International trade up in the air

Chapman Tripp predicted some international trade events in 2017 and it fared well. The firm is now looking at what to expect in 2019 and foresees the rules-based trading system will continue to be challenged.

“We are in a complex trade war environment. The entry into force of the CPTPP, with two rounds of tariff cuts, due by 1 January, will provide a
welcome boost for New Zealand exporters,” said Partner Daniel Kalderimis.
In its publication International trade – trends and insights today. It co, released today, Chapman Tripp discusses the pressures between key players, puts the year’s key developments into the broader context of the last century, and asks what it all means for business and the New Zealand economy.

Among other developments in 2019, the firm expects to see:

• increasing and important efforts by New Zealand to develop its Trade for All strategy to ensure broad stakeholder support for its negotiating agenda
• trade wars continuing to create uncertainty in world markets, with swings and roundabouts as the US talks to China and other partners
• the World Trade Organisation, so critical to the New Zealand economy, at a cliff’s edge
• a return to a focus on bilateral deals as the US flexes its negotiating muscle, and
• the biggest questions on trade following Brexit remain, regardless of whether the UK House of Commons approves the Withdrawal Agreement between the UK and EU.

Trade Law Consultant Dr Tracey Epps adds, “Now is the time for New Zealand and like-minded countries to pull together to ensure that the multilateral trading system comes out of this challenging period intact and even strengthened.”

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