Felicity Roxburgh: International Business Forum Executive Director on the Future of Investment and Trade Partnership in Auckland

Hopes new pathways for global trade can be created as officials from small countries around the world meet in Auckland. 

Trade Minister Todd McClay's chairing the Future of Investment and Trade Partnership meeting tomorrow – bringing together delegates from 21 countries. 

It includes Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Panama, Rwanda, and Singapore. 

International Business Forum Executive Director Felicity Roxburgh told Ryan Bridge this group can tackle issues together. 

She says they can navigate tariff barriers and help create common certification. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Trade min is to Tom McLay hosting a global officials
for a big trade meeting on Friday. This is the
future of investment in trade Partnership Ministerial meeting. Chile, Costa, Rica, Iceland, Malaysia, Morocco, Singapore, Switzerland,
all going to be the total twenty one small medium
trading countries where we be represented. Felicity Roxburgh is International

(00:20):
Business from executive director with US this morning. Felicity, good morning.

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Good morning.

Speaker 1 (00:24):
Is this a big deal?

Speaker 2 (00:27):
This is a big deal for small countries. I mean
it may seem like an eclectic group we can read
out that list, but I think you know, we all
have something in common. We rely on global trade and
it's a really difficult time out there for a exporters,
So why not try to work together.

Speaker 1 (00:44):
How well are we working with these countries as it is?

Speaker 2 (00:48):
Well, this is a kind of a new mechanism and
it does things in a different way. So it's about
small countries deciding that they'll do something called pathfinding, which
in trade means they try or they innovate things and
if they work, then they try and attract other countries
to do the same things. But we do have some
of our best buds in this group as well. We've

(01:09):
got Singapore with whom we have a very strong trade relationship,
and the UAE is also another key partner for New Zealand.

Speaker 1 (01:16):
How much of this is about routes that are already
existing or routes that we know regular trading routes that
we can sort of leverage off. I mean Costa Rica.
How much trade do we do with Costa Rica?

Speaker 2 (01:28):
Yeah? I mean some of them are new, shall we
say new trade partners for US. I mean another one
is Rwanda Paraguay. So you know this this group is
not really just about market access. This group is about
focusing on some issues fly chains open, like tackling non
tariff barriers, doing paperless or digital trades. So this is

(01:51):
like having common certification within our markets. The idea being
that you know, we do have agency. We're not just defensive.
We don't just have defensive interest in this global environment.
We can work together as small countries.

Speaker 1 (02:06):
Good stuff. Nice to have you on the show. Felicity
Rocksborough has with US International Business Forum executive director. For
more from early edition with Ryan Bridge. Listen live to
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