Trends Transforming Trade

Over the past 12 months businesses have faced remarkable challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the necessary steps to curb its spread. Many were forced – through legislation or circumstance – to close their doors, some bravely soldiered on while also doing their best to help support their communities. And still others managed to not just survive, but grow through agile thinking, innovative practices, and adapting to their changing circumstances.

These businesses need to be applauded. They should have their unconventional genius acknowledged! And that’s why the GTPA is launching the “GTPA Business Resilience Awards”!

This is the first guide in a five-part series on using outside firms to reduce your cybersecurity risk.

If you are like most small business owners or managers, you wear many hats. Your focus is usually on the fundamentals of managing and building your business. You know that cybersecurity is an area of growing risk because there’s been more news about it – especially more news about cyber threats and attacks. Cybersecurity is multifaceted. Yes, firewalls and spam filters help, but you also need a well-educated workforce that is aware of the basic elements of cybersecurity. The Cyber Readiness Institute focuses on human behavior and education to create a culture of security within every organization. After all, it just takes one misguided click on a phishing link to potentially bring down your business. If this sounds overwhelming, it is okay to seek out guidance. This five-part series from the Cyber Readiness Institute in consultation with its Small Business Advisory Council will help guide you through the process of determining if you need outside help and if so, how to get it.

AUSTRALIA'S SERVICES EXPORTS ACTION PLAN

A government and industry strategy to boost services exports

Whilst it has been amusing to see the memes about the Ever Given container ship that until recently was blocking the Suez Canal, the impact on global trade and supply chains will have been significant.

Losses from the Ever Given blockage are estimated to reach more than $1 billion trade, at a time when it has been vital that we keep supply chains moving. This is yet another crisis impacting on global recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Suez blockage could be one of the biggest disruptions to global trade in recent years, not discounting that we have seen recent disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, trade wars, Brexit, and increasing risks from climate events.

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are the backbone of the economy, representing 95 per cent of all companies worldwide and accounting for 60 per cent of employment. They are fundamental to the day-to-day provision of goods and services around the world. Yet, many struggle to grow and trade. Among the many challenges that MSMEs face, lack of access to finance, including trade finance, is frequently identified as a critical barrier to growth. The MSME financing gap is a reality that cannot be ignored and that should be tackled with determination if we wish to ensure that small players are given a chance to thrive.

Varun Anthony is a ISO/IEC 17024 Certified International Business professional who has spent 12 of his 15 year career in International Trade and Market Development by developing the Indian market for international stakeholders looking to do business with India.

To celebrate International Women’s Day on the 8th March, the GTPA and the Institute for International Trade/ University of Adelaide and the University of Sussex are pleased to announce that we are providing two scholarships for women business leaders to complete the first ever Adaptive Trade Leadership in a Globalised World programme.

#ChooseToChallenge. A catchy tagline, but what does it actually mean? Last weekend, I got first hand evidence. In yet another Zoom social with friends, I asked a toddler on the call “what do you want to be when you grow up?” and rather confidently, she answered with: “an astronaut”.

GTR West Africa will return in 2021 virtually, providing an extended digital offering as the region’s leading event for trade discussion and networking on March 24-25.

Utilising GTR’s market leading virtual event platform, this online gathering promises a comprehensive programme of live debate, discussion and engagement, welcoming the region’s leading practitioners in trade, export and commodity finance to explore the latest developments, strategies and solutions employed to drive growth.

Lisa McAuley, CEO of GTPA will be speaking at the upcoming GTR India on the topic of Achieving sustainability – what role can Indian trade play? The event will take place at 15.30-16.15 IST, Thursday March 11.

Lisa McAuley, CEO of the GTPA is looking forward to participating in the upcoming Horasis Extraordinary Meeting on March 18^th. As part of the meeting she will be joining other leading experts to discuss the State of World Trade.

Date:Fri, 12 Feb 2021, 8:30 am - 10:00 am

Australia and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK) launched negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) on 17 June 2020. An FTA with Australia is part of delivering the UK government’s top strategic trade priority of using their voice as a new independent trading nation to champion free trade, fight protectionism and remove barriers at every opportunity.

Covid-19 has hit trade hard. Trade was growing at roughly twice the rate of global GDP but the shock to supply and demand has massively disrupted global value chains and further exposed the vulnerabilities of the international trade system.

Throughout the week of February 22nd 2021, a global audience and world-class speakers will take stock of what happened in 2020, virtually and in-person. What is the outlook for Asian trade in the next 5-10 years - should companies rethink manufacturing bases, supply chains and customer focus? How do unforeseen events such as covid-19 affect global value chains? What will be the impact of economic, political and environmental issues?

GTR MENA will return in 2021 as a hybrid event, offering an extended offering as the region’s leading gathering for networking and knowledge sharing, with a virtual event on February 15-17 and a physical event on September 22.

