Sixteen trade groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, PhRMA and BIO, asked U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to press Mexico to comply with its USMCA commitments during her trip to Mexico for the Free Trade Commission meeting.

Trade groups representing major exporters -- including the American Chemistry Council, the National Association of Manufacturers, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and agricultural interests -- are telling the Biden administration that they are disappointed that regulatory barriers to trade are not being addressed in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai brought up China's nonmarket approach to trade, and how it causes "critical imbalances," according to a readout of her May 26 meeting with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao.

The U.S. should deploy “targeted and responsible” trade measures to restrict Chinese access to sensitive technologies, not ones that cut off a broad range of transactions between American and Chinese firms, U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Suzanne Clark said during an industry conference this week.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, whose agency is negotiating three of four pillars of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, said: "We believe that this year we will be able to finalize the IPEF."

The EPA should exempt certain export activities from new proposed reporting requirements under a significant new use rule for per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), U.S. trade groups told the agency in recent comments. If EPA doesn’t exempt those activities, the proposed rule could disrupt chemical supply chains and other sectors that use PFAS, including the energy, instrument and machinery manufacturing industries, the groups said.

The Biden administration should "quickly" help the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association reach a new labor agreement to "ensure there is no disruption" to the operations of U.S. ports on the West Coast, more than 200 trade groups wrote in a March 24 letter to the White House. Because Marty Walsh left as secretary of the Department of Labor in February, it's crucial that a "new administration point person" be designated to help negotiations continue, the groups said.

Myron Brilliant, who leads the international division at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, asked Ambassador Nicholas Burns where the economic relationship with China is heading -- it's a trillion dollars worth of business, Brilliant noted, even with American businesses' concerns about discriminatory regulations and the effects of state-owned enterprises.

China's Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products held an export control compliance forum on Feb. 23, the Ministry of Commerce announced, according to an unofficial translation. Commerce Vice Minister Wang Shouwen said the Chinese government will look to further strengthen its guidance and assistance to businesses subject to export controls to safeguard their interests. He said the Chinese government actively backs international cooperation in export controls while promoting trade in controlled items.

A new set of recommendations previewed by a member of the Federal Maritime Commission this week could help carriers, ports, railroads and others better harmonize supply chain data and information sharing. Commissioner Carl Bentzel, speaking during a Feb. 15 Commerce Department advisory committee meeting, said he hopes to know this summer whether the FMC plans to move forward with a formal rulemaking.