The Commerce Secretary will lead a May 2013 trade mission to Sao Paulo and Brasilia, Brazil; Bogota, Colombia; and Panama City, Panama for export-ready firms in the infrastructure industries, including engineering, transportation, energy, and safety and security, the International Trade Administration said. The mission will include government and business-to-business meetings, market briefings, and networking events, it said. Up to 20-25 companies will be selected to participate. The ITA will begin to review applications immediately, and will evaluate applications March 8 and March 22.
The International Trade Administration is accepting applications for a trade mission to Bogotá, Colombia, for U.S. companies to increase exports to the country, said a Federal Register notice to be published March 11. The mission -- open to all U.S. companies with growing potential in Colombia -- will feature meetings with Colombian businesses, government officials, industry representatives, as well as U.S. embassy market briefings, the notice said. Applications for the mission, which will take place Sept. 9-12, can be submitted to the Department of Commerce from now through June 7.
The International Trade Administration is asking exporters of goods and services related to landfill standards (here), management of medical waste (here), and management of universal waste (here), to self-identify by March 19 if they are interested in participating in the agency’s U.S. Environmental Solutions Toolkit. Companies that submit their website address, contact information, and business category (as identified in the notice) will be identified on the environmental toolkit website. The environmental toolkit provides information to foreign consumers on solving environmental problems, as well as a catalogue of U.S. producers of green technologies. It also provides exporters with access to services, including market research; export counseling; and financing, the ITA has said.
The monthly trade deficit increased by about 16 percent from December 2012 levels to $44.4 billion in January, due to a drop in exports and an increase in imports, the Census Bureau and Bureau of Economic Analysis said in their U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services Report for January 2013. The report showed that exports decreased by $2.1 billion to $184.5 billion in January. Most of that decrease came from industrial supplies and materials, a $2.6 billion decline, the report said. Imports increased by $4.1 billion from December, to $228.9 billion in January. The majority of that increase -- $4 billion -- was also due to industrial supplies and materials.
The Foreign Trade Zones Board posted presentations on grantee responsibilities and best practices, and zone schedules and public utility, on the grantee section of its website. The presentation on responsibilities and best practices is available here, and the presentation on zone schedules is available here.
The Bureau of Industry and Security's Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee (RPTAC) will meet at 9 a.m. March 19, said a Federal Register notice scheduled for publication March 4. The committee advises the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Export Administration on implementation of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and provides for continuing review to update the EAR as needed. The agenda for the public session includes remarks, export enforcement and regulations updates, working group reports, Automated Export System (AES) update and public input.
The Bureau of Industry and Security issued a final rule Feb. 27 on editorial corrections to the EAR. The rule says the corrections do not affect license requirements. They also do not affect the Commerce Control List. It amends the EAR to update all reference to the BIS mailing address. A complete list of all additional changes made to specific parts of the EAR is below: