China FTA upgrade commences

Stuff reports:

Prime Minister John Key has announced talks will begin on upgrading the free trade deal with China.

The announcement came after Trade Minister Todd McClay met Chinese Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng on the sidelines of the Apec summit in Peru.

Key said it had been eight years since the FTA with China came into force, and it had an enviable record. It showcased to the world the importance of trade liberalisation.

The first round of negotiation would start in the first half of 2017.

Since the FTA was signed, trade had quadrupled to reach $9.2 billion.

Labour’s greatest foreign policy achievement and one opposed by Greens and NZ First. And sadly today’s Labour Party would probably oppose it also.