HEADLINES
On the US side: Following a week of tariff threat exchanges between the US and China, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke at the Boao Forum Tuesday, stating his commitment to opening up Chinese markets, creating new state-to-state relations through dialogue, not confrontation, and tackling the issue of intellectual property. NAFTA rules of origin negotiations have moved forward as Mexico signaled a willingness to increase the regional content requirements for automobiles.
Global: In the midst of concerning developments in Syria, President Trump opted to skip the Summit of the Americas. Instead, Vice President Pence will attend and take part in discussions regarding the Venezuelan crisis, free and reciprocal trade, and other topics. 
Upcoming: The IMF will publish the World Economic Outlook Tuesday, April 18. 

SPOTLIGHT
Africa Embraces the Promise of Free Trade
By Ole Moehr
 
Overshadowed by news about tit-for-tat trade wars and rising protectionism, on March 21, forty-four African states signed an agreement to launch the African Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) at an African Union (AU) summit in Kigali, Rwanda. Eleven African countries, including the continent’s two largest economies, Nigeria and South Africa, did not sign the agreement largely due to concerns of their respective domestic industries and labor organizations. Ultimately, the CFTA’s goal is to create a continent-wide customs union that promotes Africa’s economic transformation.

For an overview of the CFTA’s scope, an assessment of the conditions for boosting intra-African trade, and an outline of the importance of developing regional value chains to foster sustainable economic growth across Africa, check out our latest Econographic in which we discuss the challenges and opportunities present within the AfCFTA. 

TRADE
Trade Statistics and Outlook: Strong Trade Growth in 2018 Rests on Policy Choices, World Trade Organization
Official Release: China Initiates WTO Dispute Complaint Against US Tariffs on Steel, Aluminium Products, World Trade Organization
News: Global Trade Growth Strong But at Risk if Conflict Escalates, WTO says, Tom Miles, Reuters  
News: US-China Trade Tensions Hitting Global Growth, Says WTO, Shawn Donnan, Financial Times
News: Trump to Explore Entering Pacific Trade Pact He Once Called ‘a Disaster’, Jordan Fabian and Vicki Needham, The Hill
News: Japan’s Finance Minister Says the Country Must Avoid a Bilateral Trade Agreement with the US, Reuters
Opinion: Brazen About-Face by Trump in TPP Policy Rethink, Shawn Donnan, Financial Times
Analysis: These Are Five Sticking Points to a New Nafta Deal, Josh Wingrove, Bloomberg Businessweek 
News: China’s Xi Announces Plans to ‘Open’ China, including Lowering Tariffs on Imported Autos, Everett Rosenfeld and Huileng Tan, CNBC
Report: China is Studying Yuan Devaluation as a Tool in Trade Spat, Bloomberg News
Trade: America’s Gripes with China Make a Deal Hard to Imagine, The Economist
News: CBO Outlook Tax Reform and the Trade Balance, Jacqueline Varas, American Action Forum  
Analysis: Get Ready for the Unintended Consequences of Trump’s Trade War, Peter Coy, Bloomberg
Analysis: IMF Chief Warns Trade War Could Rip Apart Global Economy, Chris Giles, Financial Times
News: Trump to Farmers Amid Trade War: ‘We’ll Make it Up’ to You, Quint Forgey, Politico
News: Asia Stocks Rise as Trade War Fears Subside, Alice Woodhouse, Financial Times  
Infographic: The Numbers Behind the World’s Closest Trading Relationship, Jeff Desjardins, Visual Capitalist 
Analysis: How to Ensure Africa’s Bold Free Trade Area Propels Industrialisation, David Luke and Lily Sommer, African Arguments

TWEET/FACTOID OF THE WEEK

GLOBALIZATION
Analysis: A Trade War Could Add to the Dollar’s Woes, Chelsea Dulaney, Wall Street Journal
Analysis: Qatar Treads Off the Beaten Path in Quest for U.S. Investments, Heather Perlberg and Mohammed Sergie, Bloomberg
Report: Is Climate Restoration an Appropriate Climate Policy Goal, Robert J. Lempert; Giacomo Marangoni; Klaus Keller; Jessica Duke, Rand Corporation
Analysis: Belt and Road Initiative: Strategies to Deliver in the Next Phase, Christine Lagarde, IMF
Opinion: The Smartphone and the Toilet, The Economist  
Opinion: How EU Milk is Sinking African Farmers, Emmet Livingstone, Politico  
Analysis: The Growing U.K. Economy Isn’t as Strong a It Looks, David Goodman and Andre Tartar, Bloomberg

WHAT WE ARE READING
Opinion: Economic Rights are Human Rights, Samuel Moyn, Foreign Policy
Analysis: Where are All the Female Economists?, Gemma Tetlow, Financial Times
Analysis: Portrait of Brexit: A Divided Nation Makes a Journey into the Unknown, Kitty Donaldson; Andre Tartar; Alex Morales; Charlotte Ryan; Jess Shankleman, Bloomberg
Analysis: Northern Ireland’s Brexit Problem, Henry Farrell, Foreign Affairs
Opinion: The Chinese are Coming! The Chinese are Coming!, William A. Reinsch, CSIS
Analysis: Europe’s Boom Reawakens the Ghost of Crisis Past: Debt, Patricia Kowsmann and Tom Fairless, The Wall Street Journal 
Opinion: How Could Facebook be a Force for Good, Katherine Milkman, Washington Post  
Opinion: Foreign Aid Makes America Safer, Vin Gupta and Vanessa Kerry, Foreign Policy
Report: Russian Markets Hit by US Sanctions and Syria, Henry Foy and Kartina Manson, Financial Times

UPCOMING EVENTS
April 16: Transatlantic Business Works Summit, US Chamber of Commerce
April 17: Digital Currencies: Implications for Central Banks, Brookings Institute
April 17: How can Governments Work With the Private Sector around Infrastructure, CSIS
April 17: Ukraine: Reforms Progress and Challenges in the Pre-Election Year, Atlantic Council
April 18: South Africa Moving Forward: A Conversation with Reserve Bank Governor Kganyago, Atlantic Council
April 19: Completing the European Project, Atlantic Council
April 20: Financial Inclusion: A Powerful Tool for Powerful Women, Atlantic Council

Your Newsletter Team:
Marie Kasperek, Associate Director, Global Business & Economics, Atlantic Council
Alexatrini Tsiknia, Intern, Global Business & Economics, Atlantic Council 
Zachary Coles, Intern, Global Business & Economics, Atlantic Council

Please send us suggested news stories, opinion pieces, publications, and upcoming events that you would like us to highlight! Email mkasperek@AtlanticCouncil.org with your ideas and suggestions.

The views expressed in this newsletter and linked external articles and content do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its sponsors.

© 2018 Atlantic Council

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