Inside U.S. Trade - 01/27/2012

Camp Open To GPX 'Fix' Legislation, Urges Exhaustion Of Legal Appeals

Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) this week publicly expressed openness to considering targeted legislation that would allow the Commerce Department to impose countervailing duties (CVDs) on imports from non-market economies (NMEs), such as China, and thereby reverse a controversial appeals court ruling.1724 words

U.S., EU At Odds Over How To Move Forward With ITA Expansion Talks

The European Union and the United States are at loggerheads over how to move forward with an expansion of the tariff-cutting Information Technology Agreement (ITA) to such a degree that their disagreement threatens to scuttle the effort even before real negotiations are launched, sources said.1739 words

Mexico Holds Intense TPP Talks With U.S., Hopes For Kirk Meeting Next Month

Mexico is moving ahead aggressively in its quest to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations by holding a series of bilateral consultations with United States that started earlier this month and will continue in the coming weeks, while also engaging in formal consultations with other TPP members, according to a senior Mexican trade official.1636 words

Finance Plans Russia MFN Hearing In March, Obama Briefly Mentions Russia

Staff of the Senate Finance Committee this week made clear that Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) in early spring plans to move forward with controversial legislation that will allow President Obama to extend permanent most favored nation (MFN) status to Russia, thereby permitting U.S. exporters to benefit from the concessions Russia made in the context of entering the World Trade Organization.1193 words

U.S., Korean Officials To Discuss FTA Implementation This Week

Trade officials from the U.S. and South Korea will meet this week in Los Angeles to discuss the implementation of their bilateral free trade agreement, which was ratified in their respective legislatures last fall.249 words

U.S., Other WTO Members Begin Technical Work On Services Plurilateral

The United States and other World Trade Organization members interested in services liberalization are laying the groundwork for negotiating a plurilateral services deal, something that the United States in particular has advocated for in light of the impasse in the Doha round of global trade talks.1628 words

USTR Involves More Senior-Level Officials In Coordinating TPP Talks

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has decided to involve more senior USTR officials in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, reflecting the fact that the ongoing talks are a priority for the administration and that the United States and other TPP participants want to complete talks by the end of this year.788 words

U.S., Indian Officials To Meet Next Month To Work On Nuke Liability Issue

U.S. and Indian officials will meet next month in New Delhi in order to discuss issues related to India's civil nuclear energy sector, including whether there is a way to address U.S. worries over an Indian liability law that is holding back U.S. companies from investing in India.866 words

In Announcing Trade Enforcement Unit, Obama Stresses Fair Competition

In his State of the Union address this week, President Barack Obama announced a new task force that he said will fight unfair trade practices by countries such as China, and which sources said will focus primarily on deciding whether to bring new trade cases against that country, as previously reported by Inside U.S. Trade.1057 words

U.S., Canada Ink Two-Year SLA Extension Amid Calls For Strong Enforcement

The United States and Canada this week agreed to extend the 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement (SLA) without changes for two years beyond its current expiration date of October 2013, which U.S. and Canadian officials said would provide stability and predictability for producers and consumers on both sides of the border.1108 words

Canadian Minister Shows Willingness To Address Lumber Issues In TPP

Canadian Trade Minister Ed Fast this week signaled that Canada would be willing to discuss changing several Canadian forest sector policies opposed by U.S. lumber producers if Canada were able to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.975 words

Canadian Officials To Discuss TPP On Sidelines Of Meeting In Davos

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and other Canadian officials, including Canadian Trade Minister Ed Fast, were expected to discuss Canada's interest in joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, which is taking place Jan. 25-29.719 words

Japan Intensifies Consultations With TPP Partners, U.S. Meeting Unclear

The Japanese government is intensifying its efforts to meet with trading partners currently participating in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations in order to explore the possibility that Japan might join those talks.801 words

WTO Official Touts Enforcement Framework In Russia's Accession Deal

The World Trade Organization official responsible for accessions late last week signaled that member countries had doubts about Russia's willingness to uphold the basic principles guiding the institution and sought to address them by establishing an enforcement framework in Russia's accession package.935 words

USTR Holds Series Of Bilateral Meetings With Vietnam On Key TPP Issues

In advance of the early March formal negotiating round in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is holding several meetings with Vietnamese officials in order to discuss issues like market access for goods and services, with the hope that these will enable greater progress at the upcoming round.585 words

Kirk Signals Doubts On Reorganization; White House Begins Hill Briefings

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk late last week said he fully backs an effort by President Obama to reshuffle federal agencies handling trade into a new yet-to-be-named department, but signaled his personal doubts that Congress will give Obama the necessary authority to do so this year.784 words

News Briefs

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U.S., Mexico Launch Separate WTO Appeals In U.S. Tuna Labeling Case

The United States and Mexico have both launched appeals of a World Trade Organization ruling that found U.S. labeling requirements precluding Mexican tuna exports from receiving a "dolphin safe" label in the U.S. are in violation of international trade rules.1103 words

NGOs Push Back Against Business Efforts To Weaken Anti-Bribery Law

A coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) earlier this month pushed back against efforts by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to have Congress amend the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in a way that will provide greater protections for U.S. businesses from prosecution for bribery.640 words

NFTC: Trade Reorganization Proposed By Obama May Marginalize USTR

A former U.S. trade official last week criticized President Obama's proposal to move the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative into a new, as-yet-unnamed federal department, arguing that adding another level of bureaucracy above USTR would lessen the position's "clout" within the administration.750 words

Correction

The story "Business Critics Of Reorganization Oppose Relocation Of USTR" in the Jan. 20 issue of Inside U.S. Trade should have said that while Business Roundtable supported President Obama's general request for the authority to reorganize the executive branch, it has not endorsed the specific proposal to merge the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative with other trade-related agencies.64 words

Court Grants One-Month Extension For GPX Rehearing Filing Deadline

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) this week granted the U.S. government a one-month extension of a Feb. 2 deadline by which it must file a petition for rehearing in the controversial case of GPX International Tire Corporation v. United States.173 words

China Update

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