increase font size
Todd McClay.
New Zealand can survive without the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal in the short term, says Wellington-based trade expert Charles Finny.
Speaking at Federated Farmers Dairy council meeting in Wellington last week, he said it would have been good to have TPP, but bilateral deals with other countries involved in TPP are now possible.
He singled out Mexico; Trade Minister Todd McClay was in Mexico City last week to discuss a potential trade deal.
Finny, who stepped in to speak on behalf of McClay at the meeting, says the Mexicans are “really angry” with US President Donald Trump’s stance on NAFTA.
“The Mexicans want to send a message to the White House; that’s the reason Todd McClay is flying to Mexico City.”
He points out that in the 1980s – before NAFTA was negotiated – Mexico was an important market for dairy industry.
“Then NAFTA came in and the Americans got free access and we got slapped with tariffs, losing market share.”
Finny also singled out Sri Lanka, where a trade deal would benefit dairy.
“I see two really good opportunities with Sri Lanka and Mexico.”
While negotiations are going on with India and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Finny sees no evidence to expect fast outcomes.
On Europe, he remains dubious that a great deal for dairy can be achieved. However, the UK could hold promise.
Finny says the UK is desperate for runs on the board and “if we do our jobs properly, and if we are in front of the queue, there is a good opportunity for NZ to do a good deal there.”
The UK was the biggest market for NZ agricultural products in the middle of the last century, so that could be “enormously exciting for us”, he says.
But Finny warned not to crack the champagne yet; because a trade deal with the UK won’t be a straightforward one.
He says since the UK is still part of Europe it cannot legally start negotiations on a FTA with any country.
“They have to extract themselves from the EU; one of the issues that will come up during the extraction process is what happens to the quotas negotiated for dairy and other products.”
Finny expects a trade deal with the UK to take “many years”.
Trade Minister Todd McClay says his officials plan to meet their US counterparts every month from now on to better understand how the 15% tariff issue there will play out, and try and get some certainty there for our exporters about the future.
OPINION: Nothing it seems can be done in the short term to get Donald Trump to change his mind about removing the unfair 15% tariffs that he’s imposed on New Zealand exports to the US.
New Zealand avocado growers have received a major boost by securing a collective FernMark Licence for their exports.
Trade Minister Todd McClay says the US tariff decision appears to be based on a calculation of trade deficits, with countries running a surplus with the US moved to the higher rate.
Former special agricultural trade envoy Mike Petersen says meat exporters are going to have to be nimble and agile to take advantage of any opportunities that may arise in the chaos of the tariff crisis.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is calling on farmers from all regions to take part in the final season of the Sheep Poo Study aiming to build a clearer picture of how facial eczema (FE) affects farms across New Zealand.
New Zealand is closer to eradicating bovine TB than ever before, but possums remain a threat, says Beef + Lamb New Zealand.
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has joined the debate around the proposed sale of Fonterra’s consumer and related businesses, demanding answers from the co-operative around its milk supply deal with the buyer, Lactalis.
The ACT Party says media reports that global dairy giant Nestle has withdrawn from the Dairy Methane Action Alliance shows why New Zealand needs to rethink its approach to climate.
If there was a silver lining in the tragedy that was Cyclone Gabrielle, for New Zealand Young Grower of the Year, Grace Fulford, it was the tremendous sense of community and seeing first-hand what good leadership looks like.
New research could help farmers prepare for a future where summer rainfall is increasingly unpredictable and where drought risk is rising, no matter what.
OPINION: Ageing lefty Chris Trotter reckons that the decision to delay recognition of Palestinian statehood is more than just a fit…
OPINION: A mate of yours truly recently met someone at a BBQ who works at a big consulting firm who spent…
