Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, January 10, 2011Footnote ¹

“We have recently marked seventeen years since the entry into force of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Since 1994, trade has blossomed, investment has increased, and all three countries have become more competitive. From 1993 to 2009, trade among the NAFTA countries has more than doubled, from $288 billion to $701 billion. Each day the NAFTA countries conduct nearly $1.9 billion in trilateral trade. The benefits of expanding trade have flowed to businesses, farmers, workers, and consumers.

As noted by our Leaders, we remain committed to “promoting the global competitiveness of our region” by fostering job creation and increasing the prosperity of our citizens. We look forward to the contribution that the FTC can make to the North American Leaders' Summit (NALS) in 2011.

When we last met in 2009, North America was struggling as it began to emerge from one of the deepest recessions in history. As our economies recover, we must continue to accelerate growth by making our economies more competitive, including by boosting innovation and creating new jobs in new industries. We recognize the NAFTA as a catalyst for our economic recovery as it provides the means for increased flows of trade and investment in North America.

Increased trade with each other and the rest of the world helps create jobs in our respective countries. Since all of the tariff cuts under NAFTA were implemented either on time or ahead of schedule, we are developing new and creative ways to increase trade. Today we agreed to a number of measures to reduce transaction costs, facilitate access to information, and eliminate barriers to trade. These steps aim to make North America one of the most economically competitive regions in the world.

Regulatory cooperation continues to be a top priority, as it has the potential to reduce costs to businesses and consumers by eliminating unnecessary regulatory differences. At the August 2009 NALS, our Leaders asked ministers to continue the work of reducing unnecessary regulatory differences by “building on the previous efforts, developing focused priorities and a specific timeline”. Therefore, the three countries have been working on reducing or eliminating unnecessary transaction costs to increase the region's competitiveness. This exercise reflects the commitment we have assumed to promote deeper economic integration in North America. We tasked relevant NAFTA committees, including the Committees on Standards-Related Measures and Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, to continue their work in this area and identify additional areas for cooperation.

Today we reaffirmed our commitment to enter into bilateral mutual recognition agreements (MRAs) that establish procedures for accepting test results from laboratories or testing facilities in the territory of another NAFTA country for use in the conformity assessment of telecommunications equipment. This will allow a manufacturer to test a product only once and then have the test results accepted in other NAFTA countries. We initialed today the basic terms of this agreement and asked officials to continue their work with the goal of concluding the MRAs by May 2011. We shall endeavor to find additional areas for further collaboration.

Updating the NAFTA rules of origin to reflect current sourcing and production patterns allows more goods to qualify for duty-free treatment under the NAFTA. In addition, simplification of the NAFTA rules of origin reduces transaction costs. We are pleased to note that the Working Group on Rules of Origin (WGRO) has reached preliminary agreement on a fourth set of changes to the NAFTA rules of origin. Annually, these goods are valued at approximately $90 billion dollars.

We will each undertake our respective domestic procedures for consultation, and we will aim to implement these changes in 2011. We have instructed the WGRO to begin work on technical rectifications to align the NAFTA rules of origin with the updated tariff schedules that will result from the 2012 amendments to the nomenclature of the Harmonized System. We have also directed the WGRO to explore the possibility of implementing a fifth set of changes to the NAFTA rules of origin.

We instructed the ad hoc working group of senior trade officials to work closely with their counterparts in the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) to identify areas of collaboration, such as trade flows of used electronics in North America, green buildings and greening North America's transportation corridors. The ad hoc working group has already provided valuable input on changes to the rules of origin. We are pleased to announce that goods that have a positive impact on the environment are part of this set of changes to the NAFTA rules of origin.

We asked the senior officials responsible for labor to continue to cooperate with their counterparts in the North American Commission for Labor Cooperation (CLC) to discuss specific strategies to improve the labor side agreement and its functioning, including the CLC's Secretariat. We will continue to work to improve coordination between our labor and trade ministries; to support the consultations on the Secretariat to identify the most efficient means by which its function under the NAALC can be carried out; and to implement a robust work plan of cooperative activities on labor matters of mutual interest.

We commend the work that has been done by the North American Steel Trade Committee (NASTC) in drawing attention to issues of importance to the manufacturing sector and promoting cooperation between North American industry and governments in areas of mutual interest. The work of the NASTC has resulted in positive impacts on this sector's competitiveness and demonstrates the importance of information sharing and policy collaboration in advancing the competitiveness of North American manufacturing. As directed by the FTC in 2007, the NASTC has undertaken efforts to identify specific barriers to intra-NAFTA trade in this sector, including in the area of permit requirements. Further to this work, Canada recently removed the fees for its steel import permits, and continues to focus on the ongoing implementation of a more streamlined import monitoring system, which will improve regulatory efficiency at the border.

Our three countries have cooperated closely to more effectively combat the challenges of IPR infringement, particularly in the context of piracy and counterfeiting. In 2007 we joined together with other countries to launch negotiations of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). We stand now on the threshold of an important achievement in the enforcement of intellectual property rights. We concluded negotiations this past November, and look forward to the prompt entry into force of this agreement.

We had a robust discussion on the experiences of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in North America. When such businesses begin to export, they are most likely to make their first exports to a NAFTA partner. We discussed ways to help SMEs take advantage of the export opportunities that the NAFTA provides. One of the main challenges that SMEs face is access to information. To address this, we released “Opportunities for Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises in North America,” a publication designed to answer fundamental questions about starting to export. This document will be available on each of our websites. One new source of assistance and interactive information exchange for SMEs is SBDC-Global.com. This website is currently being used by SMEs in Mexico and the United States and is being expanded to other countries in the Hemisphere. Canada is exploring the potential for its SMEs to access this network as well. We also instructed our officials to identify additional measures to meet the distinct requirements of SMEs that allow them to increase their export opportunities.

