All About Free Trade Agreements

What Is A Free Trade Agreement?

A free trade agreement or FTA is an arrangement between two or more countries to reduce trade barriers to encourage easier imports & exports. Under an FTA, a group of countries signs a trade agreement according to which goods & services can be imported and exported with little or no government tariffs, import quotas, or subsidies, etc. Here, two or more countries agree on certain obligations that affect the trading of goods & services across the borders and determine tariffs & duties on imports & exports. The main agenda of an FTA is to facilitate uninterrupted trade and commercial ties between participating nations. To put it simply, free trade agreements are treaties to regulate tariffs, taxes, and duties that are imposed by countries on their imports & exports.

Types Of Trade Agreements 

There are usually three types of trade agreements which are:

1. Unilateral

2. Bilateral

3. Multilateral

1. Unilateral Trade Agreement - A unilateral agreement is a type of agreement that is imposed by a nation without regard to others. In simple words, it takes place when a country imposes trade restrictions without entertaining the responses of other countries. It only benefits the imposing country and is not negotiable.

2. Bilateral Trade Agreements - As the name implies, it is an agreement that involves two countries where they both agree on loosening trade barriers to encourage & expand their trading opportunities globally. They lower tariffs, import quotas, export restraints, and other trade barriers that further promote trade & investments. 

3. Multilateral Trade Agreements - It can be understood by its name as it involves three or more countries. But since the number of participating countries has increased, it makes the negotiations difficult. They are more complex than bilateral agreements as each country differs in needs, & opinions.

Originally Posted: https://www.axioscreditbank.com/blogs/all-about-free-trade-agreements

Commodity Finance And Its Benefits

What is commodity finance?

Commodity finance refers to the financing/funding of the commodities being traded between importers & exporters in an international trade transaction. In simple words, the concept of commodity trade finance revolves around funding everything involved in a commodity value chain. 

Why is commodity finance required?

Firstly, commodities that often get traded in a global transaction generally have low margins. Secondly, they are transferred between the global parties who don’t know each other, varying in terms of regional rules & legal guidelines. Hence, trust isn’t generated between importers-exporters. Third, there are other associated risks in commodity trading such as changes in foreign law, shipment issues, inflation, delayed delivery, quality issues, or counterparty's inability to pay for the delivered goods, etc. 

To remedy the situation and avoid all the risks associated with commodity trading, commodity trade finance comes into the picture. Here is how these trade finance services Malaysia helps both the buyers & sellers in a global trade transaction. But first know, what commodities are:

What do you mean by commodities?

Commodities can be defined as a group of goods that are traded, sold, or delivered between transactional parties.

Originally Posted: https://www.axioscreditbank.com/blogs/commodity-finance-and-its-benefits