Irish exports to Canada could double from an estimated €1.2bn p.a. to €2.4bn p.a. under a new Trade Agreement recently signed between the EU and Canada. In addition, an impending EU trade deal with the U.S. has the potential to boost exports even further.

These benefits were highlighted at a seminar in Dublin hosted by European Movement Ireland entitled 'Trading our way to prosperity: The EU and Free Trade Agreements". The event, which was supported by Irish Life, was part of EM Ireland's programme of events to mark the organisation's 60th anniversary.

The potential impact on Ireland of these EU trade agreements was discussed by a panel of speakers including;

Leo Varadkar, TD, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport
Paul Mahon, President and CEO, Great-West Lifeco
Catherine Day, Secretary General, European Commission.

The seminar was chaired by Maurice Pratt, Chairperson, European Movement Ireland.

Speaking at the event Leo Varadkar, TD, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport said:

“I want to pay tribute to the sterling work that European Movement Ireland has been doing for the past 60 years to encourage debate and engagement on European issues in Ireland. While today it is dealing with free trade issues, next week it will be working in primary and secondary schools helping to open the eyes of our next generation to European issues. Given the transatlantic flavour of today's event, I must draw attention to the fact that last year was the best ever year for visitors from North America and I expect further growth in that market this year.”

Paul Mahon, President and CEO of Great-West Lifeco - which acquired Irish Life last year and employs 3,000 people in Ireland - spoke of the benefits of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) involving the EU and Canada, which was signed in late 2013. Mr Mahon said he believed this represented a huge opportunity for Ireland in particular.

“It's estimated that CETA could raise bilateral trade by 23% or €26bn. The benefits are estimated to be €11.6 billion for Europe and €8.2 billion for Canada. With almost half the benefits expected to be in services and Ireland having such a strong base in service related industry, there is a huge opportunity here for Ireland.

"Great-West Lifeco has seen first-hand the benefits of doing business in and from Ireland. With its skilled workforce and ability to serve as an English speaking hub for access to the rest of Europe, Ireland has an opportunity to capture a disproportionate amount of the benefits that will be generated by CETA.”

According to Catherine Day, Secretary General of the European Commission, the European Union is negotiating a new generation of trade agreements as part of its overall strategy to stimulate growth and jobs in the EU. These trade agreements with the world's most developed countries like Canada, the US, and Japan, can give a major boost to trade and investment and they will go beyond traditional tariff reductions. Some of their most important features include regulatory co-operation, aiming to reduce the cost and administrative burden of selling into different markets. “Ireland is well placed to take up and benefit from these opportunities as economic recovery in the EU strengthens,” she concluded.

The minutes from the latest Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting in March were released yesterday evening (BST). The minutes revealed that the staff marginally revised down their outlook for economic activity in the range of forecasts prepared for the meeting.

While their December projection for US growth in 2014 ranged between 2.8% and 3.2%, the latest minutes suggest a slight drop in optimism amongst monetary policymakers. The economy is now expected to expand by between 2.8% and 3.0%. Some weaker-than-anticipated economic indicators since January were attributed in part to adverse weather conditions, with the slowdown being deemed significant enough to warrant a slight fall in growth expectations.

The FOMC also predicts that the unemployment rate will remaining elevated compared with pre-financial crisis levels, with the rate falling to only 6.3% by the end of the year - it currently stands at 6.7%.

The low participation rate (63.2% according to the latest data) was a particularly divisive issue among the board members; while most agreed that slack remained in the market, there was disagreement over how much. Opinion among the committee participants was broadly divided between those that felt cyclical factors were working to under-represent unemployment, and those that believed that the labour market had permanently tightened due to demographic trends - such as a first wave of retirement among baby-boomers. The condition of the labour market in this regard is particularly important, as greater slack would mean that as the economy heats up a larger number of people will re-enter the labour force.

The decision was also made by the Committee to move away from the 6.5% unemployment threshold used in the ongoing forward guidance for the Federal Funds Rate. In the March 18-19 meeting most of the Committee opted to replace the unemployment threshold with a new qualitative description of factors. This decision was due to the Committee's suspicion that the unemployment rate will fall below the prescribed 6.5% threshold much sooner than anticipated.

The minutes reveal the issue of determining a workable and trustworthy interest rate policy was of chief concern to the board members, however it appears that investors have been appeased for now - with shares generally rising after the minutes were released. Overall, Cebr expects US economic performance to be solid this year and next, with the economy growing by 2.8% and 3.1% in 2014 and 2015 respectively.

