The U.S. will “continue sharing” the details of the Trans-Pacific Partnership with Indonesia and other countries across the globe that are interested in accession, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman told a U.S.-Indonesia investment summit on Oct. 26. His remarks (here) come three weeks to the day after the 12 total TPP parties wrapped up negotiations (see 1510050020). “Having just concluded the [TPP] negotiations, I know there is renewed interest in how TPP’s high standards might be expanded across more of the region,” said Froman. “As we’ve said from the beginning, TPP is intended to be an open platform to which other countries who are able and willing to meet its standards, can potentially accede. It’s a way of revitalizing trade liberalization and setting high standards, not just among the 12 countries, but more broadly, across the region and throughout the world.” In his remarks, however, Froman pointed out a range of trade barriers the Indonesian government continues to administer, from import licensing restrictions to localization barriers.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is poised to improve U.S. competitiveness in NAFTA by “tackling” Canadian trade barriers on U.S. dairy and poultry exports, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman told the Atlantic Council at an Oct. 27 event (here). Froman didn’t disclose details of the market access terms. Lawmakers and domestic producers have over past months threatened to oppose the pact without real Canadian concessions in those sectors (see 1504070006).

U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman will participate in the U.S.-Indonesia Investment Summit in Washington on Oct. 26, the Office of the USTR said in its weekly schedule. Froman will then deliver public remarks to the Atlantic Council on Oct. 27, while Deputy USTR Michael Punke meets with World Trade Organization chief Roberto Azevedo on the same day on the Environmental Goods Agreement. On Oct. 28, Deputy USTR Robert Holleyman will co-chair a U.S.-India working group on intellectual property, and the following day, Froman and Holleyman will lead the U.S.-India Trade Policy Forum. Also on Oct. 29, Froman will deliver remarks to a U.S.-Georgia trade summit. All those events take place in Washington. To wrap up the week and move into next week, USTR will then participate in the 10th round of EGA talks in Geneva from Oct. 29-Nov. 4.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is asking for applications to fill the roster of binational panels in the North American Free Trade Agreement designed to review final determinations in antidumping and countervailing duty proceedings and legal changes, the agency said in a notice (here). Approved applicants will sit on those panels from April 1, 2016 through March 31, 2017. The deadline for applications is Nov. 20. NAFTA provides for a roster of at least 75 individuals, at least 25 from each NAFTA party, for consideration on those panels, which NAFTA parties form to review an AD/CVD determination or statutory amendment. Panelists are generally private sector individuals with trade law expertise. Applications should be submitted electronically via www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2015-0017.

The U.S. is prepared to negotiate terms of future lumber trade with Canada following the recent expiration of the Softwood Lumber Agreement, a spokesman for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said on Oct. 15. “The United States is in close contact with domestic stakeholders and stands ready to engage with Canada to ensure fair and stable conditions for trade in softwood lumber that reflect current market realities," said the spokesman. The SLA lapsed on Oct. 12. The U.S. Lumber Coalition lashed into Canada’s alleged refusal to negotiate a renewal of the agreement (see 1510130010). A Canadian government official, also in recent days, criticized alleged U.S. reluctance to hold talks, according to Canadian media (here). The lapse of the SLA could pave the way for antidumping and countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber.

U.S. Ambassador to the World Trade Organization, Michael Punke, will participate in an Oct. 13 meeting with WTO counterparts on the Trade in Services Agreement, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in its weekly schedule. Later that day, Punke will meet in Geneva with Secretary General of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Secretariat, John Scanlon. On Oct. 14, USTR Michael Froman will join a presidential advisory council on African trade opportunities. The same day, Froman will meet with members of the trade advisory committees, and later Froman will deliver a speech on the Trans-Pacific Partnership to the New Democrat Network. Also on Oct. 14, Deputy USTR Robert Holleyman will give remarks to an International Cablemakers Federation meeting on the Obama administration’s trade agenda. To wrap up the week, Froman will speak at a National Foreign Trade Council event.

Three officials at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative are in the process of departing the agency, said a USTR spokesman and industry officials. The highest-ranking member of that departing squad, Acting Deputy USTR Wendy Cutler, will join the Asian Society Policy Institute on Nov. 2, that organization said in a release (here). "Wendy has worked tirelessly to open new markets in Asia for American workers and businesses," he said USTR Michael Froman in a statement. "I’ve been privileged and honored to serve with her for the past few years, as she helped lead TPP negotiations to a successful conclusion." Marisa Lago, a Treasury Department official, was nominated to formally take over the deputy USTR title, though Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, threatened to block the Lago nomination over transparency concerns (see 1508170017).

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative on Oct. 7 issued a Federal Register notice (here) announcing the results of its 2014 Generalized System of Preferences review. A Presidential Proclamation that took effect Oct. 1 implemented the results of the review (here), including the removal of the Seychelles, Uruguay and Venezuela from GSP eligibility, the addition of five upland cotton products to the program, and new and revoked competitive need limitations (CNL) waivers (see 1510010030). USTR detailed the results of its review in a document posted to its website (here).

The TaoBao online service of Alibaba should be relisted as a "notorious market," the American Apparel and Footwear Association said in an Oct. 5 filing with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (here) and a news release (here). While the agency removed TaoBao from the list in 2012, the company should be added again due to its continued peddling of counterfeit products, said the AAFA. "Unfortunately, delisting TaoBao in 2012 did not lead to sustained improvements to the counterfeit problem. In fact, it has gotten worse," the trade group said. "Increased pressure is needed to fix this problem. Otherwise, counterfeits will only continue to proliferate worldwide as Alibaba continues to expand." The AAFA has pushed hard for regulators to address the company's counterfeit sales in recent years (see 1504100012). "While we have engaged in a dialogue with Alibaba for the past four years, and extensively for much of the past year, we have had little success in convincing Alibaba to craft a program that will rid TaoBao of counterfeits," it said. The annual USTR notorious markets list identifies "select online and physical marketplaces that reportedly engage in or facilitate substantial copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting," it said.

The Taiwanese government has pledged to boost intellectual property protection and collaborate with the U.S. to “improve Taiwan’s investment climate,” the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in an Oct. 1 statement (here) following bilateral talks. The two countries share a trade and investment framework. Both sides pledged to expedite regulatory processing for medical devices and chemicals.