CRS Says U.S.-Panama FTA Cannot Have Major Effect on U.S.
The Congressional Research Service has issued two reports stating that the circumstances framing the proposed U.S.-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement differ considerably from the Korean and Colombian signed free trade agreements that are being considered by Congress.
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According to the report, although particular industries could be affected by the Panama FTA to some degree, and U.S. investment is relatively important in Panama, the FTA cannot have a major effect on the U.S. economy as a whole because Panama trades little with the U.S. and most exports already enter the U.S. duty free.
(See ITT's Online Archives or 01/28/11 news, 11012826, for BP summary of a previous CRS report that the Panama FTA would have a small impact on the U.S. economy.
See ITT’s Online Archives or 05/17/11 news, 11051720, for BP summary on the Administration’s announcement that it would not submit the implementing legislation packages for the pending FTAs to Congress until it reaches an agreement with Congress to renew the expanded TAA.)
CRS report on Panama's political and economic conditions is available here.
CRS report on the proposed U.S.-Panama FTA is available here.
(CRS RL30981 and CRS RL32540, dated April 2011)