The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmstrom pledged to “rapidly” move forward in finishing negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), including through “enhanced” intercessional work, frequent formal negotiations and more minister-level consultations, USTR Michael Froman said in a statement Dec. 11, after his TTIP meeting with Malmstrom in Brussels this week. There's been major progress on TTIP "in the past year, notably since the G7 Elmau summit in June, when we agreed to accelerate work on all elements of the agreement,” Froman said. “We are fully committed to expeditiously reaching an ambitious, comprehensive agreement that promotes economic growth and jobs, strengthens our strategic partnership, and reflects our shared values.”
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced eligibility for 2016 "trade surplus" tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) for calendar year 2016 (here). USTR found Colombia, Panama and six members of the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA) eligible for the TRQ. The agency found Chile, Morocco and Peru do not qualify.
The U.S. delegation in Geneva asked the World Trade Organization to begin dispute settlement proceedings with China over tax exemptions for aircraft made in China, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in a news release (here). The USTR said China imposes, but hasn't published, a 17 percent value added tax on imported aircraft, while exempting similar aircraft made in China. China’s "measures appear to breach WTO rules prohibiting discriminatory taxation on the basis of national origin," it said. China's actions are inconsistent with the commitments it made when it joined the WTO, the USTR said in the consultation request letter (here).
The U.S. Trade Representative announced on Nov. 23 (here) the conclusion of the 26th Session of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, reaching agreement with Chinese government officials on areas including intellectual property rights enforcement, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. The U.S. and China agreed to “a number of IPR-related commitments that will facilitate much needed improvements in a wide range of industries,” including Chinese participation in a government-industry dialogue and the discussion of recent Chinese efforts on trade secret protection. According to a fact sheet (here) released after the talks, U.S. and Chinese officials also discussed the recent glut in Chinese production of steel and aluminum products.
The U.S. Trade Representative announced it will begin a country practices review of worker rights in Thailand to determine whether to suspend or curtail the country’s Generalized System of Preferences benefits as part of USTR’s 2015 GSP Review, it said in a notice (here). USTR also said it recently ended a country practices review of Philippines, also for worker rights, with no change to its GSP benefits. USTR will hold a hearing Jan 14-15 on its GSP country practice review of Thailand, as well as ongoing country practice reviews on Fiji (worker rights), Ecuador (arbitral awards), Georgia (worker rights), Iraq (worker rights), Iraq (worker rights), Niger (worker rights and child labor), and Uzbekistan (worker rights). Pre-hearing briefs and requests to appear at the hearing are due Jan. 4, and post-hearing briefs are due Feb. 12.
The U.S. Trade Representative is seeking comments by Dec. 18 on a recently-filed World Trade Organization challenge against U.S. antidumping and countervailing duties on certain coated paper from Indonesia (here). The WTO formed a dispute settlement panel in September to consider Indonesian claims that the Commerce Department improperly found certain countervailable subsidies, and the International Trade Commission did not have an adequate basis for its injury finding. Indonesia is also challenging a U.S. law holding that threat of injury votes in the ITC that end in ties are treated as affirmative injury determinations.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership was a "major focus" during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ministerial meeting in recent days, said U.S. Trade Representative Mike Froman while speaking to reporters Nov. 19 (here). The leaders of the 12 TPP members gathered to discuss the next steps at the meeting in Manila, Philippines, said Froman. "Each of them focused on the economic benefits of the agreement -- first and foremost, the removal of barriers to exports that will allow greater opportunity in each of the countries," he said. "From our perspective, that's the elimination or the reduction of 18,000 tariffs on U.S. exports, 18,000 taxes on our manufactured exports, our agriculture exports; also globalization of services markets in this region that will allow our service providers as well to participate in these fast-growing markets."
Some 19 products look set to exceed competitive need limitations (CNLs) for calendar year 2015 and lose their eligibility for duty-free access under the Generalized System of Preferences, said the U.S. Trade Representative as it announced the availability of new import data on Nov. 16 (here). The agency’s notice (here) also extended until Dec. 4 the deadline for submission of petitions to waive CNLs and keep those goods GSP-eligible. The deadline was originally Nov. 23 (see 1508180027). Products that may exceed CNL waivers in 2015 include the following:
U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman and Deputy USTR Robert Holleyman are currently attending Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Manila and will continue to participate in those talks through Nov. 19, the Office of USTR said in its weekly schedule. The two officials arrived in Manila on Nov. 14. Meanwhile, USTR chief agriculture negotiator Darci Vetter will speak to the American Sugarbeet Growers Association on Nov. 16, and the following day Deputy Assistant USTR Elizabeth Hafner will participate in the first council meeting of the U.S.-Armenia trade and investment pact in Yerevan, Armenia. USTR struck that deal with Armenian counterparts in May (see 1505070017). On Nov. 19, Vetter will travel to Guangzhou for the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade. Froman will head to Beijing for “bilateral meetings” on Nov. 20, and from Nov. 21-23, he and Holleyman will attend the JCCT in Guangzhou.
Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Jennifer Prescott, will participate in a meeting on environmental rules in the U.S.-South Korea free trade agreement from Nov. 10-11 in Seoul, the Office of USTR said in its weekly schedule. USTR Michael Froman will then speak with European Union Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 11. The U.S. and EU proposed a new set of market access and other offers in an October Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiating round (see 1510230017), and Froman met with European lawmakers in early November (see 1510300044). To wrap up the week, Froman will deliver a speech to the American Iron and Steel Institute.