HA NOI  (VNS) — Viet Nam expects to increase fresh fruit exports to the US and Australia next year following the US government's approval of irradiation as an effective quarantine system. Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat said on Sunday the ministry would work with the Ministry of Science and Technology (MST) to fund upgrades to an irradiation centre in Ha Noi, aiming to meet the north's demand for exporting agricultural products.

The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) member states – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland – and the Philippines held a second round of negotiations towards a free trade agreement from June 29 to July 3, 2015.

BRICS plans to promote new active cooperation with non-members of the organization to include countries from the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the G20 group, Russian Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said Tuesday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russia, which is currently chairing the BRICS organization, plans to create a roadmap for trade, economy and investment cooperation through 2020, Ulyukayev said.

In its assessment of the European Union’s trade policy, the WTO Secretariat pays tribute to the critical role played by the EU in the Organization. It highlights the EU’s remarkable openness at a time of timid economic recovery. WTO Member countries and the WTO Secretariat will discuss the report on Monday 6 July and Wednesday 8 July in Geneva in the framework of the EU’s 12th Trade Policy Review. The main points highlighted by the report and expected to be discussed include:

Vietnamese businesses operating in Russia were updated on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) at a recent conference in Moscow. At the July 4 event, which was co-hosted by the Vietnamese Embassy and the Vietnam Business Association in Russia (VBA), Trade Counsellor at the Embassy Pham Quang Niem introduced the FTA’s main contents, pointing out that the FTA will open up large markets for Vietnamese exports, such as garments, footwear, wooden and agro-fishery products.

HCM CITY (VNS) — Experts discussed domestic businesses' preparations for the free trade agreement (FTA) between Viet Nam and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) during a workshop held on Thursday in HCM City. At the event, co-organised by the municipal Department of Industry and Trade, the Centre of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the HCM City Enterprises Association, participants highlighted the huge potential domestic businesses would have entering the new market, which has 175 million people and a GDP of nearly US$2.5 trillion.

HA NOI (VNS) — Viet Nam and Latin American countries have supplementary business structures, which could help boost economic development. Pham Thi Thu Hang, general secretary of Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), made the remark at a workshop on business opportunities in the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) organised by VCCI and the Mercosur-ASEAN Chamber of Commerce.

TOKYO -- Members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact will hold cabinet-level talks as early as the last week of July to discuss four areas where participants remain at odds, including intellectual property and investment.

Financial services company India Nivesh has warned that when the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) comes into effect, India would be negatively impacted to a major extent; though India would not be the only country at disadvantage. China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and other non-members of TPP would also be adversely affected. The US is in advanced stages of closing the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement – one of the largest free trade agreements signed involving 12 countries.

President Obama on Tuesday will meet with the general secretary of Vietnam's Communist Party, the first such visit at the White House since the two countries normalized relations two decades ago. Obama and Nguyen Phu Trong are expected to discuss a range of issues, including the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade accord, bilateral defense cooperation and human rights, the White House said in a statement.