U.S. officials are pushing Trans-Pacific Partnership wildlife trafficking and "pirate fishing" rules designed to stem the flow of illegal goods from Africa and elsewhere globally, said U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman in a blog (here) following his recent trip to Gabon for the African Growth and Opportunity Act forum (see 1508230001). "While Africa is not part of TPP, these illicit goods pass through TPP waters, ports, and countries," Froman said in the blog. "TPP’s tools can help sever the connection between source countries such as Gabon and destination countries in the Asia Pacific, making illegal trafficking more and more difficult." Froman has repeatedly over recent months touted a tough U.S. position on wildlife trafficking and illegal fishing (see 1504150027).
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative asked industry stakeholders to comment on Russia’s implementation of its World Trade Organization commitments. The interagency Trade Policy Staff Committee will also use the stakeholder comments to craft its annual report on Russia’s WTO obligations, USTR said. The agency will also convene an Oct. 8 hearing on the matter. The 2014 report lashed into Russia for failing to meet the commitments it pledged when joining the WTO in 2012 (see 1412230061). In that report, USTR didn’t criticize Russian customs procedures, but tore into sanitary and phytosanitary restrictions on U.S. agriculture exports. Russia imposed a ban in 2014 on some U.S. agriculture after the Obama administration and allies sanctioned Russia over its involvement in the Ukraine conflict (see 14082620). Comments for the 2015 report are due on Sept. 28. USTR prefers stakeholders submit comments through www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2015-0015.
U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman recently asked for International Trade Commission analysis on hundreds of green goods in light of ongoing World Trade Organization negotiations on the Environmental Goods Agreement. That request follows USTR’s request earlier in August for analysis on a green goods pact struck between Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation members (see 1508250029). That goods list is likely to form the basis for the EGA, officials have said. But Froman requested analysis on far more products, ranging from animal and vegetable fats to refrigerators and freezers. A USTR spokesman cautioned that the agency is not endorsing the goods listed in the request. “This is a scenario where as a matter of course we cast a very wide net and list every product mentioned by the U.S. as well as any trading partner involved in the negotiation purely for informational purposes,” he said.
The 2015 review of the Generalized System of Preferences gives stakeholders the opportunity to petition for inclusion of previously-banned travel goods in the GSP program, said the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) on Aug. 25 (here). The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative recently launched that process through a request for petitions and competitive need limitation waivers (see 1508180027).
U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman discussed the Trans-Pacific Partnership with high-ranking officials from Australia, Brunei, Malaysia and New Zealand on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations economic ministerial in recent days, the Office of the USTR said late on Aug. 24. Absent from the USTR statement was any mention a meeting with Vietnamese officials, and the agency didn't provide further details on the specifics of the talks. Froman also pushed ASEAN parties to ratify the Trade Facilitation Agreement by the World Trade Organization's December ministerial in Nairobi. A number of important Asian countries, including ASEAN members, have recently pledged quick ratifications (see 1506150025). The WTO is aiming for TFA ratifications from two-thirds of members, the threshold for implementation, by the Nairobi ministerial. Only 12 countries including the U.S., have so far ratified (see 1508060016).
The Trans-Pacific Partnership should include a mandate that TPP auto, auto parts and light truck trade meets the 62.5 percent regional value content (RVC) threshold in order to qualify for the pact’s benefits, and RVC should ultimately top off at 75 percent, said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka in a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman. Trumka lashed into reports that the U.S. struck a deal with Japan for RVC rules of origin of 45 percent on autos and 30 percent on parts.
Curaçao is now meeting the customs criteria of the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act, and U.S. importers are now able to import eligible products from the country under the “enhanced trade benefits” of the CBTPA, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said (here). President Barack Obama gave beneficiary status to Curaçao under the CBTPA and the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act in late 2013 (see 13123024). The Harmonized Tariff Schedule is now modified to include Curaçao in a general note and a note to chapter 98. Curaçao now meets the criteria spelled out in the CBERA on verification of product origin, said USTR. The country formally qualified for the benefits on Aug. 18.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative kicked off a busy week as USTR Michael Froman departed on Aug. 22 for Beijing to discuss unspecified trade policy with Chinese officials. Froman spent less than a day there before then taking off to Kuala Lumpur to attend a high-level Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit, a USTR schedule said. Some experts have speculated the U.S. will participate in Trans-Pacific Partnership talks on the sidelines of the Kuala Lumpur summit (see 1508180058). Froman will stay in Kuala Lumpur until Aug. 24, and he will then travel to Gabon for an African Growth and Opportunity Act forum. Froman will then head to Paris on Aug. 28 to meet French officials there.
Poor infrastructure and inefficient trade facilitation are continuing to hamper the U.S. trade relationship with sub-Saharan African and those “supply-side constraints” are a far bigger challenge than remaining tariffs, said U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) CEO Dana Hyde in an Aug. 23 op-ed. The ten-year renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act in June is a critical move to maintain strong trade relations between the U.S. and sub-Saharan Africa region, but more U.S. partnership in infrastructure development will greatly benefit both African and U.S. exporters, said the op-ed, which appeared in Project Syndicate (here). “Making the most of AGOA will also require improvement in the infrastructure – physical and institutional – necessary for promoting investment and facilitating trade,” said Froman and Hyde. “The issues that need to be addressed include the lack of reliable, affordable electricity, high transportation costs, and weak and inefficient trade-related facilities.” The op-ed pushed Congress to give MCC “authority to pursue regional investments” in order to “help increase economic activity and promote regional integration.”
The International Trade Commission is readying to release a public report in late August on the effects of waivers on competitive need limitations for two Thai products in the Generalized System of Preferences, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said. USTR is giving stakeholders seven calendar days after the release of the ITC report to comment on its contents, said the USTR notice (here).