Chamber Welcomes Prospect of Russia FTA

Chamber Welcomes Prospect of a Free Trade Agreement with Russia

The Wellington Regional Chamber of Commerce has welcomed the news that New Zealand and Russia have agreed to begin laying the groundwork for the commencement of Free Trade Agreement negotiations.

“An FTA with Russia, and its Customs Union partners of Belarus and Kazakhstan, would be hugely beneficial to New Zealand,” said Chamber CEO Charles Finny.

“Russia is the 12th largest economy in the world and is growing fast. Our current trade with Russia is relatively modest, and so there is a strong potential for growth.

“New Zealand exports to Russia are small but growing and so a FTA would be a valuable platform to build that trade.

“As well as food exports there are opportunities in a number of services areas, including ICT, education and tourism and so it is essential that negotiations cover services.

“With its service sector orientation, the Wellington economy in particular has a lot to gain from closer economic relations with Russia.

“We hope that a negotiation between New Zealand and Russia can be completed as quickly as possible and we congratulate Tim Groser and his officials for reaching this milestone.

"We also congratulate the Prime Minister and Murray McCully for the strong leadership in forging a closer relationship with Russia,” Mr Finny concluded.

ENDS

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