We are committed to transparency in trade negotiations. The negotiating texts of the NAFTA are documents of historical value and we recognize the level of public interest in them. Today we released the negotiating texts of Chapter 20 (Institutional Arrangements and Dispute Settlement Procedures) and will make the texts available through our websites.

In line with our governments' initiatives to promote accessibility, transparency and technology, we recommended that the three national sections of the NAFTA Secretariat explore a system for electronic filing and archival of documents, initially in Chapter XIX proceedings, through the development of a pilot project.

We recognize the importance of transparency and maintaining communication with all stakeholders. As we move forward on our agenda to promote competitiveness, increase prosperity and foster job creation, we will continue to use existing mechanisms for getting meaningful public comment, as part of our commitment to public engagement.

We welcome the “NAFTA Advisory Committee on Private Commercial Disputes: A 15-year Retrospective” report which documents the outstanding work that the Committee has done since its establishment in 1994 to increase awareness of, and promote the use of, alternative dispute resolution (ADR) as a means of resolving commercial disputes in the NAFTA region. We continue to see the use of ADR as an important tool in facilitating trade among the NAFTA countries.

We take note of the renewal of the Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) among the accountants of Mexico, Canada and the United States and encourage other professions to undertake similar efforts to foster trade in professional services in the region. Notwithstanding the coverage of the renewed trilateral MRA, Mexico will subject the implementation of this MRA to the definition and scope of territory of NAFTA Parties as agreed upon in Article 201.1 and Annex 201.1.

We are committed to the successful conclusion of the WTO Doha Development Agenda. We urge all WTO Members to demonstrate renewed energy and directly engage immediately with each other in across-the-board give-and-take negotiations to put the Doha Development Agenda on a path toward a balanced and ambitious overall outcome that opens new markets and creates new trade flows.

Finally, we agreed that Canada will host the next NAFTA Commission meeting.”

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, January 14, 2011Footnote ²

Today representatives of the United States and Japan concluded a two-day meeting of the U.S.-Japan Trade Forum. The meeting, which covered a range of bilateral trade issues as well as general trade policy issues, was chaired by Wendy Cutler, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Japan, Korea and APEC Affairs and Takeshi Yagi, Director General of the Economic Affairs Bureau of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Officials from other relevant U.S. and Japanese departments, ministries and agencies also participated.

U.S. officials raised bilateral trade issues, including concerns related to U.S. access to Japan's beef market, level playing field concerns related to Japan Post, and issues affecting U.S. access to Japan's automobile market. Japanese officials raised issues including the transportation of lithium batteries as well as implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act.

The two governments also exchanged information on their respective trade policies and related initiatives. The United States provided an update on recent developments related to the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement. Japan explained how it is following up on its “Basic Policy on Comprehensive Economic Partnerships” and also updated the United States on the status of Japan's Economic Partnership Agreement discussions with Australia, the European Union, and Korea.

A discussion on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was also held. The U.S. side provided an update on the TPP process and related issues, and the Japanese side explained its Government's position and recent developments with respect to Japan's interest in the TPP. The U.S. participants also provided a detailed overview of the U.S. approach under its past free trade agreements (FTAs) to highlight the level of ambition in some negotiating issue areas, such as market access and services, that the United States typically achieves in its FTAs. These issue-area discussions were purely informational and illustrative in nature. The U.S. Government also explained to Japan that its broad goals for the TPP exceed those which we have pursued in previous agreements.

No specific plans for follow-up meetings on the TPP were agreed. However, officials of both Governments agreed to continue to consult as appropriate and necessary.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, January 27, 2011Footnote ³

The Environmental Affairs Council (Council), established pursuant to the Dominican Republic–Central America–United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), held its fifth meeting today in Washington, D.C., to carry out its obligation to oversee implementation of and review progress under the CAFTA-DR Environment Chapter and to consider the status of cooperation activities developed under the Dominican Republic–Central America–United States Environmental Cooperation Agreement (ECA).

Today, each Council Member reported on his or her country's progress in implementing the Chapter and on the impact of environmental cooperation. The Council took note of the relationship that exists between the CAFTA-DR environmental efforts and other internationally relevant issues, such as, climate change, environmental governance and security. The Council also heard a report from the Secretariat for Environmental Matters (Secretariat) and in particular took note of and welcomed the increased number of public submissions as a positive demonstration of public participation in meeting Chapter obligations. Since January 2010, the Secretariat received 11 submissions regarding effective enforcement of environmental laws by CAFTA-DR Parties and published the first Factual Record completed under CAFTA-DR.

During this meeting, the Council decided to reappoint Mr. Jorge Guzman, of El Salvador, as General Coordinator, and Mr. Mario Mancilla as his Technical Assistant to the General Coordinator, each for another two-year term.

In addition, the Organization of American States submitted its “Second Evaluation Report: Monitoring Progress of the Environmental Cooperation Agenda in the CAFTA-DR Countries.” The results achieved underscore that increased trade and stronger environmental protection are mutually supportive.

Additionally, the Council was especially pleased to have the opportunity to interact with members of the public during the public session of the meeting. During this session, the Council met with representatives from civil society, including nongovernmental organizations, academia and the private sector to gain a better understanding of their expectations, concerns and interests with respect to CAFTA-DR actions and activities. The Council provided the public with information on progress in implementing obligations under the Chapter, and on important results achieved through environmental cooperation. The Secretariat also provided the public with information on the process for filing submissions on enforcement matters and on the status of previously filed submissions.

