified. On the other hand, Japan has already ratified the TPP while New Zealand is in the process of completing domestic procedures for the pact. During his campaign Trump sparked worries in Tokyo and the rest of the Asia-Pacific with comments which included a pledge to make allies pay more for the security provided by US forces and opposition to the TPP trade deal.

“The Japan-US alliance has been is and will be the cornerstone of our country’s diplomatic and security policies. This is an immutable principle,” Abe said in his policy speech at the start of the regular parliament session. “I am aiming to visit the United States as soon as possible to further fortify the bond of alliance together with new President Trump.”

Trump is also in the process of renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in an attempt to make it more favourable for America.

Neighbour Mexico is preparing to discuss changes to trade rules about a product’s country of origin to try to avoid a disruptive fight with the United States over commerce. Mexico sees possible common ground with US President Donald Trump on the ‘rules of origin’ of the NAFTA that binds the two countries and Canada.

Rules of origin are regulations setting out where trade products are sourced from. Although formal negotiations about NAFTA have not begun, the rules could eventually be altered to favour US industry over competitors from outside North America, particularly in Asia.

During his electoral campaign, Trump expressed his strong desire to scrap NAFTA as he felt that the agreement was much more beneficial to other parties and not the US.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto planned a visit to the US to discuss these developments. However, on Thursday Trump asked his Mexican counterpart to stay at home if Mexico is not willing to pay for the wall along their border that the US President plans to build.

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IFM Correspondent

November 24, 2016: In a rebuttal to US president-elect Donald Trump, Italy’s industry minister pledged to support business deals with Iran potentially worth billions of dollars.

Iran re-joined the global business scene in January this year after the US decided to lift sanctions on the country. However, president-elect Donald Trump during his campaign had maintained that he will tear the deal if he becomes the president. This had left many European diplomats fearing the change of leadership at the White House could thwart growing trade.

But Italian Industry Minister Carlo Calenda said he would continue to work to strengthen trade ties, and travel to Iran in early 2017 along with Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan.

The issue of funding investment, which Tehran complains has been held up by continued US sanctions restricting Iran’s access to the international banking and financial system, would be high on the agenda, he said.

“The central issue is to make financing channels work fully, so that all the good projects we have can become reality,” Calenda said at a trade fair in Rome for Iranian companies.

Calenda said it is too early to say how the picture could change under Trump’s leadership, but in the interests of the countries involved “I think there is the absolute necessity to implement the (nuclear) agreement and move forward that way”.

The post Italy to push for ties with Iran appeared first on International Finance.

IFM Correspondent

November 24, 2016: In a rebuttal to US president-elect Donald Trump, Italy’s industry minister pledged to support business deals with Iran potentially worth billions of dollars.

Iran re-joined the global business scene in January this year after the US decided to lift sanctions on the country. However, president-elect Donald Trump during his campaign had maintained that he will tear the deal if he becomes the president. This had left many European diplomats fearing the change of leadership at the White House could thwart growing trade.

But Italian Industry Minister Carlo Calenda said he would continue to work to strengthen trade ties, and travel to Iran in early 2017 along with Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan.

The issue of funding investment, which Tehran complains has been held up by continued US sanctions restricting Iran’s access to the international banking and financial system, would be high on the agenda, he said.

“The central issue is to make financing channels work fully, so that all the good projects we have can become reality,” Calenda said at a trade fair in Rome for Iranian companies.

Calenda said it is too early to say how the picture could change under Trump’s leadership, but in the interests of the countries involved “I think there is the absolute necessity to implement the (nuclear) agreement and move forward that way”.

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Suparna Goswami Bhattacharya

February 19, 2015: If one were to describe India’s growth story in one line, it would read something like this– A nation of unrealised potential. The tag unfortunately has stuck with the country for a long time. And now, two decades after India started is liberalisation policy, the country finally seems all set to unleash its full potential – at least this is what most economists around the globe have to say.

