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US and Brazilian trade negotiators plan to meet this month with hopes of breathing some new life into the creation of the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). The talks come as the original talks were scheduled to make an end-of-the-year deadline. The Bush Administration is hoping for an FTAA "thaw," and progress toward a sweeping, trade pact that would cover 34 nations with 800 million people and $13 trillion in economic output. Representatives of both countries met in the first half of 2004 but canceled several meetings in the second half of the year when it became apparent they could not bridge their differences…

China has said it won't approve any new commercial aircraft purchases in 2005 in an effort to curb "over-heated" growth in the sector and uncontrolled capacity expansion by domestic airlines. Yang Yuanyuan, director general of the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China, told a Chinese industry forum last week that domestic airlines have already ordered enough planes to meet their requirements next year. "Chinese airlines have already bought and arranged to be shipped next year a total of 147 planes," Yang said in comments published on the website of CAAC News, a newspaper run by the aviation agency. "This basically suits the needs of the market's growth," he said, adding that no additional purchases will be approved in 2005. The move comes amid efforts by aircraft manufacturers US-based Boeing and Europe's EADS consortium to tap into China's growth. China Eastern Airlines, which commands the country's second-largest commercial fleet, said recently it will buy six Boeing Co. 737-700 jets for about $240 million to meet booming air travel demand. Those planes will be delivered in 2006. In November, Airbus confirmed an order for 20 of its A330 wide-body jets for China Eastern; and…

The upgraded trade agreement signed recently between Israel and Jordan is the most advanced trade deal Israel had with any Arab country, said Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Ehud Olmert at the signing ceremony, which was held in the Jordanian capital of Amman. After the ceremony, Olmert met with King Abdullah in what he termed as a friendly and positive meeting. According to Israel Radio, Olmert said the king reacted positively to the new pact. The trade agreement is designed to foster Israeli-Jordanian cooperation in receiving a Customs exemption from the European Union. Customs duties on Israeli exports to Jordan will be cut by a third, while duties on Jordanian exports to Israel will be slashed in half. The past calls for both countries to continue to gradually lower Customs duties, until they are eliminated by 2010. Israel and Jordan already cooperate on jointly produced exports from Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZ) to the US. The 12 special zones in Jordan allow firms that build factories in them to export tax-free to the US, provided that 35% of the product is jointly Jordanian and Israeli, and that the Israeli component constitutes at least 8%.

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