The Dominican Republic, Central America and the United States reaffirmed their strong commitment to work together to preserve and protect the environment through implementation of the CAFTA-DR Environment Chapter and Environmental Cooperation Agreement.

Statement by Secretary of the Treasury Geithner, February 7, 2011Footnote ⁴

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, February 11, 2011Footnote ⁵

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced today that the United States requested the World Trade Organization (WTO) to establish dispute settlement panels in two cases against China. One case addresses China's imposition of antidumping duties and countervailing duties on imports of grain-oriented flat-rolled electrical steel from the United States. The other case challenges China's discriminatory and restrictive treatment of U.S. suppliers of electronic payment services.

“We are troubled by the procedures and decision-making employed by China in its trade remedy investigations, which have now led to serious restrictions on exports of American steel. We also remain deeply concerned about China's continuing efforts to reserve its domestic payment card market for one state-owned enterprise, to the exclusion of American credit and debit card companies. In each of these disputes, USTR will be pressing to ensure that we obtain the trade benefits provided by the WTO Agreement, in particular the American jobs and economic growth at stake as a result of China's actions,” said United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk.

China's Imposition of Antidumping Duties and Countervailing Duties on U.S. Steel Imports

Grain-oriented flat-rolled electrical steel (GOES) is used by the power-generating industry in transformers, reactors, and other large electric machines. The two largest U.S. manufacturers of GOES are AK Steel Corporation, based in Ohio, and Allegheny Ludlum, based in Pennsylvania.

WTO rules permit Members to impose additional duties on imports of merchandise found to be sold at less than fair value—“dumped”—or to be subsidized, if those imports cause injury to the domestic industry. But, WTO rules also require Members to follow specific procedures and apply defined legal standards when they investigate these cases.

On June 9, 2009, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) initiated the proceedings on GOES from the United States. On April 10, 2010, MOFCOM imposed antidumping duties (“AD”) and countervailing duties (“CVD”), saying American steel had been dumped into their market and subsidized. MOFCOM imposed antidumping duties ranging from 7.8 percent to 64.8 percent and countervailing duties of between 11.7 percent and 44.6 percent.

China's antidumping and subsidy determinations in the GOES proceedings appear to violate numerous WTO requirements. In the U.S. view, these include the fact that China initiated the proceedings without sufficient evidence; failed to objectively examine the evidence; failed to disclose “essential facts” underlying its conclusions; failed to provide an adequate explanation of its calculations and legal conclusions; improperly used investigative procedures; and failed to provide confidential summaries of Chinese submissions.

The United States requested formal consultations with China at the WTO on September 15, 2010. The United States and China held consultations on November 1, 2010, without resolution of the matter.

“We have watched with growing concern China's resort to additional duties on U.S. exports. It is important to ensure that China is held to the WTO rules and so prevent any unjustified duties from affecting hundreds of millions of dollars of U.S. steel exports to China,” said Ambassador Kirk.

China's Treatment of U.S. Suppliers of Electronic Payment Services

Electronic payment services are provided in connection with the operation of electronic networks that process payment transactions involving credit, debit, prepaid, and other payment cards. These services enable, facilitate and manage the flow of information and the transfer of funds from cardholders’ banks to merchants’ banks. Most of the world's top providers of electronic payment services for credit and debit cards are headquartered in the United States.

Several hundred billion dollars worth of electronic payment transactions were processed in China in 2010. China's regulator of electronic payment services, the People's Bank of China, has issued a series of measures—dating back to 2001—that provide a Chinese domestic entity, China UnionPay (CUP), with a monopoly over the handling of domestic currency payment card transactions in China while excluding other potential suppliers.

China prohibits foreign suppliers from handling the typical payment card transaction in China, in which a Chinese consumer makes a payment in China's domestic currency, the renminbi (RMB). Instead, China has created a “national champion” in allowing only CUP to provide these services. Meanwhile, with regard to payment card transactions in foreign currency, like those involving Chinese tourists visiting other countries, China imposes requirements and restrictions that favor CUP over foreign suppliers.

The United States asserts that these market access restrictions and discriminatory limitations on foreign suppliers seeking to engage in the supply of electronic payment services violate Articles XVI and XVII of the General Agreement on Trade in Services. We believe that under the terms of its accession to the WTO, China should have fully implemented its commitments to remove market access and national treatment limitations in this service sector by December 11, 2006.

The United States requested WTO consultations on September 15, 2010, and those consultations failed to resolve the dispute. Once the panel is established, it would be expected to take between 12 and 18 months to complete the panel process.

“Removal of the monopoly that China has provided to China UnionPay would create significantly expanded business opportunities in China's huge and growing market for American suppliers of this essential service,” said Ambassador Kirk. “Opening up China's market, as China committed to do over four years ago, would create American jobs for the U.S. suppliers of electronic payment services, and a more efficient payment card system in China would be beneficial for both merchants and consumers.”

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, February 14, 2011Footnote ⁶

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the Government of Ukraine's Ministry of Economic Development and Trade are pleased to announce Ukraine's adoption of an Action Plan to improve the protection of intellectual property in Ukraine. The United States and Ukraine agreed to the Action Plan during the third meeting of the United States-Ukraine Trade and Investment Council, which was held in Kyiv, Ukraine in October 2010.

“I am pleased with the recent action taken by the Government of Ukraine to begin implementing the steps set forth in the Action Plan, which is now available on USTR's and MEDT's websites,” said U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk. “The enhanced protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights are a vital step toward improving Ukraine's business and investment climate.”

“The Government of Ukraine will take measures to enforce decisions on the protection of intellectual property rights, as provided in the Action Plan approved during the third TICA meeting,” said Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Vasyl Marmazov.

