Growth, Jobs and Open Markets Archives

APEC CEO Summit Highlights Need for Continued US Leadership

Published on November 21, 2016
USCIB's Peter Robinson and Helen Medina in Lima
USCIB’s Peter Robinson and Helen Medina in Lima

The annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO summit, which wrapped up over the weekend in Lima, Peru, coincided with concerns about an uncertain U.S. role in Asia and the Pacific at an especially pivotal time. But according to USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson, who attended the summit and various side events alongside USCIB Vice President Helen Medina, there were also signs of progress and hope for continued U.S. leadership in the region.

“I believe that, despite the political rhetoric back home, our trading partners still want and expect the United States to play a leading role in APEC and in the region as a whole, and so do we,” said Robinson. “Now is the time to work even more closely together to promote trade and regional solutions that meet the needs of all parties.”

Under the leadership of the National Center for APEC, USCIB and other business groups joined a diverse array of American CEOs and other executives (including numerous USCIB members) in Lima. Throughout 2016, USCIB has addressed a number of key priorities through APEC, including chemicals policy, advertising self-regulation, data privacy, customs, digital trade, and women in the economy. Our members and staff have engaged in several APEC working groups, including the Chemical Dialogue, APEC Business-Customs Dialogue, Customs Procedures Virtual Working Group, Alliance for Supply Chain Connectivity, the Electronic Commerce Steering Group and Data Privacy Subgroup.

Robinson gave introductory remarks at a roundtable hosted by the U.S.-APEC Business Coalition and USCIB member Deloitte, “Driving APEC Growth Through Competitive Services and High-Quality Regulations.” The focus of Peru’s 2016 host year was on quality growth and human development. Within this context, particular attention has been devoted to the services sector, which represents a large and expanding portion of the overall economic growth and development. The event, moderated by Deloitte Global Chairman David Cruikshank, focused on APEC’s current work in the areas of services and good regulatory practices, including the APEC Services Cooperation Framework and APEC Services Competitiveness Roadmap, as well as further opportunities to drive the service sector in 2017.

Other speakers included John Andersen, deputy assistant secretary of Commerce for the Western Hemisphere; John Drummond, head of the OECD’s Trade in Services Division; and Ho Meng Kit, CEO of the Singapore Business Federation; and Vietnam ABAC Chair for 2017 Hoang Van Dung. Key themes addressed included the slowing pace of liberalization in services in the APEC area, its impact on small and medium-sized businesses, and the need to reinvigorate trade.

While in Lima, Robinson and Medina participated in business meetings with the prime minister and finance minister of Peru, the president of Vietnam and Canada’s international trade minister. They also joined APEC Business Coalition members at meeting with key U.S. Congressional staff attending the summit, as well as Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Robert Holleyman, where the post-election focus was on crafting better trade deals that can address concerns voiced by everyday Americans.

Robinson and Medina attended a dinner hosted by Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Abbott and Merck KGaA, on “Driving Sustainable Health Systems to Achieve Quality Growth and Human Development.” The dinner, which featured remarks by Peruvian Health Minister Patricia García Funegra and Matt Matthews, the U.S. senior official for APEC, highlighted the region’s shared achievements to advance the APEC health agenda, which carries significant trade and investment, innovation and capacity-building components.

Statement on cross-border privacy rules

During the final day of the APEC CEO summit, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg urged world leaders to invest in connecting citizens to the Internet. In a related move, eight major business groups — including USCIB, Japan’s Keidanren and ICC Mexico — released a joint statement calling on all APEC economies to expand participation in the APEC Cross-Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) system. An important priority for USCIB, the CBPR is a high-standard and enforceable privacy code of conduct that facilitates cross-border trade and ensures strong privacy protection of personal information. The statement commended the work done by policy makers in promoting the CBPR system, and urged the 21 APEC economies to commit to the system during 2017.

Chinese President Xi Jinping addresses the CEO Summit.
Chinese President Xi Jinping addresses the CEO Summit.

