APR News

Signing of the joint declaration on launching negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Republic of India was held at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, on June 3, 2017. The Member of the Board - Minister in charge of Trade of the EEC, Veronika Nikishina, signed the document for and on behalf of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC). The State Minister of Industry and Trade of India, Nirmala Sitharaman, signed it for India.
In 2016 the joint group that conducted a study of the feasibility of the FTA Agreement completed its work. The analysis showed that mutual liberalization of the trade regime will lead to the GDP increase in all the EAEU countries and India already in the short term. In addition, according to expert estimates, when moving to a free trade regime, the turnover could grow by 30-40% in comparison with the current level depending on the depth of tariff liberalization to be achieved as a result of the negotiations.

The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) started actively working on creation of a common digital industrial space of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). The Member of the Board – Minister in charge of Industry and Agroindustrial Complex of the Eurasian Economic Commission, Sergey Sidorskiy, told about it to the participants of the St. Petersburg Economic Forum.
Speaking at the session "Russia – Germany”: “Smart factories. Increasing production efficiency with network technologies", Sergey Sidorskiy noted that the EAEU countries had high potential for creation of a digital economy. There is a strong base in software development.
"The rapid development of digital technologies in areas such as 3D printing, virtual and augmented reality, artificial intelligence raises profound structural changes in processes, primarily, in industrial production,” the EEC Minister said. “And here there is a substantial request for digital technologies from metallurgy to space."
The question of the digital transformation of the economies of the Member States has become permanent in the session agendas of the Union bodies and systematically discussed by the Heads of the states, governments and the Commission. So, the Heads of the Governments endorsed the EEC initiative on the establishment under the Commission of the EAEU Digital Development Competence Center. Digital transformation of economic sectors, markets for goods and services, capital and labour, management processes and integration processes in the Union, development of digital infrastructure and protection of security of digital processes are considered as key areas of digital integration in the EAEU.

It is necessary to continue the dialogue between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and states and integration associations of the Latin American region, think together how to build new partner global economy. This was stated by the Member of the Board - Minister in charge of Integration and Macroeconomics of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), Tatyana Valovaya, at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum within the framework of the business dialogue “EAEU – Latin America: increasing the pace of cooperation."
"We are interested in building a dialogue with other integration associations and are quite closely working with Latin America. We see an upward trend: in recent years, our dialogue has become very effective," Tatyana Valovaya said.

European business wants to expand cooperation with partners in the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), despite the absence of institutional interaction between the European and Eurasian economic commissions. Such conclusions were made by the participants of the panel session "European and Eurasian integration: possibilities for a new interface" held in the framework of the St. Petersburg Economic Forum on June 1, 2017.
The Chairman of the EEC Board, Tigran Sargsyan, acted as a moderator of the session. His partner and organizer of the interactive voting was the Member of the Board - Minister in charge of Integration and Macroeconomics of the EEC, Tatyana Valovaya. Search for formats and tools to maintain and develop the constructive dialogue between the European and Eurasian economic unions became the main topic of the event.

The total GDP growth of the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) as a result of the conclusion of the free trade area agreement with India could reach 1.4 billion US dollars in the short term, and 2.7 billion US dollars in the long-term. The Member of the Board - Minister in charge of Trade of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), Veronika Nikishina, told about it at the business breakfast "EAEU – India: a strategic partnership", which was held within the framework of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 1, 2017.
In her speech, Veronika Nikishina said that the leaders of the EAEU countries and India, on the basis of the outcomes of the analysis conducted by a joint study group, decided to start negotiations on a free trade area (FTA) agreement.

In recent years, in the countries of the Eurasian Economic Unit (EAEU) there has been a steady increase in the production of fish in fish farms. In general, in 2016, the EAEU countries produced more than 200 ths. tons, that is almost a fifth part more than it was two years earlier. Today's state of affairs and prospects for aquaculture development in the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) was discussed by the participants of the round table held in Moscow in the framework of the International Fish & SeaFood Summit and Trade Show for Animal Husbandry and Processing VIV Russia 2017.
The event was attended by representatives of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), academic institutions, fish and fish processing enterprises of the EAEU states, etc.
The Deputy Director of the EEC Agroindustrial Policy Department, Aina Kusainova, noted that the EAEU conducted an agreed agroindustrial policy, the Commission had developed a draft concept of aquaculture development in the Member States. The main objects of pond fish farming are carp, silver carp, grass carp. Industrial fish farming is developing through the increase of production of sturgeon, salmon, whitefish, catfish, etc. Implementation of the Aquaculture Development Concept in the Union countries and the national plans for development of this area by using the capacities of inter-state interaction will increase aquaculture product manufacture in 2020 up to 350 thousand tonnes.

1. We, the Heads of State /Government of ASEAN Member States, gathered for the 30th ASEAN Summit in Manila on 29 April 2017 under the Chairmanship of the Republic of the Philippines with the theme “Partnering for Change, Engaging the World,” which envisions an integrated, peaceful, stable and resilient ASEAN Community that actively takes a leading role as a regional and global player in advancing political-security cooperation, sustainable economic growth and socio-cultural development in Southeast Asia and in the world.

Members of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), meeting in Seoul to prepare recommendations on business priorities for APEC Trade Ministers in May, emphasized the tremendous benefits that more open trade has delivered for Asia-Pacific communities, lifting millions from poverty, enhancing productivity and generating dynamic growth in the region.
“By contrast, protectionism harms employment, food security and living standards,” said 2017 ABAC Chair Hoang Van Dung. “Leaders need strongly to resist the temptation to throw up the barriers to trade and investment.”

Belarus and Kyrgyzstan remove barriers regarding VAT on certain types of agriculture and fish farming commodities. Change of taxation will occur within the framework of the activity to remove obstacles for the free movement of goods and services on domestic markets of the Eurasian Economic Unity (EAEU) and prevent their occurrence.
“Building constructive work to remove obstacles on domestic markets of the EAEU car

ried out by the Union States and the Eurasian Economic Commission becomes systemic, as evidenced by monthly measures in this area adopted by the EAEU States,” said the EEC Board member - Minister in charge of Internal Markets, Information Support, Information and Communication Technologies Karine Minasyan.
Belarus announced the intention to cancel the VAT rate in the amount of 10% on the sale of products of crop farming, beekeeping, cattle farming and aquaculture, produced on the territory of the Republic. The cancellation is envisaged from July 1, 2017

with a legal act, which is being developed in Minsk.

Small business promotion authorities from APEC member economies are taking next steps to ease bottlenecks hindering women-led exporters and their growth and job creating potential in the Asia-Pacific.
Officials detailed plans for the expansion of efforts to tackle gender bias in trade during a week of small business development policy meetings in Sydney. They include greater cross-border training and technical exchange to enable reform in APEC economies that levels the playing field for women-owned and managed firms, and improves their access to international markets.