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Forum aims to rejuvenate US trade ties

More than 100 business and political leaders from the United States and New Zealand are meeting in Washington as part of the third United States New Zealand Partnership Forum.

The United States Capitol building in Washington D.C.(Image: Corbis)

The forum takes place in Washington DC from 6 to 8 October, with attendees including Mike Moore, Jim Bolger, Congressman Cal Dooley, former US Trade Representative Susan Schwab, Wayne Boyd from Telecom, and Andrew Ferrier from Fonterra.

NZ-US Council Executive Director Stephen Jacobi says that despite the great progress made in the relationship between the two countries in recent years, the value of trade between them has grown more slowly than with the rest of the world.

“That’s effectively a declining market share,” Mr Jacobi says.

“This makes events like the Partnership Forum, which runs alongside more formal diplomatic channels, incredibly important.”

He says that New Zealand cannot afford to ease up in the active development of ties with the United States.

“Right now, both economies are showing signs of recovery. The Prime Minister’s visit to New York last week is further demonstration of how close we are. We have to keep this momentum going.”

More information:

www.usnzcouncil.org

www.nzuscouncil.com

13 October 2009