The New Zealand – Thai Trade & Economic Relationship Bangkok Event Thailand

Join conjunction with an official visit to Thailand, the FCCT is pleased to have as our luncheon guest the Honorable Tim Groser, New Zealand’s Minister of Trade, Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister for Climate Change issues. Broadly knowledgeable on matters of international trade policy and diplomacy, Tim will discuss the bilateral New Zealand – Thai economic relationship as well as the prospects for economic integration in Asia-Pacific, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the ASEAN Economic Community blueprint and Free Trade Area.

Tim has served New Zealand with distinction in a number of capacities, including being New Zealand’s Chief Negotiator in the GATT Uruguay Round: the session that brought agriculture into the system of world trade rules for the first time and conferred substantial benefits on New Zealand’s economy.

He is regarded as one of the world’s leading experts on international trade. Prior to being elected as a member of Parliament in 2005 on the National Party ticket, he was New Zealand’s Ambassador to the World Trade Organization (WTO), and Chair of Agricultural Negotiations for the WTO, a post from which he was hailed as the driving force behind many of the WTO’s successful multi-lateral agreements. Tim Groser. Described recently as ‘the most powerful man in world agriculture’ Tim was personally responsible for brokering the final groundbreaking deal in a marathon session.

Prior to becoming Minister of Trade, Tim had held several important posts in government, including serving as a policy advisor to the Treasury, the Ministries of Trade and Foreign Affairs, and as a member of the Prime Minister’s Advisory Group. In addition to the trade portfolio, Tim is also Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister for Climate Change issues, a topic on which New Zealand has taken a leading role on the international stage.