Category Archives: Trade Talks

【News】Economic damage by TPP in Hokkaido prefecture estimated 116.9 billion yen by regional agricultural institute (June 5, 2017)

The Hokkaido Regional Agricultural Institute has announced its latest estimate of 116.9 billion yen for an economic damage to be occurred in Hokkaido prefecture by putting the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade pact into effect. The estimation has been made on the basis of the broad TPP agreement announced by its member countries in October 2015, as well as on an amount of decreases in Hokkaido agricultural, forestry and fishery production that was estimated as 59.8 billion yen by the Hokkaido prefectural government in February 2016. The total economic loss by the TPP free trade deal in Hokkaido is broken down into 72.5 billion yen, an estimated loss of the … Continue reading

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【News】Japan court rejects citizens’ claim that TPP is unconstitutional(June 8, 2017)

The Tokyo district court has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a civil society group that claims the Japanese government has violated the constitution by agreeing to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal. The court on June 7 also rejected the group’s request to block the government from signing the pact, explaining this is in the realm of executive power and a civil lawsuit cannot stop it. Moreover the judge said the plaintiffs failed to state a claim that the deal undermines basic human rights, because the TPP has not yet come into force. The group of nearly 1,600 people includes farmers, workers and healthcare professionals. It filed the case against the … Continue reading

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【News】LDP sets up committee for JP-EU trade deal amid PM Abe’s push(June 7, 2017)

Japan’s governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has set up a committee to consult its members and stakeholders to ease anxiety over the Japan-EU free trade deal. The move coincides with a high-level push by the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to wrap up the negotiations early in July. Japan and the European Union leaders are now aiming to reach a free trade agreement when both sides meet at the sidelines of the July 7-8 G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany. Koya Nishikawa has been chosen to preside the committee, which is expected to meet once a week. Nishikawa is currently the chairman of LDP’s research commission on agriculture and food … Continue reading

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【News】PM Shinzo Abe says Japan will lead TPP-11 talks in July(May 31, 2017)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said Japan will lead Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks when senior trade officials from 11 TPP signatories gather in Japan in July. “Japan has a vital role to step up the pace and advance the talks,” Abe told the ministers who attended the cabinet meeting on May 30. Japan will chair the TPP-11 meeting in July, expecting to take place in Hakone, a lake resort near Tokyo. At the May ministerial meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, the 11 TPP countries agreed to explore options on how the TPP deal is being implemented without the United States. They aim to decide on these at the November Asia-Pacific … Continue reading

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【News】Japan, EU seeking to reach free-trade deal in July, sources say(June 1, 2017)

Negotiators from Tokyo and Brussels are seeking to reach a Japan-EU free trade deal in early July, as they are trying to settle disagreements, including market access for European exporters into Japan’s agricultural markets, say sources. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and European leaders are expected to summon the political will needed to iron out their differences over Japan’s most sensitive agricultural products, such as dairy and pork, at the sideline of the July 7-8 G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany. A senior official meeting will take place in June, and it is expected to focus on outstanding issues. Informed sources said Japanese government officials are optimistic as they see a … Continue reading

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