Acting as a catalyst to this growth story is US President Barack Obama’s recent visit to India which may instill confidence in investors to pile up Indian stocks throughout 2015.

“Obama has put the seal of approval on the Modi administration, because his reforms are pro-growth and Modi appears more pro-US than previous Indian governments,” says Tom Elliott, international investment strategist, deVere Group. And there is an ideological aspect as well to US support. “Modi wants to cut the subsidies and licenses cultures, which are objects of scorn for the US,” remarks Elliott.

Interestingly, US has its own reasons to pitch for India’s growth story. A stronger and more vibrant economy will help India act as a counterweight to growing Chinese influence in Asia, which will be a relief to the US, which worries that it will be over-stretched in Asia should China become belligerent over territorial claims, amongst other factors.

On the heels of China posting its lowest GDP growth rate in 25 years, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released an update to its World Economic Outlook report predicting that India’s economy will overtake China’s in terms of annual growth rate by 2016. It predicts India’s growth rate at 6.3% and 6.5% for 2015 and 2016, respectively. For the same period, China is expected to grow at 6.8% and 6.3%, respectively. This puts India’s projected growth in 2016 ahead of its estimates for China.

And though economies like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Philippines might grow more than China, but from a global perspective, they will hardly make any major impact. “There is, bluntly, only one other economy which could eventually equal China’s punch: India. In terms of size and per capita income, the Indian economy stands where China’s did in the early 2000s – a time where the country started making its impact felt globally,” says Frederic Neumann, economist HSBC, in his report.

If a comparison is made of the date from which officials in both countries adopted reforms in an earnest way (China in early 80s and India in early 90s), then India is actually a little ahead of China at the same stage of development process.

The main factor why India could not match up China’s growth is the share of manufacturing in GDP. In China, the sector contributes 22% to GDP while for India the figure stands at 15%, according to data released in 2014 by United Nation. “The flip side is that services are much more important in India than in China (57% of GDP vs. 46%). Since efficiency gains are easier to attain in manufacturing than in services, the difference in productivity growth between the two countries is thus not too surprising,” says Rupali Sarkar, economist at HSBC.

This also means that if India wants to match China’s development trajectory, it will need to increase the share of manufacturing in the economy. Thus, the ‘Make-in-India’ campaign launched by the central government to tap into the large manufacturing potential of the country comes at the right time.

Devashish Mitra, Professor of Economics & Gerald B. and Daphna Cramer Professor of Global Affairs, The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University, said India’s success heavily depends on how fast the government is able to bring about further reforms, most importantly labour reforms (getting rid of outdated laws) and reforms in land acquisition laws. “Tax laws need to be simplified and the legal system needs to improve so that contracts can be enforced,” says Mitra.

Recovery of rupee, general positiveness about the economy post elections are other factors generating interest among investors. In 2013, the rupee experienced a sharp depreciation in reaction to the anticipated tapering by the US Federal Reserve. However, India has now won back the confidence of the international financial markets and depreciation has been halted.

Also, GDP rose to 6% in 2014 and there has been a fall in inflation. Thanks to these factors, marked improvements in the economy are anticipated.

In Asia, China and India are the two major economies. Elliott feels that India has an edge over China since it is a more vibrant society and is a democracy (the economy is expected to be more stable in the long run). “Although India is often perceived as a difficult place to do business, it is manageable. Bureaucracy is also expected to reduce under the new government,” says Elliott.

“China is expected to slow down and if the Indian government uses its mandate to push through the next generation of reforms, India can easily overtake China in the next couple of years,” remarks Mitra.

Many feel that for India, a growth rate of 8-10% per annum in the next five years is manageable, provided it utilises its cheap, unskilled labour, which will help in the growth of the manufacturing sector.  Also, India happens to have excellent soft skills and English is widely spoken.

The sooner it does away with its long bureaucratic process, the better it stands a chance to win the battle against China.

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