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote address with a strong message in favor of open and free trade, saying that the Asia-Pacific region must lead the way in the face of slowing global growth and rising protectionism.

“President Xi clearly demonstrated that China is ready to take a leading role in APEC integration at a time when the U.S. appears to be reevaluating how it intends to engage with its economic and trading partners,” observed USCIB’s Medina.

But Robinson said that USCIB, NCAPEC and members of the U.S. APEC Business Coalition remain well-positioned to champion U.S. business interests in APEC. “The time and energy we have invested in APEC has resulted in some important accomplishments,” he said. “Whatever happens regarding a specific trade deal, the fact is that we in the United States still need APEC, and APEC needs us. I continue to have high hopes for APEC as we approach 2017.”

Business Hits Chinese Cybersecurity Rules as Protectionist

Published on November 17, 2016

China - Flag on Button of Black Keyboard.Earlier this month, China adopted broad cybersecurity regulations giving law enforcement enhanced authority to access private data and requiring data to be stored servers located in China. In a letter to Chinese authorities, USCIB and some 40 other industry groups from around the world protested the measure, saying it would wall off China’s internet and unfairly hamper access to the Chinese market.

The letter said Chinese regulators used security as a pretext for enacting protectionist trade policies to benefit Chinese industry, and urged China to to respect its World Trade Organization commitments. “We are concerned that these commitments are undermined by public statements and other forms of high-level guidance that call for indigenous and controllable substitution plans for information technology products and services,” the industry letter stated.

USCIB is organizing a high-level government and business dialogue on US-China cybersecurity, to be held December 16 in Washington, D.C. White House and other government officials will be invited to brief members on the ongoing U.S.-China cyber dialogue and discuss specific member priorities. Please contact Eva Hampl for additional information.

USCIB to Attend APEC Summit in Lima

Published on November 15, 2016

apec_limaThis week, USCIB President and CEO Peter M. Robinson will attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit in Lima, Peru, as a business delegate and representative of the U.S. APEC Business Coalition. Attending with him will be Helen Medina, USCIB’s vice president of product policy and innovation.

Organized under the leadership of the National Center for APEC (NCAPEC) USCIB will be joining other Coalition and NCAPEC members on the ground, including CEOs and executives from USCIB member companies. NCAPEC serves as the designated 2016 U.S. Strategic Partner for the CEO Summit, Secretariat to the U.S. members of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) and as Chair and Secretariat of the U.S. APEC Business Coalition.

“APEC actively supports economic growth, regional cooperation, and trade and investment,” said Robinson. “USCIB welcomes the committed partnerships that APEC, as the top economic forum in the region, has sustained with the private sector to address the complex economic issues that face the region. It is a vital platform for addressing trade and investment, which is especially important now that prospects for U.S. ratification of the Trans-Pacific Partnership look cloudy.”

Throughout 2016, USCIB has addressed a number of issues through APEC to advance discussions across a range of issue. These include chemicals regulation, advertising self-regulation, data privacy, customs, digital trade, and women in the economy. Our members and staff have engaged in several APEC working groups, including the Chemical Dialogue, APEC Business-Customs Dialogue, Customs Procedures Virtual Working Group, Alliance for Supply Chain Connectivity, the Electronic Commerce Steering Group and Data Privacy Subgroup.

In Lima, Robinson and Medina will meet with USCIB members, leaders from APEC economies and representatives of intergovernmental organizations to discuss member companies’ APEC priorities and USCIB’s work. They look forward to hearing from USCIB members in Lima, in addition to joining with Coalition partners, to advance common objectives.

The upcoming APEC meetings in Lima include, in addition to the CEO Summit, the Concluding Senior Officials’ Meeting, Fourth APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) Meeting, APEC Ministerial Meeting and APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting. As these meetings draw Peru’s host year to a close, USCIB has begun to gather priority issues from its membership for 2017, when Vietnam will serve as APEC’s host. We are continuing to collect input, and will shortly release our APEC Priority Issues and Recommendations for 2017.

