01/04/2016 (Agence Europe) - Public consultation on free-trade negotiations. In an information note published on Thursday 31 March, the European Commission announced the opening of a public consultation, to run until 3 June of this year, on economic relations between the EU and its two main partners of the Pacific zone - Australia and New Zealand - in the framework of preparations for free-trade negotiations (see EUROPE 11431, 11491 and 11499). The results of the consultation will feed into the impact analysis of the future agreements between the EU and these two countries, which is being prepared by the Commission. “Removing existing market access barriers [in these two countries] for goods, services, investment and public procurement would benefit the European stakeholders - manufacturers, service industry, traders and their workforce as well as consumers and regulators. At the same time, however, the EU agricultural sensitivities need to be taken into account”, it says. The consultation documents are available at: http://goo.gl/h20wbi . (EH)