The U.S. Government and the Government of Ukraine will continue to cooperate in the field of intellectual property protection, as well as in other areas under the Trade and Investment Cooperation Agreement, to improve the investment and business climate in Ukraine.

In 2010, U.S. -Ukraine bilateral trade exceeded $2 billion, increasing over 70 percent from 2009 bilateral trade.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, February 14, 2011Footnote ⁷

“I am disappointed that Congress has not acted to extend Trade Adjustment Assistant (TAA), the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA), and the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP). These are important programs that support workers and help U.S. businesses compete in the global marketplace. As a result of this inaction, 155,000 Americans will go without the assistance they were promised under TAA to help retrain for a new job,” said U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk. “Farmers and workers in Colombia will lose access to the U.S. market just as they are recovering from severe floods. At the same time, the continuing absence of ATPA and GSP benefits raises costs for American consumers and businesses as well as farmers in some of the world's poorer countries.”

“We encourage Congress to extend these three programs as soon as possible and to do so for substantially more than a few months. We are committed to working with Congress to secure reauthorization of these essential trade programs.”

BACKGROUND

The Trade and Globalization Adjustment Assistance Act of 2009 (TGAAA) was signed into law by President Obama as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The law expanded benefits to workers whose jobs have been outsourced to foreign countries, including those in the service sector. It improved workers’ training options, made health insurance premiums more affordable for them, and created new benefits for trade-affected communities. The TGAAA also expanded the scope of the TAA programs to enhance assistance for adversely affected workers in finding new employment. Additionally, the program encouraged the type of long-term training necessary for jobs in the 21st century economy through an extension of income support, an increase in the cap for training funding, and access to training for adversely affected incumbent workers.

The objective of the Andean Trade Preference Act, enacted in 1991, is to promote broad-based economic development, diversification of exports, and consolidation of democracy. It is also intended to help defeat the scourge of drug trafficking by providing sustainable economic alternatives to drug-crop production in beneficiary countries. Colombia and Ecuador were receiving benefits under the program, but those benefits expired on February 12, 2011.

U.S. businesses and consumers benefit from the GSP program through cost savings on imports. GSP saved U.S. importers nearly $577 million in duties in 2009. Also, according to a 2005 U.S. Chamber of Commerce study, the program supports over 80,000 American jobs associated with moving GSP imports from the docks to farmers, manufacturers and ultimately to retail shelves. In addition to its benefits to Americans, GSP promotes economic growth in the developing world by providing preferential duty-free entry for about 4,800 products from 131 designated beneficiary countries and territories. The program was instituted on January 1, 1976, by the Trade Act of 1974.

Statement by Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner, February 19, 2011Footnote ⁸

Secretary Geithner. This was a meeting to set the G-20 agenda for this year of the French presidency.

G-20 Ministers and Governors met against a backdrop of rising confidence about the sustainability of the global economic recovery.

The recovery is advancing at different speeds. The IMF forecasts that emerging markets will grow by an average of 6.5 percent this year and expects growth in Europe and Japan to be 1.5 percent.

The U.S. recovery stands in between, with growth gathering momentum and inflation risks modest, but with unemployment still far too high.

The global recovery faces several major challenges in the near term. A few observations on each:

First, we welcome the progress European officials are making to strengthen and redesign the financial mechanisms put in place to support economic reform. European leaders have made it clear they will do whatever it takes to make sure the nations affected and their banks have access to financing as they implement these very challenging, multi-year programs of fiscal and financial reform.

Second, the largest emerging market economies are facing the usual pressures associated with strong growth. Inflation is accelerating. The prospect of future growth is naturally attracting foreign investment, putting upward pressure on exchange rates. Emerging market economies with flexible exchange rates have seen substantial appreciation. The upward pressure on those exchange rates is being accentuated by the fact that other major emerging markets are holding their exchange rates at undervalued levels and tightly limiting capital inflows, which serves to exacerbate price pressures within their own economies and shift the burden of adjustment to others.

Third, rising global commodity prices—including for food and oil—are causing hardship in many parts of the world. The IMF estimates that commodity prices increased 20 to 30 percent in 2010. This has a serious impact on inflation and the living standards of the lowest income groups in emerging markets, where food and fuel tend to comprise a larger share of consumption.

An effective response requires increasing long-term investments in agriculture in low-income countries, through mechanisms such as the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program. This program is designed to raise agricultural productivity and improve rural infrastructure to help farmers connect to markets. We also support measures to limit the potential for market abuse and price manipulation through increased transparency and oversight of commodity markets and the associated derivatives markets. And these pressures on global commodity prices will be reduced as the rapidly growing emerging economies act to tighten policy.

Fourth, the durability of the expansion will depend in part on the ability of advanced economies to deliver credible multi-year reforms to restore fiscal sustainability, including in the United States. G-20 Leaders committed in Toronto last June to halve fiscal deficits by 2013 and to stabilize debt-to-GDP ratios by 2016. The budget that President Obama submitted to Congress this past week meets these commitments, while protecting the key investments in education, infrastructure, and innovation necessary to strengthen future economic growth.

Beyond these immediate challenges, we will be continuing to build consensus on reforms to make global growth more sustainable and the global financial system more stable in the future. There are a lot of ideas on the table for reform. We believe the most promising and important areas for progress are the following:

First, the world needs to establish stronger norms for exchange rate policies that will help accommodate the changes in economic forces ahead for the global economy. There is broad consensus that the major economies, not just Europe, Japan and the United States, but also the large emerging economies need to allow their exchange rates to adjust in response to market forces.

