U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said Oct. 4 that he will quickly investigate the details of a financial package offered by the provincial government of Nova Scotia to a paper mill in Port Hawkesbury. His comments responded to a Sept. 26 letter from Rep. Mike Michaud (D-Maine), which asked the USTR to determine if the deal is consistent with Canada's North American Free Trade Agreement and WTO commitments. The situation could significantly affect Maine's paper mills and the jobs and small businesses they support, Michaud wrote. The USTR agreed that news reports have “raised troubling questions about potential injurious and/or WTO-inconsistent subsidies.” Kirk said his office will seek information from the Canadian government and that the U.S. will also raise the issue at meetings this month of the WTO committee on subsidies.

The U.S. and the Gulf Cooperation Council will establish a Joint Committee to discuss opportunities for enhancing economic, commercial, investment and technical cooperation, fostering their economic relations and increasing the volume of trade and investment between them, said U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk. The Framework Agreement for Trade, Economic, Investment and Technical Cooperation was signed in New York this week.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is seeking public comment on how to promote greater transatlantic regulatory compatibility, it said in a Federal Register notice set for Sept. 29. Both the U.S. and the European Commission want to reduce unnecessary regulatory differences and are seeking comments from the public on the issue, it said.

China's effort to promote "indigenous innovation" systematically favors products and services of Chinese companies over those of foreign companies, especially in the government and public procurement markets, the Telecommunications Industry Association said in comments on China's compliance with its World Trade Organization obligations that were filed with the U.S. Trade Representative. TIA also said piracy and counterfeiting remain high due to inadequate penalties, uncoordinated enforcement among local, provincial, and national authorities, and the lack of transparency in China's administrative and criminal enforcement system. Companies that are members of the U.S. Information Trade Office continue to be concerned about governmental interference in licensing agreements, they said. USITO was launched by TIA, the Software and Information Industry Association, and the American Electronics Association in 1994, in cooperation with the International Trade Administration. TIA also said: (1) China is aggressively implementing and utilizing technical standards to support development of key industries, especially the ICT industry. (2) USITO recommends that China pursue Customs modernization efforts, which are consistent with those of other WTO members. (3) China's current type approval process for telecommunications equipment is not sufficiently transparent and is burdensome. (4) China''s energy efficiency programs present challenges to foreign companies.

The U.S. Trade Representative set Oct. 13 as the date on which the equivalent amendments to textile and apparel rules of origin of the Dominican Republic-Central America-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) enter into force in all other CAFTA-DR Parties, it said in a Federal Register notice scheduled for Sept. 26. The changes are pursuant to a law signed by President Obama on Aug. 10 that also extended the third-country fabric provision of the African Growth and Opportunity Act and extended the import ban for Burma. The modifications apply to goods of a CAFTA-DR Party that are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after the date that the USTR determines is the first date on which the equivalent amendments to the rules of origin to the CAFTA-DR have entered into force in all other CAFTA-DR Parties, now set for Oct. 13. Further information: Caroyl Miller, caroyl_miller@ustr.eop.gov. (See ITT's Online Archives 12071912 for summary of the underlying legislation.)

The U.S. will contribute $150,000 to help developing countries participate in World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation negotiations. U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said the funds are in response to developing countries' request to update the assessment of their technical assistance and implementation needs. Needs assessments were conducted in the area of trade facilitation in 2007-2010, and in response to the request of some members, the WTO will be updating those assessments to reflect changes since the initial assessments.

Trade associations and companies asked that Chinese business-to-business e-retail platform Alibaba be added to the U.S. Trade Representative’s Notorious Markets List, in comments on the USTR’s out of cycle special 301 review. “Entrepreneurial U.S. manufacturers, such as Harmony, are heavily affected by the distribution of counterfeit products via Alibaba and Aliexpress,” said Hand & Nail Harmony, a U.S. manufacturer of nail polish. Harmony, the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), and the Business Software Association (BSA) all included Alibaba on their lists.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is seeking comments for the annual review of the eligibility of sub-Saharan African countries under the African Growth and Opportunity Act. USTR will consider the comments in developing recommendations on AGOA country eligibility for calendar year 2013 for the President. Comments are due by Oct. 12 via http://www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-.2012-0026. Further information: Don Eiss, 202-395-3475. Countries involved include Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Gabonese Republic, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zambia. Countries that were not designated as beneficiary sub- Saharan African countries in 2012 that are up for review are: Central African Republic, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Madagascar, Somalia, South Sudan, Republic of Sudan and Zimbabwe.

The U.S. requested dispute settlement consultations with the government of China at the World Trade Organization on China's auto and auto parts "export base" subsidy program, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said Sept. 17. The U.S. had earlier challenged China's imposition of antidumping and countervailing duties on more than $3 billion in exports of American-produced automobiles (see ITT's Online Archives [Ref.12070521].

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is seeking comments on China's request for the establishment of a World Trade Organization dispute settlement panel on countervailing duty determinations and orders by the Department of Commerce on imports of thermal paper and other products from China (see ITT's Online Archives 12062122).