Prime Minister John Key secured China’s backing for New Zealand’s bid to win a seat on the United Nation’s Security Council during private talks with the man who is tipped as next in line to run the world’s most populous country. That was the main diplomatic take from the three-day visit by Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping that winds up in …

Trade Minister Tim Groser has chalked up a victory in New Zealand’s long quest for a free trade deal with the emerging economic powerhouse of Russia. Let’s just call it “China redux”. The smart geo-politicking by New Zealand’s bevy of trade ministers and officials over nearly a decade has paved the way for this country to form a bilateral FTA …

Prime Minister Helen Clark believes the impact of the international food crisis is the key reason why the Japanese Government has agreed to a ground-breaking study on the benefits of a bilateral free trade agreement. Japan has been rocked by escalating prices for basic foodstuffs which has led to prime imported products like New Zealand butter being in such short …

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s dream is not about a future in which every Chinese will own his own car or be able to live in a posh apartment in downtown Beijing or Shanghai. It is a future in which every Chinese child will be able to drink two glasses of milk a day. It’s a vision that Wen confided in …

Chinese billionaire Zong Qinghou “firmly believes” the free trade agreement will increase New Zealand’s profile among Chinese entrepreneurs. Zong – boss of China’s largest beverage maker Hangzhou Wahaha based in the thriving coastal province of Zhejiang – says a lot of opportunities will open up between New Zealand and China as a result of the FTA. “Hangzhou is facing competitive …

FRAN O’SULLIVAN talks free trade with China’s Commerce Minister  Bo Xilai, the Chinese Commerce Minister – and in the judgment of some a man destined for the premier’s suite – has been quick to use New Zealand’s recognition of China as a “market economy” in negotiations with bigger countries. Since Prime Minister Helen Clark made her April 14 announcement, Singapore …

Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai has given a strong indication that New Zealand will stay at the front of the queue despite a flurry of countries seeking free trade deals with his nation. In an exclusive interview with the Herald, Bo said there were at least 10 or even 30 countries “who were willing to talk about an FTA with …

New Zealand is on track to become the first Western nation to strike a free-trade deal with China after the Government told Beijing it recognised its “market economy” status. Negotiations on a deal that will greatly improve access for New Zealand agricultural exporters to the vast Chinese market are expected to begin early next year. Unlike most other countries, New …

Should New Zealand move quickly to recognise China’s status as a “market economy” to strike an advantaged relationship with the world’s rising economic superpower? That question is not top of the agenda for the Seriously Asia forum in Parliament this week – but it is one of the goals up for debate. Access to Asia’s growth motor, and the concessions …

Hu Jintao’s calm face softened as he spoke poignantly of his greatest challenge since becoming President of China seven months ago. “I felt as if my heart was on fire.” He was talking of the Sars epidemic, which claimed hundreds of lives as the new Chinese leadership fought to bring “this scourge” under control. The virus originated in southern China. …