Since June 2010, China's authorities have allowed their currency to appreciate against the dollar at a pace of about six percent a year in nominal terms, and more than ten percent a year in real terms, given faster inflation in China than in the United States.

Nonetheless, China's currency remains substantially undervalued, and its real effective exchange rate—the best measure to judge its currency against all of its trading partners—has not moved much in this latest period of exchange rate reform.

Second, we need a better set of incentives to promote external sustainability and reduce the risk of the re-emergence of large trade and current account imbalances.

We are moving gradually to build consensus on ways to assess measures and causes of external imbalances. This is the necessary foundation for effective international cooperation on policy actions that can help pre-empt or diffuse such imbalances. This process will take time, but it will happen because all countries, particularly the emerging economies in the G-20, have a strong interest in reducing the risk that their future growth and financial stability is undermined by large global imbalances.

Third, we need a stronger consensus on policy measures that can help emerging economies manage the risks that can come with large flows of capital. These economies have very substantial investment needs, and many are seeing very substantial inflows of foreign capital.

The challenge is to reduce the risk that these flows contribute to excess growth in credit or asset prices, and leave the domestic financial system vulnerable to exchange rate risk. This requires carefully designed prudential measures in the financial sector, as a complement to the classic mix of monetary and fiscal restraint and flexibility in the nominal exchange rate.

Finally, a more stable international monetary system requires stronger oversight of the major global financial institutions and markets. We have agreed to impose tougher restraints on risk taking and leverage, to bring oversight to the derivatives markets, and to improve our capacity to contain the damage caused by the failure of large financial institutions.

This is a very complicated undertaking, and we need to be very careful to make sure we create a more level playing field across countries so that financial activity does not migrate to jurisdictions where standards are weaker or less rigorously applied. We also need to provide participants with as much clarity as we can about the reforms so that the markets have time and opportunity to adjust to them.

These priorities for international monetary reform require agreements on principles, norms and standards for behavior, as well as stronger incentives for encouraging countries to observe those standards. The IMF has to play a central role in this process, providing independent and public assessments of progress toward these objectives.

The stability of the international monetary system depends largely on the policies of national governments. Most of the key reforms that we need to build a more robust and resilient global economy are in our own hands. But we have to move together. And the G-20 has a critical role to play in establishing norms and cooperation that will help produce more balanced and therefore more sustainable economic growth and more stable financial systems.

Before I conclude, I want to emphasize, in view of the historic events of the last few weeks in North Africa, the commitment of the United States to work with the international community to help support a peaceful and orderly transition in Egypt and Tunisia and support the economic reforms necessary to promote broader gains in living standards. I know that commitment is shared by the G-20.

Thank you.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, February 23, 2011Footnote ⁹

Anabel González, Minister of Foreign Trade of Costa Rica; Marcelo Puello Vice Minister of Dominican Republic; Héctor Miguel Antonio Dada Hirezi, Minister of Economy for El Salvador; Raúl Trejo Esquivel Vice Minister of Integration and Foreign Trade for Guatemala; José Francisco Zelaya, Secretary of State, Offices of Industry and Commerce for Honduras; Orlando Solórzano Delgadillo, Minister of Development, Industry and Commerce for Nicaragua; and Ambassador Miriam E. Sapiro, Deputy Trade Representative for the United States are pleased to release the following Joint Statement, highlighting the work accomplished at the first meeting of the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States (CAFTA-DR) Free Trade Commission held on February 22–23, 2011, in San Salvador, El Salvador.

Increasing Trade and Investment under CAFTA-DR

On March 1, the CAFTA-DR will complete its 5th year since first implementation. It has yielded positive results for all seven trading partners and has contributed to significant increases in trade and investment among our countries. When we signed the CAFTA-DR Agreement in 2004, we committed to promote economic growth and prosperity, expand trade and investment opportunities, and intensify regional integration and competitiveness. Much has been achieved, but there is more work to be done and we stand ready to meet this challenge.

At the CAFTA-DR Free Trade Commission (FTC) meeting today, we celebrated the five year anniversary since El Salvador and the United States implemented the Agreement. Despite the economic challenges faced by the global economy in recent years, total (two way) trade between the United States and the Central American partners and the Dominican Republic grew from $35 billion in 2005 prior to the implementation of the agreement to $48 billion in 2010. Intra-regional trade among the Central American countries and the Dominican Republic increased from $4.2 billion to over $6.3 billion over the same period. Foreign investment flows in the region are even more remarkable. The average annual investment inflows into the Central American countries and the Dominican Republic in the first four years of the Agreement were $6.3 billion, or 123 percent higher than the $2.8 billion annual average during 2000–2005 before implementation.

We have reviewed the trade and economic impact of the Agreement and underscored the importance of ensuring its effective implementation among our countries. We discussed the key role that the CAFTA-DR Agreement plays in facilitating sustainable, broad-based economic growth in our region, and acknowledged that such sustained economic growth depends on making the types of policy and institutional changes contained in the CAFTA-DR Agreement. The Agreement has been an important catalyst in facilitating our competitiveness in the new global environment.

Expanding and Broadening Benefits

While we recognize the economic benefits of increased trade and investment under CAFTA-DR and the importance to all of our countries of continued commitment to its implementation, we also discussed remaining challenges to enhance the effectiveness and new opportunities to further enhance trade in the region.

The CAFTA-DR Agreement is designed to boost long-term growth and reduce poverty and the goal has been bolstered by trade capacity building assistance from the multilateral donors and the United States. The ability for our importers, exporters, and producers to take full advantage of the opportunities is critical to the success of the Agreement and the region.

