Reading Time: 2 minutes Strasbourg | Reuters –– The planned EU-Canada free trade deal cleared a hurdle to its implementation next year when the European Parliament rejected a motion on Wednesday to ask the top European Union court to rule on its legality. The vote by lawmakers in the parliament is an indication they will also ultimately back the […] Read more
CETA clears legal test hurdle in EU parliament
Trump pledges U.S. withdrawal from TPP on ‘day one’
Reading Time: 2 minutes U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to start the United States’ exit from the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal on “day one” of his administration in January. In a video released Monday, Trump said his transition team had been directed to put together “a list of executive actions we can take on day one” […] Read more
Canada expects Britain to be part of CETA
Reading Time: 2 minutes London | Reuters –– Canada expects Britain to be part of the CETA trade deal between Canada and the European Union, and stands ready to work with Britain on how the system will function after Brexit, Finance Minister Bill Morneau told BBC radio on Wednesday. He also defended Canada’s NAFTA trade deal with the U.S. […] Read more
German cabinet approves draft law banning GM crops
Reading Time: < 1 minute Berlin | Reuters — The German cabinet has approved a draft law banning cultivation of crops with genetically modified organisms (GMOs), government sources told Reuters on Wednesday. Germany had announced in September 2015 that it will ban cultivation of crops with GMOs under new European Union rules allowing member states to opt out of their […] Read more
EU, Canada sign free trade deal but battle not over
Reading Time: 4 minutes Brussels | Reuters –– The European Union and Canada signed a free trade agreement on Sunday that aims to generate jobs and growth though it must still clear some 40 national and regional parliaments in Europe in the coming years to enter fully into force. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signed the treaty along with […] Read more
EU, Canada to hold trade summit Sunday
Reading Time: < 1 minute Brussels | Reuters –– The European Union and Canada will hold a summit to sign their free trade deal on Sunday, European Council President Donald Tusk said on Friday, after Belgium had cleared the agreement with its regional governments. “Mission accomplished! Just agreed with PM @JustinTrudeau to hold EU Canada Summit this Sunday,” Tusk said […] Read more
Belgium’s Walloon parliament backs EU-Canada trade deal
Reading Time: 2 minutes Brussels | Reuters — The parliament of Belgium’s French-speaking region of Wallonia voted in favour of a planned EU-Canada trade agreement on Friday, ending its opposition that threatened to destroy the entire deal. Lawmakers of Wallonia, which led Belgian opposition to the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), 58 voted for and five against, after […] Read more
Belgium breaks deadlock over EU-Canada trade pact
Reading Time: 2 minutes Brussels | Reuters — Belgium agreed a deal with its regional parliaments on Thursday to approve a landmark EU-Canada free trade agreement, breaking a deadlock that has blocked the pact for weeks. Prime Minister Charles Michel said the heads of the regions had drawn up an addendum to the agreement that answered their concerns over […] Read more
Belgians struggle to agree on text to save CETA
Reading Time: 2 minutes Brussels | Reuters –– Belgian politicians failed to break their deadlock over a planned EU-Canada free trade agreement on Wednesday, but agreed to resume talks on Thursday in a sign they may be nearing a consensus that would keep the deal alive. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), seven years in the making, is backed […] Read more
CN feels Prairie harvest delays in Q3 revenues
Reading Time: 2 minutes Weather-related stalls in this fall’s Prairie grain harvest have chipped away at Canadian National Railway’s (CN) third-quarter financials, as the railway booked lower profits and revenues on “shifting traffic demands.” Montreal-based CN on Tuesday reported overall net income of $972 million on $3.014 billion in revenue for the quarter ending Sept. 30, down from $1.007 […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