Cybersecurity Survey for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)

The Cyber Readiness Institute (CRI), in partnership with the International Chamber of Commerce, is conducting research on the cybersecurity preparedness and resilience of SMEs. We would appreciate hearing from you about the cyber readiness of your enterprise.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced sweeping changes to the way we work, learn, and communicate. Accompanying those sweeping changes to our business and personal lives has been a dramatic rise in cyber risk, specifically malware and ransomware.

• Unique opportunity to lead a newly created entity
  
• Home location initially, thereafter based in Samoa
  
• Fixed term for up to five years
  

The Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) Plus is a landmark trade and development agreement that has been signed by 11 Forum Island Countries: Australia, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu. The Agreement covers goods, services, and investment. It aims to lower barriers to trade, provide greater certainty for businesses, raise living standards, create jobs and increase exports across the Pacific.

The Parties to PACER Plus are looking to appoint a suitably qualified and experienced person to work as the Head of the Implementation Unit reporting to the PACER Plus Joint Committee. The key objectives of this senior level role are to provide critical leadership and technical expertise on trade and development for the new PACER Plus Implementation Unit.

GTR India will return this year as a hybrid, providing an extended offering as the country’s leading event for trade insights, networking and knowledge sharing, firstly with a virtual event taking place on March 10-11, and later with an in-person gathering in October 2021.

In November 2020 we launched a unique online educational experience designed to equip mid-senior business leaders with the technical trade knowledge and advance complex and adaptive thinking capabilities required to succeed in today’s global business environment.

Let’s celebrate the start of a new year by focusing on some positives from 2020! In these very difficult times when so many businesses have been forced – through legislation or circumstance – to close their doors, there are some who have bravely soldiered on and who are also doing their best to help support their community.

The need for standards to facilitate trade has been repeatedly mentioned by policy reports at the domestic and international level.

GTPA is currently working on a solution to facilitate business opportunities between multinational corporations and micro, small and medium enterprises participating in global value chains. More importantly, the solution seeks to address some of the gaps that small businesses tend to have in their supply chains with regards to what we call integrity-related standards, that is, standards to mitigate security, sustainability, and ethical behaviour risks, while enhancing diversity and inclusion.

Global trade and global value chains will continue to transform due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to understand that transformation better, in partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia and APEC the GTPA ran a survey for multinational corporations, small and medium enterprises, and industry and government organizations on global value chains resilience.

Inclusive trade refers to the principle that all levels of society should gain from increased trade. It promotes the inclusion of groups that may currently be marginalised or challenged in their ability to engage with international trading opportunities.

To highlight both the challenges faced and the contribution made by marginalised groups to the rich tapestry that is international trade, this year GTPA Director, Collins Rex, organised over 60 online events as part of the “Festival of Inclusive Trade”.

On December 16, Major Dan Finkenstadt and I will be delivering a webinar on the upcoming roll-out of the vaccine.

BAFT and CGI recently conducted a survey of more than 200 BAFT members in an effort to better understand the current state of technological advancements in trade, and how the pandemic has accelerated their importance and need.

The Directors of GTPA would like to congratulate Mr Simonet who was today appointed to the new role of CEO at Austrade. Mr Simonet is currently Group CEO and Managing Director of Kathmandu Holdings, which comprises the Kathmandu, Rip Curl and Oboz brands, and has previously held the roles of CEO of Radley London and International Director of Seafolly Group. He also worked for 11 years for LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) in Europe, Asia and Australia.

Tokyo, November 26, 2020 - Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) has agreed to make a capital investment in H2U Investments, the holding entity of the H2U Group. The H2U Group includes The Hydrogen Utility (H2U), the leading Australian developer of green hydrogen and green ammonia projects using power derived from renewable energy sources. The agreement also includes MHI's support for H2U's projects and business development initiatives, including supporting the Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) study for H2U's Eyre Peninsula Gateway^TM project in South Australia.

Originally published in International Banker Magazine, November 2020

The COVID-19 crisis is unprecedented in reach, speed of contagion and spread—and in the depth of economic impact that will result. COVID-19 is devastating human beings, families, communities and businesses across the globe. It is doing so within the context of a persistent focus on trade wars, troubling evidence of narrow self-interest in international activities, and increasing disrespect from various circles for multilateralism and the norms of international engagement.

Just a brief reminder that we are still on the lookout for individuals to join us in forming a new Executive Board for 2020 and we are still gathering Expressions of Interest (EOI) for our coming Executive Board election for the new year. A meeting to elect PIT’s new Executive Board will take place ONLINE on Thursday 26th of November at 5.30pm (AEST).

On this occasion, we will also have our AGM for 2020 prior to the election, which will give you a clear overview of the association's achievements & initiatives but also our strategical plans for the year to come.

There is a growing consensus that public finances won't be enough to help least developed countries (LDCs) recover from COVID-19.

Join investors, business and government leaders in this digital event to discuss how COVID-19 has impacted finance and investment for trade in LDCs and what strategies can help LDCs access new sources of finance and investment for trade.