In recent editions of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:
The World Customs Organization issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The EU-Canada trade agreement will enter into force provisionally on Sept. 21 and remove "duties on 98% of products (tariff lines) that the EU trades with Canada," the European Commission said in a news release. The deal, known as the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, will take effect "fully and definitively, however, when all EU Member States have ratified the Agreement," the EU said. "The Commission will work with EU Member States and Canada to ensure its smooth and effective implementation."
The World Customs Organization issued the following release on commercial trade and related matters:
Members of the World Trade Organization Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) during an informal meeting Sept. 15 urged the U.S. to delink the appointment of new Appellate Body members from its concerns over the issuance of rulings by Appellate Body members whose terms had expired, according to a Geneva trade official. The U.S. on Aug. 31 blocked proposals to launch a WTO selection process to fill the two current vacancies on the seven-member appellate panel, raising issue with the fact that Ricardo Ramirez-Hernandez, whose Appellate Body term expired June 30, was still working on ongoing appeals proceedings. The U.S. had said that the DSB should start discussing how to handle the current challenges facing issuances of rulings before launching the selection process for new Appellate Body members (see 1708310008).
The World Trade Organization recently posted the following notices:
The government of Canada recently issued the following trade-related notices as of Sept. 18 (some may also be given separate headlines):
The government of Canada recently issued the following trade-related notices as of Sept. 15 (some may also be given separate headlines):
Canadian Ambassador to the U.S. David MacNaughton and Mexican Ambassador to the U.S. Geronimo Gutierrez on Sept. 14 expressed skepticism over U.S. consideration of applying a five-year sunset clause to free trade agreements, including NAFTA, with both saying it would create business uncertainty. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Sept. 14 said he and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer are currently advocating for the Trump administration to initiate such a policy (see 1709140042). For “a trade agreement like [NAFTA], one of the reasons you do this is to create an environment within which business can make investments,” MacNaughton said during a conference hosted by Politico. “And many of those investments, people look to twenty years, twenty-five years for a payback.” MacNaughton and Gutierrez said they would both be willing to discuss the policy with the U.S. in more detail during NAFTA negotiations. “Certainty is the key word here,” Gutierrez said. MacNaughton also predicted that U.S. businesses would push back against the idea. Commerce didn’t comment.
The European Union recently issued the following trade-related release (notices of most significance will be given separate headlines):