USCIB Statement on the U.S. Election Results

Published on November 9, 2016

Trump announces security policy in Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaNew York, N.Y., November 9, 2016 – Terry McGraw, chairman of the United States Council for International Business (USCIB) and Peter Robinson, USCIB’s president and CEO, released the following statement on the results of the U.S. election:

“We congratulate Donald J. Trump on his election as our next President. It has been an intensely hard-fought campaign, and we look forward to Americans coming together behind shared values and a common purpose. We also congratulate the members from both parties elected to both houses of the 115th Congress.

“It is important for the United States to remain engaged globally and provide leadership on a range of issues affecting our national prosperity, including international trade, climate change, sustainability and support for a rules-based global economy.

“American companies are heavily invested in creating the conditions for expanded U.S. influence internationally and renewed investment and growth at home. USCIB is eager to work with the new Administration and Congress – and with the overseas business partners with whom we have established longstanding close ties – to focus attention on the key issues and initiatives that will undergird America’s growth and success, and strengthen the global economy, in the 21st century.

“The next Administration faces numerous challenges as it takes office. A top priority should be to develop and implement, in concert with the Congress, a strategy for U.S. engagement with the wider world – one that both continues and augments the benefits that American businesses, workers and consumers draw from active participation in the global economy and international institutions. We need policies that anticipate, address and support the demands of a changing American workplace, while addressing the legitimate needs of those displaced or disadvantaged by the 21st-century global economy.

“Such a strategy must recognize and build upon America’s strengths in innovation, entrepreneurship, world-class work force and know-how. It should further seek to leverage American business to reinforce U.S. global leadership, and effectively engage with multilateral institutions to foster international rules and a level playing field that support our competitiveness. It should also seek to make these institutions more accountable and representative of key global stakeholders, including the private sector, in pursuit of shared goals and values.

“We are ready to work with the new Administration and Congress to strengthen U.S. competitiveness, reap the gains from participation in global markets and trade, and deliver benefits in the form of jobs and opportunities for U.S. workers. These objectives can and must be pursued together.”

About USCIB:
USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and regulatory coherence. Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms from every sector of our economy, with operations in every region of the world. As the U.S. affiliate of the International Chamber of Commerce, the International Organization of Employers, and Business at OECD, USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment. More information is available at www.uscib.org.

Contact:
Jonathan Huneke, VP communications, USCIB
+1 212.703.5043 or jhuneke@uscib.org

Trade in the Digital Economy

Published on November 7, 2016
USCIB Senior Vice President Rob Mulligan (center) at the BIAC/Business at OECD Trade Committee meeting in Paris
USCIB Senior Vice President Rob Mulligan (center) at the BIAC/Business at OECD Trade Committee meeting in Paris

On November 3, the Business at OECD (BIAC) Trade Committee met in Paris and received a briefing from Didier Chambovey, chair of the OECD Trade Committee. Chambovey provided an overview of the OECD’s key work streams and responded to questions from members about what the OECD is doing on digital trade, the future priorities for the WTO, and the nexus between trade and environmental policy. Rob Mulligan, USCIB’s senior vice president for policy and government affairs, who also serves as a vice chairs of the BIAC Trade Committee, attended on behalf of USCIB.

The BIAC committee also discussed updating its Trade Priorities paper to address the changing global environment and to include new issues for the OECD to tackle in its work. Members provided input at the meeting and a revised draft is being circulated for input with the goal of finalizing the updated paper early in 2017.  The committee also agreed to update its papers on several issues related to Colombia accession to the OECD and agreed on talking points for BIAC intervention at the OECD Trade Committee meeting relating to agricultural trade policy, trade in environmental goods as contributing to sustainable development goals and climate change, and reforming trade in services.