“Australia is plagued by a currency that is so overvalued it makes oil-rich Norway’s currency looks cheap,” argues FT commentator Henny Sender.

“But the price of oil is high, while the prices of Australian commodities are under downward pressure, leading to deteriorating fundamentals.”

One reason the Ozdollar “continues to defy predictions,” says CLSA strategist Christopher Wood, is that interest rates in Australia remain relatively attractive, with the short-term rate still 2.5 per cent and the ten-year government bond yield at 4.2 per cent.

Australia continues to attract foreign capital, including investment by China’s property developers.

While the rand is expected to remain volatile, the Reserve Bank is unlikely to intervene in the market to try to stabilise the currency, says Governor Gill Marcus.

Speaking at the European Economic and Financial Centre in London on Tuesday, the governor said the currency has followed a volatile trend and that this trend is expected to continue.

“While the exchange rate has been an important shock absorber for the South African economy, some concern has been expressed regarding its volatility. We have not attempted to intervene directly in the foreign exchange market, as we do not believe that such intervention would be effective, given the size of South Africa’s foreign exchange market, and our relatively low level of foreign exchange reserves of around US$50 billion,” she said.

The currency, which had touched five year lows, has made some ground after the central bank raised interest rates at its first meeting of the year in January.

The central bank said the surprise hike was the beginning of a moderate monetary tightening cycle.

Interest rates, noted the governor, cannot remain indefinite, even though the state of the country’s economy has justified accommodative interest rates.

“While such an accommodative stance has been considered appropriate given the developments in the real economy, pressures from the exchange rate and capital flows and the possible normalisation of monetary policy in the US imply that this stance cannot be maintained indefinitely,” she said.

At its meeting in March the reserve bank left rates unchanged.

However, this did not mean that “we blindly follow US monetary policy”, she said. - SAnews.gov.za

At the launch of the Impact Report of South and East Cork Area Development (SECAD) today, the investment of over €20 million into the region’s economy was highlighted and celebrated.* The independently conducted Impact Report showcases the enormous impact of SECAD across community, enterprise, tourism and transport in the Region. Cork Region – Jobs, Startups, [...]

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The South African economy needs to undergo a significant structural change if it is to create jobs and employment, Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies said on Monday. The minister was speaking at the launch of the sixth iteration of the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) in Johannesburg. “Most of the document is an [...]Structural change needed in SA economy is a post from: South Africa Business



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Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies on Monday responded to reports that incentives for manufacturers will be weakened due to regulations that...

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South Africa has welcomed the announcement that Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, is now the biggest economy in sub-Saharan Africa after it rebased its gross domestic product (GDP).

The World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and African Development Bank (AfDB) have endorsed Nigeria's new gross domestic product (GDP) of approximately US $509.9 billion released on Sunday, making the West African country the biggest economy in Africa.

According to figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics after a rebasing, Nigeria surpassed South Africa with a 2013 rebased figure of US $370 billion.

The new figures show that the biggest oil producer in Africa climbed to the 26th largest economy in the world.

“The announcement gives concrete expression to the fact that Africa is indeed rising. The announcement resonates with South Africa's consistent message since 1994 that we want to see more African economies grow and live up to their potential, just as we continue striving to do so in with our own economy.

“South Africa has been and will continue to benefit from faster economic growth in the rest of the continent. Furthermore, the South African government and the private sector continue to play no small a part in the growth and development of the continent,” said the Ministry of Finance.

In Nigeria's case, the wholesale and retail and the telecommunications sectors -- the two largest components of the services sector -- have big participation by South African firms, who have played a big role in the growth and development of the two sectors.

“This is a positive story of African countries contributing to re-shaping each other's economies through increased investment. South Africa will continue to nurture mutually beneficial trade and investment ties with Nigeria and other African countries,” said the ministry. – SAnews.gov.za-Xinhua

The Human Resources Development Council (HRDC) has pledged its support for small business and quality education to help the country meet its development goals. The council on Wednesday held its 14th meeting, which was chaired by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe. The multi-tiered stakeholder advisory body, established in 2010, under the leadership of the Deputy President, [...]HRDC pledges support for small business is a post from: South Africa Business



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The National Credit Amendment Bill, approved by the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), will see the screws tightened on reckless lending. The NCOP bill, which also seeks to provide uniformity in the application of affordability assessment regulation, was passed on Wednesday. The bill will further benefit consumers in that there will be compulsory regulations for [...]National Credit Amendment Bill is a post from: South Africa Business



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