Trade Facilitation

The CAFTA-DR Agreement includes a Committee on Trade Capacity Building in recognition of the importance of such assistance in promoting economic growth, reducing poverty, and taking full opportunity of liberalized trade. In the region, such assistance is aimed at expanding the benefits to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), facilitate rural diversification, and improve customs procedures, among other things.

To expand and broaden the benefits of the Agreement and support jobs in our respective countries, we agreed to cooperate on several new initiatives. We endorsed a regional trade facilitation initiatives to foster greater regional integration, enhance competitiveness and expand the benefits of the trade agreement, with special attention to promoting greater participation by SMEs.

We welcomed the inventory of trade facilitation projects prepared with the support of the Inter-American Development Bank, which will facilitate future discussions and activities. We thanked the Inter-American Development Bank for the valuable support that it has provided thus far as part of this phase and we requested their continued support as we move forward with the second phase of this effort. Therefore, we instructed our senior officials to undertake a process of consultation with stakeholders and self assessments to identify remaining challenges and to share best practices, including policies, programs and practices that countries can adopt to facilitate trade.

We have identified initial cooperative actions in the context of the CAFTA-DR Trade in Goods and Technical Barriers to Trade Committees to be implemented in the short term. We look forward to identifying further cooperative endeavors and to receiving a report on progress at the next Free Trade Commission meeting.

Recognizing the essential role that SMEs play in creating jobs in all of our countries, we discussed ways to help SMEs take advantage of the export opportunities that the Agreement provides. One of the challenges that SMEs face is access to relevant information on the opportunities that the Agreement offers and how to pursue these opportunities. To help address this, we released a brochure entitled “Frequently Asked Questions About Opportunities for Small Businesses to Export in the CAFTA-DR Region,” a publication designed to answer basic questions for firms that are considering exporting for the first time. This document will be available on each of our websites in both Spanish and English.

El Salvador presented information on its experience in establishing Development Centers for Micro- and Small-Businesses as a potential model for strengthening SMEs. We endorsed sharing country best practices for supporting small businesses which seek to engage in trade. We discussed the establishment of Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) in the region, with the goal of linking to an online trade assistance and information portal for SBDC centers and small businesses in the United States at SBDCglobal.com. We instructed our senior officials to further explore these and other activities to foster greater participation of SMEs in CAFTA-DR trade. We have also requested those entities responsible for SMEs in each of our countries to meet to explore regional projects and approaches to advance this initiative.

We also welcomed the support and assistance of the Inter-American Development Bank in developing a CAFTA-DR textile and apparel sourcing directory to enhance communication and sourcing between buyers and manufacturers within the region. This collaborative effort among governments and industry in the region aims to encourage integrated supply chains, and to grow regional textiles trade and assist producers to capitalize on the benefits of the Agreement and increase regional competitiveness.

Implementation of the Agreement

We reaffirmed our obligation and shared goal of effective implementation of the Agreement, which is critical to making our economies more competitive and creating new opportunities for our businesses, farmers, ranchers, workers and consumers. We want to see the CAFTA-DR Agreement succeed in fostering job creation and increase the economic prosperity of all of our citizens.

We reviewed the reports of the Trade in Goods Committee, the Technical Barriers to Trade Committee, and reports of the informal meetings of the Committee on Agricultural Trade and the Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Matters. These committees constitute an essential tool to ensure that stakeholders in all our countries benefit from the opportunities created by the Agreement.

Recognizing the critical importance of trade in agricultural products and the jobs and workers that are sustained by agriculture in all our countries, we formally established the Committees on Agricultural Trade and Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Matters as required by the Agreement. These committees will lead the way in promoting cooperation and communication between our countries on the implementation of our obligations so that our respective agricultural sectors can realize fully the opportunities offered by the CAFTA-DR Agreement.

We approved a series of changes to the Agreement's rules-of-origin for textile and apparel goods that will facilitate regional trade and integration. These changes will expand opportunities under the CAFTA-DR Agreement and encouraging a vibrant textile and apparel supply chain in the Western Hemisphere to effectively face the challenge that Asian competitors represent. We also agreed to increase the cumulation limits to encourage greater integration of regional production through limited reciprocal duty-free access with Mexico and Canada to be used in Central American and Dominican Republic apparel, as called for under the Agreement.

We established four rosters of potential panelists for disputes that may arise under the Agreement concerning general matters, as well as under the labor or environment chapters or financial services provisions of the Agreement. We also established model rules of procedure for dispute settlement panels and a code of conduct for panelists to guide dispute settlement proceedings under the Agreement.

We welcomed the reports and commend the work of the Labor Council, the Environmental Council and the Trade Capacity Building Committee. We recognize the importance of transparency and maintaining communication with all stakeholders. We will continue to use existing mechanisms for receiving meaningful public comment as part of our commitment to engagement with stakeholders.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, February 28, 2011Footnote ¹⁰

“The United States is deeply disappointed in China's decision to request consultations. Members have called for the United States to come into compliance with the WTO rulings on zeroing. In December, the Department of Commerce issued a proposal to end zeroing in administrative reviews, the core issue on which the Government of China has today requested consultations,” said spokeswoman Nefeterius McPherson. “Nonetheless, China has determined to pursue consultations even as the United States is in the midst of its domestic legal and administrative compliance process, including consultations with Congress. The decision now by China to pursue new claims against the United States on zeroing only complicates resolution of this issue.”

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, March 2, 2011Footnote ¹¹

On February 23, the Office of the United States Trade Representative announced a number of changes to the Dominican Republic–Central America–United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) at the Free Trade Commission meeting in San Salvador, El Salvador in order to promote U.S. and regional jobs and export opportunities. These changes will advance regional trade and economic integration in the textile and apparel sector, which is very important to regional production and employment.

