Update of the Scope of Preferential Trade Agreements
The EU has entered in to a number of preferential or free trade agreements whereby products originating in beneficiary countries can enter the EU free from duty or at a reduced rate. To originate in the beneficiary country the goods must meet a specific origin rule as prescribed by the customs classification of those goods.
The new GSP arrangements include a clause to exclude countries from benefiting from preferential trade arrangements where they are classified by the World Bank as high or upper-middle income countries for three consecutive years.
The EU and US have decided to launch negotiations for a comprehensive trade and investment agreement. The aim is to go beyond the classic trade agreement by aligning rules and technical standards which are seen as the most important barrier to free trade. These non tariff barriers are believed to add an equivalent tariff cost of approximately 10%, whereas classic tariffs are at around 4%.
The EU grants Bangladesh, as well as 47 other Least Developed Countries (LDC), duty-free and quota-free access for all its products to the EU Market. Bangladesh clothing and textile imports are significant (only behind China and Turkey) and are growing at a rate of 29% (from 2011).
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