More Trade News in Brief Week 38 (14 – 20 September 2015)

* WTO – Rise in Global Tourism Continues

International arrivals rose by 5 per cent in Europe, Asia and the Pacific, and the Middle East, and by 4 per cent in the Americas, according to figures released by the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

The most popular regions proved to be the Caribbean and Oceania, which saw a rise of seven per cent, while Central and Eastern Europe and Central America saw a rise of six per cent.

Check for more here and here.

Useful links:

UNWTO World Tourism Barometer

UNWTO Tourism Highlights, 2015 Edition 

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* G20 Labour Markets in 2015

The report G20 Labour Markets 2015: Strengthening the Link between Growth and Employment, compiled by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Bank Group, reveals that growth among G20 economies averaged 3.2 per cent over the last three years compared to 4.1 per cent from 2000 to 2007.

Read more here.

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* FAO Food Price Index

According to the FAO Food Price Index, which tracks international market prices for five major food commodity groups – cereals, meat, dairy products, vegetable oils and sugar – virtually all food groups registered marked dips in price in August.

Find more here.

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* G7 and BRIICS Merchandise Trade Continues to Slow in Second Quarter of 2015

Total G7 and BRIICS international merchandise trade, in current US dollars, continued to contract in the second quarter of 2015, with exports and imports declining by 0.9% and 1.2% respectively, compared with the previous quarter. 

Download the entire news release (PDF 160KB)

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* Belize, Switzerland ratify Trade Facilitation Agreement

Belize and Switzerland have become the 13th and 14th WTO members to ratify the WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). The TFA contains provisions for expediting the movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit. It also sets out measures for effective cooperation between customs and other appropriate authorities on trade facilitation and customs compliance issues.

More information on trade facilitation and the TFA can be found at: www.wto.org/tradefacilitation.

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* New ICC Dispute Board Rules

New Rules governing ICC Dispute Boards will come into effect on 1 October 2015.

For more information click here.

 

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More Trade News in Brief Week 21 (18 – 24 May 2015)

World Employment and Social Outlook 2015

The International Labour Organization (ILO) today warned of widespread insecurity in the global employment market, saying that some 75 per cent of all workers are employed on temporary or short-term contracts in informal jobs often without any contract.

 

 

 

 

 

Check here for more.

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UNCTAD – Global Investment Trends Monitor

Hong Kong (China) and China were the second and the third largest investors in the world, after the United States which remains the largest single source of outward foreign direct investment (FDI).

Countries in developing Asia have, for the first time, collectively invested more money abroad than countries in the North American and European regions.

Download:

Global Investment Trends Monitor

Read more folowing the link.

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FAO Predicts World Food Import Bill to Fall to Five-Year Low

FAO’s first forecast for global cereal production in 2015 amounts to 2.509 billion tonnes, a bit down from last year’s record but nearly 5 percent above the average of the past five years.

Several years of solid harvests and stockpiling mean most basic food commodities are in surplus.

Check here for more.

News from World Health Organization

 

* Large Gains in Life Expectancy

 

People everywhere are living longer, according to the “World Health Statistics 2014”.

 

Read the press release on the “World Health Statistics 2014”.

 

World Health Statistics 2014.

 

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* Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health

 

Worldwide, 3.3 million deaths in 2012 were due to harmful use of alcohol, says a new report launched by WHO.

Alcohol consumption also increases people’s risk of developing more than 200 diseases and, in addition, harmful drinking can lead to violence and injuries.

 

Read the press release on the global alcohol report.

 

Global status report on alcohol and health 2014.

 

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* Health for the World’s Adolescents

 

WHO’s “Health for the world’s adolescents” report reveals that depression is the predominant cause of illness and disability for both boys and girls aged 10 to 19 years.

The top 3 causes of adolescent deaths globally are road traffic injuries, HIV/AIDS, and suicide.

 

Read the press release on adolescent health.

 

Read the “Health for the world’s adolescents” report.

 

News from OECD

 

* OECD – Economic Outlook

 

OECD published its last Economic Outlook: global economy strengthening but significant risks remain.

