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Could this be the start of an aussie down fall?

nonothing

Well-known member
SYDNEY (AFP) - Australia and China have agreed to speed up work on a free trade agreement following discussions on the global financial crisis, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said.



Rudd, who met China's President Hu Jintao in Washington following G20 talks on tackling the financial meltdown, said no deadline for an agreement had yet been set.


"We've agreed to adopt a fresh approach to speeding up the conclusion of this agreement even more," he told reporters in Washington on Sunday.


"I can't put a specific timeline on that, but we will be reviewing progress again when next we meet."


Rudd, due to meet Hu at the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Peru, said he wanted to negotiate "a balanced agreement which suits the long-term economic interest of both economies."


"This is really important for us and for the Chinese long term," he said.


"China has great interest in the Australian market in terms of long-term access to energy and raw materials. We have great interest to (having) greater access to China's market in goods and in services."


Australia and China began talks on a free trade agreement in May 2005 but discussions had stalled until April this year when Rudd used a visit to Beijing to push for progress on the deal with the nation's largest trading partner.


The prime minister said the talks had moved forward since then and he was "confident that we can get real progress in the period ahead."


Rudd said it was important for governments to work together during the current financial upheaval, which is expected to bring job losses and lower economic growth in Australia and has raised questions about China's growth.


"The Chinese, like the Australian government, is very mindful of the impact of the global financial crisis over the last couple of months, and into next year as well," he said.


"We agreed this will be a tough time for all of us, but it therefore means it's an important time for governments like China and Australia to work very closely together. And we intend to do that."


China's Hu also pointed to the global challenges, saying they presented Beijing and Canberra with unprecedented opportunities for deepening bilateral cooperation, the Xinhua news agency reported.


Hu said trade with Australia was growing rapidly and negotiations on the free trade agreement were making steady progress, Xinhu said.
 

Steve

Well-known member
Ironically...while the liberals complain about free trade being a "big business" give-away... isn't this guy a liberal? , just like Clinton?
 
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