Updated: 1/11/02; 12:07:11 PM.
Peter Gallagher's Radio Weblog
        

Thursday, 31 October 2002

It's likely that negotiations towards an Australia-US Free Trade Agreement will be announced within weeks.

In August I provided the Australia US Trade Agreement (AUSTA) with an evaluation of the strategic opportunities for agriculture: Managing Agriculture in the Free Trade Agreement.

The conclusions
  • Contrary to widely-held opinion, it is feasible to include free trade in 'sensitive' agricultural products such as dairy and sugar in an agreement between Australia and the USA
  • The 'threat' to Australia's quarantine rules is much less serious than many Australian producers fear
  • A well-designed FTA would complement and complete a WTO (multilateral) deal on opening up world agricultural markets
  • The econmic size of the free trade area would be comparable to the expanded European Union but the new region will have much lower external barriers. This means it is likely to act as a beacon to other regional countries. We should actively seek their interest and participation

8:29:13 AM    comment []

© Copyright 2002 Peter Gallagher.
 
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