The American Chamber of Commerce in Korea reports that Korean Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk met on October 26, 2010 to address U.S. concerns over autos and beef as they seek ratification of the pending free trade deal. The Chamber adds that President Obama has said he would like to present a finished deal to Congress in early 2011.
In the October 28, 2010 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union, the following trade-related notices were posted:
Mexico's Diario Oficial of October 28, 2010 lists a notice from the Secretary of the Economy as follows:
The World Trade Organization reports that at the meeting of the Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices on October 26-27, 2010, 32 WTO members reported taking antidumping actions during the first half of the year (the European Union counting as one). A number of these actions were questioned during the meeting, and the members concerned were urged to follow WTO rules.
The World Trade Organization announces that at its meeting on October 25, 2010, the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) adopted the panel report on the U.S.-China poultry dispute (DS392). The panel found that Section 727 of the fiscal year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act, which prohibits the use of funds appropriated under that Act from being used to establish or implement a rule allowing poultry products to be imported into the U.S. from China, is inconsistent with Articles I:1 and XI:1 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT). (See ITT's Online Archive or 09/29/10 news, 10092953, for BP summary.)
During a recent U.S, China, and European Union consumer product safety summit, China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine Director stated that all nations should step up collaboration and share responsibilities to improve the safety of consumer goods. He said the three regulators agreed that improved training and management of product designers, producers, importers and retailers, and a comprehensive quality control system, were pre-conditions for product safety.
China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has announced that China will streamline its import payment verification systems from December 1, 2010 to better facilitate foreign trade.
China's Ministry of Commerce states that China welcomes the World Trade Organization's ruling that U.S. restrictions on Chinese poultry imports are inconsistent with WTO regulations. According to China, in 2004, both countries stopped importing poultry products from each other because of bird flu fears. China called off its ban when the H1N1 bird flu alert was canceled, but the U.S. did not. (See ITT's Online Archives or 09/2/010 news, 10092953, for BP summary of the WTO panel ruling.)
According to a senior Chinese trade official, China's annual overseas service trade is estimated to hit $300 billion in 2010, up 20% from last year. China states that it had the world's fifth biggest overseas service trade in 2009 and the momentum is likely to continue.
The Government of Canada issued the following releases on October 28, 2010: