May 17, 2005 (9:00 a.m. EDT)
No. 85
CANADA AND EUROPEAN UNION BEGIN NEGOTIATIONS ON A
TRADE AND INVESTMENT ENHANCEMENT AGREEMENT
International Trade Minister Jim Peterson today announced that Canada and the
European Union have begun to negotiate a trade and investment enhancement
agreement (TIEA) in Brussels. The first round of talks is scheduled to continue
tomorrow.
“These negotiations can help propel transatlantic commercial relations to the next
level,” said Minister Peterson. “We will help our industries and communities prosper by
working to remove the hurdles they face. This will benefit all of Canada.”
The TIEA will move beyond bilateral market access considerations, anticipating future
challenges, such as the need for greater cooperation on regulatory issues. Other issues
identified in the TIEA framework, which was endorsed by Canada and the EU in March
2004, include investment, trade facilitation, government procurement and services.
In combination with the outcome of the ongoing multilateral negotiations at the World
Trade Organization, the TIEA will improve Canadian access to European markets and
bring considerable economic benefits to our companies and consumers.
Enhancing and invigorating Canada’s trading relationships with its established partners,
such as the 25 countries in the EU, is one of the focal points of the recently released
Canada’s International Policy Statement, with the TIEA being an important element of
this strategy.
The EU is the world’s largest single market and Canada’s second-largest trading
partner. The agreed TIEA framework can be found at
http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/tna-nac/rb/tiea-en.asp
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For further information, media representatives may contact:
Andrea Lanthier
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of International Trade
(613) 992-7332
Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs Canada and International Trade Canada
(613) 995-1874
http://www.international.gc.ca
Backgrounder
CANADA-EU TRADE AND INVESTMENT
ENHANCEMENT AGREEMENT
At the December 2002 Canada-EU Summit, leaders committed to designing a new type
of forward-looking bilateral trade and investment enhancement agreement (TIEA).
In the spring of 2003, the Minister of International Trade initiated consultations on the
future of Canada-EU trade and investment relations. Discussions were held with
Canadians, the provinces and territories, business groups and other interested
stakeholders. One year later, at the March 2004 Canada-EU Summit, leaders endorsed
the TIEA framework outlining issue areas to be negotiated.
The TIEA, in combination with the anticipated results of the Doha Development Agenda
in the World Trade Organization, would go beyond a classic free trade agreement
based on the elimination of tariffs. This new agreement is intended to address so-called
“new generation” trade issues, which could encompass such issues as regulatory
cooperation, investment and trade facilitation as well as other non-tariff trade barriers.
Formal negotiations would not conclude before the results of the WTO Doha Round are
known, as the successful conclusion of the latter is of central importance to Canada in
reducing EU barriers.
Negotiations will be largely based on the following issue areas included in the TIEA
framework:
• Regulatory cooperation
• Services—domestic regulation
• Mutual recognition of professional qualifications
• Temporary entry
• Financial services
• E-commerce
• Government procurement
• Trade facilitation
• Investment
• Competition
• Sustainable development
• Intellectual property rights
• Science and technology cooperation
• Small and medium-sized enterprises
• Civil society consultations
• Dispute settlement and institutional arrangements
Trade
• The EU is Canada’s second most important trade and investment partner after
the U.S.
• In 2004, goods and services trade between Canada and the EU reached more
than $86.7 billion.
• Canadian exports of goods to the EU amounted to $27.1 billion, and imports
totalled $36.3 billion in 2004. Canada exported $11.2 billion worth of services to
the EU and imported $12 billion.
Investment
• Canada’s stock of foreign direct investment in the EU was $108.8 billion in 2003
(25 percent of the Canadian total).
• That same year, the EU’s stock of direct investment in Canada stood at
$96.8 billion, representing 27 percent of all foreign direct investment in Canada.