 

Check the OECD’s latest Economic Outlook.

 

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* OECD – Services Trade Restrictiveness Index

 

The OECD’s new Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI) provides a unique and comprehensive snapshot of services trade restrictions across 18 sectors in 40 leading economies, representing over 80% of global services trade.

 

Read more about Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI).

 

More Trade News in Brief Week 4 (20 – 26 January 2014)

 

* Certificate of Origin Verification Website

 

ICC World Chambers Federation (WCF) has launched the Certificate of Origin (CO) verification website to reinforce the authenticity of the CO verification process.

 

Check here and here for more.

 

 

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* Rise in Global Tourism in 2013 – UNTWO

 

According to a new UNWTO report, despite global economic challenges, international tourism in 2013 was well above expectations, with an additional 52 million people

travelling the world last year.

 

Please follow the link for more.

 

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* Global Employment Trends 2014

 

The ILO study Global Employment Trends 2014 offers the latest global and regional information and projections on several indicators of the labour market, including employment, unemployment, working poverty and vulnerable employment.

 

Please find more following the link.

 

More Trade News in Brief Week 2 (6 – 12 January 2014)

 

* ILO’s  Key Indicators of the Labour Market (KILM)

 

ILO released the latest edition of KILM – an online reference tool offering data and analysis on the world’s labour market – includes information about the dynamics of job losses and job creation in 70 developed and emerging economies.

 

Check the Press Release.

 

Download the Key Indicators of the Labour Market (KILM) – 8th edition.

 

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* World Intellectual Property Indicators – 2013 Edition

 

WIPO published the World Intellectual Property Indicators 2013 which provides a wide range of indicators covering different areas of intellectual property.

 

Download the full report here.

 

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* Uzbekistan Joins CIS Free Trade Zone

 

Uzbekistan has ratified a treaty which makes Uzbekistan the ninth member of the free trade area of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

 

Aside from Uzbekistan, the free trade agreement (FTA) includes Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, and Tajikistan. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have signed but not yet ratified the agreement.

 

Please find more here.

 

More Trade News in Brief Week 49 (2 – 8 December 2013)

 

* Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2013

 

Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2013 has been published by Transparency International.

 

Please check the press release here.

 

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* Australia and South Korea Conclude Trade Talks

 

Australia has concluded negotiations with South Korea for a free trade agreement.

 

Please follow the link for more.

 

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* Yemen Accedes To WTO

 

 Yemen became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on December 04, 2013.

 

Click here for more.

 

 

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* Asian Countries top OECD’s Latest PISA Survey

 

Asian countries outperform the rest of the world in the OECD’s latest PISA survey.

PISA survey evaluates the knowledge and skills of the world’s 15-year-olds

 

Check here for details.

 

News from the EU

 

* EU – Barriers Restricting Access to Regulated Professions

 

The European Commission announced the start of an evaluation of national regulations on access to professions across Europe.

 

Check here for more.

 

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* EU & Arab Maghreb Union

 

The first informal political dialogue between countries of the Arab Maghreb Union (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania and Libya) and the EU to discuss developments in the region has been hold .

 

Read more following the link.

 

More Trade News in Brief – Week 4 (21 – 27 January 2013)

 

* ILO – Global Employment Trends 2013

 

22 January 2013

 

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has issued a new report on global employment.

 

The Global Employment Trends 2013 is available here.

 

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* Romania – The 118th member of the Global Forum

 

23 January 2013

 

Romania has joined the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes developed by OECD.

 

Check here for more.

 

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* ISO – Information Security and Service Management Standard

 

16 January 2013

 

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in collaboration with International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) published a new international standard regarding the information security and service management system.

 

Read more about the new ISO/IEC 27013:2012, Information technology – Security techniques – Guidance on the integrated implementation of ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 20000-1 here.

 

EU – Employment and Social Developments 2012

8 January 2013, Brussels

 

European Commission released the 2012 edition of the Employment and Social Developments in Europe Review.

The review analyzes the impact of the crisis on the social situation all over the Member States.

 

Please find more:
– Press release
– Memo
– Speech

 

The publication is available here.