China's lack of worker rights, weak environmental standards "and anticompetitive subsidies are the hallmarks of China’s artificial comparative advantage. It is an advantage that puts others out of business and violates any notion of fair competition," the annual trade policy agenda from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said, and the administration is looking to advance fair competition "through all available avenues," including coordinating with other countries, using existing trade agreements, or new tools, it said.
Meetings between Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Jayme White and Ecuador's trade minister, Julio Jose Prado, focused on the U.S. desire for Ecuador to improve its agricultural import licensing system, and Ecuador's concern that the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program has lapsed. A joint statement from the two countries released Feb. 18 said they recognized Ecuador is improving efforts to battle illegal fishing, preserve forests and wildlife, fight climate change and marine debris, and end child labor. It said the U.S. discussed next steps to renew the GSP.
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The Eurasian Economic Union recently cut the number of countries to which it extends preferential tariffs from 103 to 29, leaving out many major Asian countries, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Nov. 23. The preferential tariffs, provided under the EAEU’s Generalized System of Preferences scheme, now no longer apply to China, India, South Korea, Singapore and others. But the Philippines remains on the list, HKTDC said, and their exporters will still benefit from a 25% reduction in customs duties when shipping certain furniture, industrial goods such as natural rubber, agricultural products and more.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Indian Trade Minister Piyush Goyal agreed to continue working to resolve outstanding trade issues "to reach convergence in the near future," according to a joint statement released Nov. 23 at the conclusion of the India-U.S. Trade Policy Forum (TPF) in New Delhi. Both countries discussed wanting better treatment of their exports. "India highlighted its interest in restoration of its beneficiary status under the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences program; the United States noted that this could be considered, as warranted, in relation to the eligibility criteria determined by the U.S. Congress."
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said she hears frequently from stakeholders about "market access restrictions, high tariffs, unpredictable regulatory requirements, and restrictive digital trade measures" in India, and said those are issues "where we need to make progress."
The United Kingdom suspended Ghana, Jordan and Kenya from receiving preferential rates under its Generalised Scheme of Preferences for the month of December, the Department for International Trade said Oct. 29. The secretary of state for international trade said the suspensions are being implemented due to alternative trade arrangements with the three countries, and will apply if equivalent or better preferential market access than the GSP in confered in those arrangements.
China will no longer issue Generalized System of Preferences certificates of origin for goods exported to European Union member states, the United Kingdom, Canada, Turkey, Ukraine and Liechtenstein beginning Dec. 1, China's General Administration of Customs said in an Oct. 26 announcement, according to an unofficial translation. The move comes since these countries no longer give China preferential tariff treatment under the GSP. China will now only provide non-preferential certificates of origin to interested consignors.
The European Commission recently confirmed that Pakistan will retain its Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus status through 2023, allowing it to benefit from a range of tariff exemptions, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Oct. 7. The commission had considered suspending Pakistan’s status due to human rights concerns, and the country will need to comply with several conditions to continue GSP+ status beyond 2023, HKTDC said, including steps to eliminate child labor and organized crime, as well as making climate change standards commitments.
Finance Committee member Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, bemoaned the fact that the House did not vote on a short-term extension of Trade Adjustment Assistance already passed by the Senate, and told his committee's chairman and top Republican that he would like to be part of bipartisan negotiations to get TAA moving, paired with other trade priorities. Portman, in a letter Sept. 28, also said he worries that passing TAA as part of the Democratic-only soft infrastructure package means the broader trade agenda will be neglected. "As policymakers, I believe we can take steps to support American manufacturing and avoid the root causes for TAA," he said, and argued that renewing the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill and Generalized System of Preferences benefits program, and strengthening antidumping and countervailing duty laws would help.