The changes will also expand opportunities under the CAFTA-DR and encourage a vibrant textile and apparel supply chain in the Western Hemisphere to effectively face the challenge of competitors in Asia. Among the changes of particular significance is the clarification that certain monofilament sewing thread is now required to originate or be produced in the United States or the CAFTA-DR region in order for goods to qualify for preferential tariff treatment.

This type of sewing thread, while increasingly used within the apparel industry, had been omitted from the requirements of the original agreement. The sewing thread industry in the United States supports hundreds of jobs at technically sophisticated facilities such as Unifi Manufacturing, Inc. in North Carolina and Milliken & Company in South Carolina. With this change, these jobs, which had been at risk, will now have the potential to grow as regional usage of sewing thread increases. The other changes relate to the treatment of certain nightwear, as well as the “short supply” list in the CAFTA-DR and how several products are treated in the context of that list, including elastomeric yarns, knit waistbands and knit-to-shape components.

At the Free Trade Commission meeting, participants also agreed to increase the cumulation limits to encourage greater integration of regional production through limited reciprocal duty-free access with Mexico and potentially Canada to be used in Central American and Dominican Republic apparel, as called for under the CAFTA-DR.

The annual limits for cumulation were increased to account for the inclusion of the Dominican Republic, as provided for under the Agreement. These limits allow specific quantities of designated apparel products to enter the United States from Central America and the Dominican Republic containing inputs from Mexico and potentially Canada. The agreed changes will take effect once approved by each government party to the CAFTA-DR Agreement.

U.S. exports of textiles and apparel to the CAFTA-DR region grew by 25 percent in 2010, exceeding the growth to the world at 19 percent. The CAFTA-DR region is the third largest export market for U.S. textile and apparel products, behind NAFTA trading partners. This market represented approximately $3 billion in exports in 2010. Exports to the CAFTA-DR region comprised 16 percent of total U.S. textile and apparel exports. U.S. imports of textiles and apparel from the CAFTA-DR region grew 14 percent in value in 2010, reaching $7 billion. CAFTA-DR is the second largest supplier of textiles and apparel after China, moving from third place behind Vietnam last year.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, March 11, 2011Footnote ¹²

The Office of the United States Trade Representative issued a brief public statement today following the release of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body report in a dispute brought by China concerning antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) measures applied by the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) to a range of Chinese imports:

“I am deeply troubled by this report,” said United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk. “It appears to be a clear case of overreaching by the Appellate Body. We are reviewing the findings closely in order to understand fully their implications.”

BACKGROUND

China initiated a WTO dispute settlement proceeding against the United States in September 2008. China challenged AD and CVD measures imposed by Commerce on certain new pneumatic off-the-road tires, laminated woven sacks, circular welded pipe, and light-walled rectangular pipe and tube. China argued that the concurrent application of AD duties determined using a non-market economy methodology and CVDs on the same products, as well as a number of determinations Commerce made during its CVD investigations, are inconsistent with WTO rules. In October 2010, a WTO panel rejected nearly all of China's claims.

China appealed the panel report and asked the WTO Appellate Body to reverse a number of the panel's findings. The Appellate Body agreed with a number of China's claims, and reversed the panel's finding that Commerce's concurrent application of AD duties determined using a non-market economy methodology and CVDs on the same products was not inconsistent with WTO rules. The Appellate Body also reversed the panel's interpretation of the term “public body” and found that Commerce's determination that certain Chinese state-owned enterprises are “public bodies” that provide subsidies was inconsistent with the SCM Agreement. The Appellate Body upheld Commerce's “public body” determinations with respect to certain state-owned commercial banks. The Appellate Body also upheld Commerce's use of benchmarks from outside of China to measure the “benefit” of certain subsidies, though the Appellate Body found that the panel failed to properly analyze the benchmark Commerce used to measure the benefit of government-provided loans. Finally, the Appellate Body affirmed Commerce's determination that certain subsidies were “specific” to a particular industry.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative will continue to review the Appellate Body report and will work with Commerce to determine the appropriate response to the adverse findings. The WTO Dispute Settlement Body is expected to adopt the Appellate Body report and the panel report within the next 30 days.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, March 13, 2011Footnote ¹³

Today senior officials from the 21 member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum concluded their first meeting during the 2011 U.S. APEC host year. At this meeting in Washington, they made progress toward building a seamless regional economy in the Asia-Pacific by discussing practical and concrete ways to strengthen regional economic integration and expand trade, promote green growth, and advance regulatory cooperation and convergence.

Officials addressed next generation trade and investment issues, including improving supply chain performance and innovation and trade in technology. They also agreed to identify and address the most onerous barriers faced by small- and medium-sized businesses trading in the region.

To promote green economic growth, APEC members discussed how best to address non-tariff measures that affect trade in environmental goods, streamline import procedures for advanced technology demonstration automobiles, facilitate trade in remanufactured products, and combat trade in illegal logging.

To advance regulatory cooperation and convergence, the senior officials supported U.S. proposals to work to strengthen the implementation of good regulatory practices and improve the effectiveness of APEC's regulatory cooperation activities. APEC economies also agreed to address issues that have the potential to act as barriers to trade in emerging green technologies, including smart grid technology.

We will look to further advance all these issues during the next set of APEC Senior Officials meetings, which will lead up to the APEC 2011 Trade Ministers Meeting, in May in Big Sky, Montana, hosted by U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk.

Press Release from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, March 22, 2011Footnote ¹⁴

At the conclusion of President Obama's visit to Chile, he announced USTDA's support for two new programs that will support closer economic cooperation and that represent tangible export opportunities for U.S. companies. At the end of March, USTDA will host a delegation of Chilean water officials in the United States in order for them to observe the design, manufacture and operation of U.S. products and services that can help them expand water desalination facilities. This visit is timed to position U.S. firms to take advantage of upcoming investments that Chile intends to make to expand access to water.

