NZ considers China workers for trade deal
Afp, Wellington
New Zealand is prepared to consider increasing the number of Chinese workers in the country to help cement a better trade deal with Beijing, Trade Minister Phil Goff said. Goff told Television New Zealand at the weekend that China sought the increase as part of ongoing free trade talks. "We said that (the deal) might be on if there was a very ambitious offer from their side, in terms of allowing our firms to trade in services," Goff said. The numbers would be strictly limited based around gaps in the labour market. "It's about teachers of Mandarin, it's about people that are expert in Chinese cuisine, it's about people expert in traditional Chinese medicine," Goff said. During a visit to New Zealand last year, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said the free trade negotiations had run into problems in agriculture and services but he signalled his determination for the issues to be resolved.
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