USTR

“Big day of negotiations with China. They want to make a deal, but do I?”

The digital trade deal struck between Washington and Tokyo includes language similar to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement's, including provisions on information and communication technology goods, taxation and security exceptions, according to the text of the agreement released on Monday.

The China Chamber of International Commerce said on Wednesday that China has lived up to its World Trade Organization commitments and that the U.S. has improperly included the country’s implementation of dispute rulings, or lack thereof, as evidence of non-compliance.

The “ordinary meaning” of the World Trade Organization’s national security exemption and its negotiating history will show the U.S. invocation of it to justify Section 232 tariffs is a “sovereign right” that is not subject to legal review, the U.S. has declared in its first written submissions in several closely related disputes.

High-level trade talks between the U.S. and India are slated to continue this week as the two countries attempt to reach a limited trade agreement, though sources say gaps remain on issues including Indian price controls on medical devices and tariffs on information and communications technology products.

Guy Parmelin cited an hourlong meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.

A Senate Appropriations Committee spending bill approved this week instructs the Commerce Department to publish the non-confidential aspects of the administration’s Section 232 report on auto and auto parts imports and contends that the president cannot unilaterally decide to terminate the North American Free Trade Agreement.

President Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday inked a first-stage trade agreement on market access and an executive agreement on digital trade.