In addition, the President announced USTDA's support for assisting Chile to adopt new aviation safety technologies to meet increased air traffic demand. The grant was awarded to Chile's Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil (Civil General Aviation Directorate, DGAC) to assist in developing a modernization plan that will identify technology options for improving aviation safety in the airspace between the airports of Cochrane and Puerto Montt in Southern Chile.

The $623,000 grant was conferred during a signing ceremony held at DGAC's headquarters in Santiago, Chile. USTDA Regional Director Nathan Younge and DGAC Director General Jaime Alarcon Perez signed the grant agreement on behalf of the U.S. and Chilean governments, respectively.

“…I believe Latin America is only going to become more important to the United States, especially to our economy. Trade between the United States and Latin America has surged. We buy more of your products, more of your goods than any other country, and we invest more in this region than any other country,” stated President Obama at Palacio de La Moneda Cultural Center, Santiago, Chile.

For instance, we export more than three times as much to Latin America as we do to China. Our exports to this region—which are growing faster than our exports to the rest of the world—will soon support more than 2 million U.S. jobs. In other words, when Latin America is more prosperous, the United States is more prosperous.”

“This agreement between USTDA and Chile continues our long-term support for programs in Chile that open new markets for U.S.-manufactured goods and services,” said Director Leocadia I. Zak.

“It also represents a tangible commitment to support Chile's continued economic growth through cooperation between our aviation and environmental sectors.”

The DGAC is the government entity responsible for the management and oversight of air traffic in Chile. In response to increased air traffic demand and weather-related flight challenges in the region, the DGAC seeks to develop a functional surveillance solution that may include the deployment of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast and Local Area Augmentation System (LAAS) airspace technologies. These technologies represent upgrades to current flight management systems that will provide for greater air safety in Southern Chile.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, March 23, 2011Footnote ¹⁵

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that U.S. producers are now eligible to ship a larger array of U.S. beef and beef products to Chile. The market opening in Chile follows months of bilateral meetings between officials from the Chilean government, USTR and the USDA. President Obama and Ambassador Kirk recently visited Chile to meet with Chilean leaders to discuss how the United States can create jobs in America by deepening our economic relationship and expanding exports to South America.

“Expanding our market for U.S. beef exports to Chile is an important advance,” said Kirk. “Having just attended the meetings between President Obama and President Piñera in Chile, I know how vibrant and deep our trade relationship is. The commitment of Chile and the United States to work together to promote science-based trade rules while providing our consumers with safe and wholesome foods is a win-win for both countries.”

“This action by the government of Chile will provide Chilean consumers with greater access to safe, high-quality U.S. beef,” Vilsack said. “Since day one, the Obama Administration has remained committed to removing barriers to trade, expanding market access for U.S. farmers and ranchers, and lowering tariffs on U.S. agricultural goods. These negotiations were based on a mutual respect for international, science-based standards, and USDA will continue to work with other nations to open their markets to U.S. beef based on the same, internationally-accepted principles.”

The United States exported approximately $6.2 million in beef and beef products to Chile in 2010. Worldwide, the United States exported nearly $4.1 billion of beef and beef products in calendar year 2010, up 32 percent from 2009. The value of U.S. beef exports for 2010 was on par with beef trade figures preceding 2004, when bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) was discovered in December 2003 in a cow that had been exported from Canada to Washington State. Since that time, USTR and USDA have worked hard to regain market access for U.S. beef and beef products around the world. Currently, more than 100 markets are open to U.S. beef.

U.S. farm exports, including beef and beef products, reached an all-time high of $115.8 billion in calendar year 2010. The most recent forecast for U.S. farm exports in fiscal year 2011 (Oct. 1, 2010—Sept. 30, 2011) anticipates a record $135.5 billion in sales for products from U.S. farmers, ranchers and processors, which would support more than 1.1 million jobs. The U.S. agricultural trade surplus is expected to reach a record $47.5 billion in fiscal year 2011.

The market expansion in Chile also underscores the Obama Administration's productive trade strategy, which emphasizes removal of trade barriers through enhanced trade negotiation and enforcement, and promotion of U.S. exports. Today's announcement also highlights how U.S. agriculture is playing an important role in support of President Obama's National Export Initiative (NEI) which began in 2010 to coordinate federal efforts to double U.S. exports by the end of 2014.

Press Release from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, March 31, 2011Footnote ¹⁶

Today, United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk announced that a World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement panel found in favor of the United States on most of the claims in the dispute brought by the European Union concerning alleged subsidies to the production of Boeing airliners.

Last year, a different panel found that the Europeans gave Airbus launch aid and other WTO-inconsistent subsidies in the amount of approximately $20 billion. Although today's panel agreed with the EU in some areas, the programs it asked the United States to remove were worth only $2.7 billion.

“Today a WTO panel confirmed what we have been saying for the last 20 years—that the WTO-inconsistent subsidies that the Europeans gave to Airbus dwarf anything that the U.S. government has given to Boeing. This outcome shows that the steps the federal government and the states have taken to create a positive environment for our workers and industries are generally consistent with WTO rules,” said Ambassador Kirk. “This is an important victory for the United States, and particularly for American workers and businesses. It demonstrates the Obama Administration's dedication to using WTO dispute settlement to ensure a level playing field for American workers and businesses.”

Although the panel last year found that Airbus received prohibited export subsidies from Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom, today's report rejected the EU claim that Washington state gave prohibited subsidies to Boeing.