The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative posted comments (here) on possible de minimis competitive needs limitation (CNL) waivers and possible re-designations of articles not eligible for Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) benefits because they exceeded CNL thresholds, as part of the executive branch's 2016/2017 GSP review. Comments were due at midnight March 22. The Trump administration is expected to make effective final decisions regarding the 2016/2017 GSP review by July 1. In another notice, the International Trade Commission said (here) that it won’t provide advice on withdrawn petitions that had requested CNL waivers for certain products under GSP, after USTR rescinded its request for advice on such petitions in a Feb. 17 letter to the ITC (see 1703020045).
U.S. and Lao officials on March 22 held the first meeting of their bilateral Joint Trade and Investment Committee under the U.S.-Laos Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) in Vientiane, Laos, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in a statement (here). Officials from the countries discussed the importance of quickly addressing key areas including digital trade, illegal logging, agriculture, sanitary and phytosanitary standards, intellectual property, automobiles, wildlife trafficking and labor, USTR said. Officials also reviewed Laos’ implementation of the World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation Agreement, of the WTO Information Technology Agreement, and of Laos’ WTO accession commitments, the agency said. The two nations also discussed opportunities to advance U.S.-Association of Southeast Asian Nations ties at the U.S.-ASEAN TIFA meeting on March 30. Bilateral trade grew more than fivefold over the past decade to $86 million, with U.S. exports increasing by more than 25 percent in the last year, USTR said.
U.S. Trade Representative nominee Robert Lighthizer vowed to engage with Canada over its "low de minimis level" and is “deeply concerned” about counterfeiting and piracy in China, he told the Senate Finance Committee in writing after a recent hearing (here). Lighthizer said he would consult with Congress and domestic stakeholders on developing a strategy to tackle U.S. export-related concerns with Canada's de minimis level of $20 Canadian dollars. He said an increase in the level could be a "significant issue" for U.S. bilateral and multilateral engagement with Canada. Lighthizer also cited potential negative the impacts of Chinese counterfeits on the U.S. economy, U.S. jobs, health, safety and national security. Lighthizer awaits committee advancement of his nomination to the Senate floor, after his March 14 confirmation hearing (see 1703150042). If confirmed, Lighthizer said, he will use all relevant trade policy tools, including the Special 301 report and “new procedures” provided under the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act to address Chinese counterfeits.
President Donald Trump appointed Stephen Vaughn to serve as acting U.S. trade representative and USTR general counsel, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (here). Vaughn comes from King & Spalding’s International Trade Group, where he advised clients on matters including the relationship between U.S. trade laws and World Trade Organization obligations. Vaughn also represented domestic steel producers in AD and CV duty cases.
Petitioners withdrew the competitive need limitation (CNL) waiver petitions from the 2016/2017 Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) Annual Review for the following products that didn’t surpass CNL thresholds for 2016, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said (here):
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has extended from Feb. 22 to March 8 the deadline to submit post-hearing comments on whether it should reinstate tariffs on a number of imports from the EU in response to alleged discrimination against U.S. beef exports, USTR said (here). Members of the U.S. beef industry during a Feb. 15 hearing pleaded with the interagency Section 301 Committee to follow through with the December-proposed retaliatory tariffs in response to the alleged EU discrimination, but representatives of the motorcycle, rayon fiber and confectionery industries cautioned against the move (see 1702150046).
China remains the “country of greatest concern over the past year, and it remains the single-largest manufacturer and exporter of counterfeit goods” globally, the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC) told Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in comments (here). Despite some recent reform on intellectual property rights enforcement, the National Association of Manufacturers (here) and the National Foreign Trade Council (here) also singled out China over continued issues. The comments were submitted as part of the USTR's annual Special 301 review on the global status of IP rights enforcement (here). China is the top source of counterfeit goods seized by CBP (see 1701170021).
U.S. Trade Representative nominee Robert Lighthizer committed to retire from Skadden Arps after nearly 30 years with the law firm, and pledged to divest his interest in 56 companies within 90 days of his confirmation for the position, according to filings with the Government Ethics Office dated Jan. 31. Lighthizer also vowed not to participate “personally and substantially” in any matter involving specific parties with which he knows the firm to be associated, either directly or through representation, unless he obtains legal authorization to participate, he said in a Jan. 31 letter to a USTR ethics official (here). Lighthizer may need a waiver to be legally confirmed, after he represented the Brazilian government in 1985, the first year he worked at Skadden (see 1701250061).
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is postponing from Feb. 28 to March 8 a public hearing of its Special 301 Subcommittee on foreign countries that “deny adequate and effective protection of intellectual property rights” or deny fair market access to U.S. citizens who rely on intellectual property protection, USTR said (here) (see 1612270008). USTR plans to publish the National Trade Estimate, then the 2017 Special 301 Report, on or close to April 30.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative on Jan. 30 sent a letter to all signatories to the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the TPP depositary, formally withdrawing the U.S. from the agreement, USTR said (here). “This letter is to inform you that the United States does not intend to become a party to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. Accordingly, the United States has no legal obligations arising from its signature on February 4, 2016,” Acting U.S. Trade Representative Maria Pagan said in the letter (here) to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand, which serves as the TPP depositary. The U.S. "remains committed to taking measures designed to promote more efficient markets and higher levels of economic growth, both in our country and around the world. We look forward to further discussions as to how to achieve these goals.” President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Jan. 23 that instructed the USTR to withdraw from the deal (see 1701230041).