New Zealand and Australia have reached agreement on a landmark Pacific trade pact to cut down trade barriers, boost tourism and raise living standards in the region, the governments say. Todd McClayThe deal, reached in Brisbane on Thursday, includes 12 Pacific Island nations and was eight years in the making. "Australia will ... continue to work to increase Pacific-wide trade, tourism and investment." It will also include a development package of more than $US55 million ($NZ78 million) to help create jobs and boost export capacity in Pacific Island countries, New Zealand trade minister Todd McClay said. The 12 Pacific Island nations participating in the deal are Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Kiribati, Niue, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

Source: Otago Daily Times April 20, 2017 06:45 UTC