Your Monday morning coffee briefing from TFG. Democratic candidate Joe Biden was elected US president. Mr Biden has expressed his opposition to Brexit and, in particular, concern about its impact on the Good Friday agreement. The presidential transition period which lasts until 20 January will freeze talks on a UK-US trade deal Numbers of new confirmed Covid cases continued to rise in the US, Germany and Italy. England entered a second national lockdown until the 2nd December. [/box]
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Updated Periodic Table of DLT Projects in Trade
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), colloquially termed ‘blockchain’ has been touted to disrupt trade and supply chain, as well it’s financing, for over 5 years. Following on from Trade Finance Global, World Trade Organization and International Chamber of Commerce’s ‘Periodic Table’ enlisting 39 projects in global trade utilising DLT, we’ve relaunched our table, indicating that the industry has considerably matured and evolved in less than 12 months. Read more →
Outlook for small manufacturers stabilises
A survey of small manufacturing firms by the CBI has found that investment plans still remain weak for the year ahead despite improving in recent months. However, output fell at a considerably slower pace in the three months to October and the survey also indicated a decline in the number of firms worried about staff shortages, cash flow and demand for goods and services. Read more →
Britain set to fall short in race to replace EU trade deals
Britain is at risk of losing the benefits of EU trade deals with more than a dozen countries on January 1 as time runs out for it to replace agreements that Brussels has with governments around the world. The UK’s Department for International Trade said “engagement was ongoing” with 15 countries with which the EU has deals, with only weeks remaining until Britain’s post-Brexit transition period expires at the end of the year. Read more →
Survey reveals lack of legal clarity and regulatory framework is the biggest trade challenge during the pandemic
Covid-19 has uprooted processes and established outlooks in many industries around the world. To gain a detailed understanding of the impact that the global pandemic has had on DLT projects in trade, World Trade Organization and Trade Finance Global (TFG) conducted a supplementary survey of projects featured in the 2020 Periodic Table update. Read more →
Afreximbank, ITFC and BADEA launch US$1.5bn facility to support African recovery amid global pandemic
Afreximbank partners with the ITFC and the BADEA – Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, to launch a US$1.5-billion Collaborative COVID-19 Pandemic Response Facility (“COPREFA”) to support African economies with rapid financial assistance to reduce the impact of COVID-19. Read more →
BAFT Launches Global Payments Industry Council
BAFT, the leading international transaction banking association, announced the formation of its Global Payments Industry Council (GPIC). The GPIC’s primary purpose is to set BAFT’s strategic agenda with respect to global payments and to ensure proper alignment of BAFT’s payments committees and working groups. Read more →
BADEA and ITFC intensify their support to the African countries to fight COVID-19
Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa intensifies its partnership with the ITFC to support African Countries to fight COVID-19 through a joint program under the Arab Africa Trade Bridges. The contribution of BADEA will help finance key initiatives targeting the health and pharmaceutical sectors in Africa. Read more →