Mulligan and several other BIAC members also participated in the Global Trade Forum hosted by OECD on November 2. Panels of experts addressed the topic of how policy development can keep pace with new business models and the emerging digital economy. Discussions focused on trade and investment linkages in global value chains, trade policy making in the digital economy, and managing disruption. Pat Ivory, vice chair of the BIAC Trade Committee, presented on the digital trade policy issues and highlighted the BIAC paper on cross-border data flows. A key takeaway from the forum was that an integrated suite of policies will be needed to address the declines in trade and productivity as well as the anti-globalization sentiment that has grown over the past few years.

The U.S. and Mexico Must Work Together as Neighbors

Published on October 31, 2016

Flag Badges of America and Mexico in PileUSCIB Chairman Terry McGraw has joined with ICC Mexico Chair Maria Fernanda Garza in a joint appeal for the United States and Mexico to work together to address common challenges of trade, immigration and security.

In a joint op-ed in the Mexican newspaper El Financiero, the two business leaders urged their compatriots to reject the antagonism emanating from the U.S. campaign trail, reminding readers of the direct and measurable benefits the North American Free Trade Agreement has brought to both Mexicans and Americans alike.

McGraw and Fernanda Garza finished by reiterating that the business communities of both the United States and Mexico are united in their support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which they urged their respective legislatures to ratify without delay.

Please see below for the English translation of the op-ed. To read it in Spanish on El Financiero’s website, click here.

USCIB and ICC Mexico each serve as their country’s national committees of the International Chamber of Commerce.

 

The U.S. and Mexico Must Work Together as Neighbors

By Harold McGraw III and María Fernanda Garza

If the U.S. presidential campaign has reminded us of anything, it is the importance of neighborliness. Just as your own neighborhood deteriorates if you and your neighbors don’t communicate or work together well, so it is in business and international affairs.

Right now, on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border, we face a stark choice: build walls, foster mistrust and disengage our economies – or work together to continue building shared prosperity. As representatives of the business communities from both nations, we strongly urge our fellow countrymen and our leaders to choose the latter course.

Since the North American Free Trade Agreement was negotiated more than 20 years ago, Mexico and the United States have enjoyed an increasingly close and mutually beneficial relationship that builds on our respective strengths and abilities, our vibrant economies and vast resources, our unique position as neighbors and, most importantly, our peoples. Mexico, the U.S. and Canada have turned North America into one of the most important and most dynamic free trade areas in the world. It has taken foresight and resolve.

Bilateral trade between Mexico and the U.S. has multiplied by six since NAFTA’s entry into force, reaching nearly $500 billion in 2015. Mexico is now the second-largest export market for U.S. goods and its second-largest supplier. It is estimated that U.S. trade with Mexico supports some six million American jobs.

With a growing, $1 trillion economy and a developing middle class that eagerly consumes U.S. and other foreign products, Mexico is the world’s 9th-largest world importer, and it buys 16 percent of everything the U.S. sells to the world. It is the largest export market for California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, and one of the three most important export markets for 29 other U.S. states.

This burgeoning trade relationship is built upon regional economic integration, cooperation and capitalizing on both nations’ competitiveness. Bilateral trade often occurs in the context of shared production, where manufacturers on each side of the border work together to produce goods. The development of robust supply chains as a result of NAFTA has translated into highly integrated trade in such key industries as automobiles, aerospace and electronics.

For instance, Mexican exports to the U.S. contain 40 percent of U.S. value-added, which is much higher than those from South Korea or China which are at five percent and four percent, respectively.

The U.S. and Mexico have a shared interest in fostering economic integration in North America, which is becoming, once again, the most competitive region in the world. Among other things, both countries need to ensure an efficient and secure border, the development of human capital for innovation and the growth of the services sector.

Businesses on both sides of the border firmly believe that the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will further strengthen Mexico-U.S. relations, North American competitiveness and our shared prosperity by encouraging competition and setting new and modern disciplines in the Asia-Pacific Region. With TPP, North America will become an even more important export platform to the world, with the consequent creation of jobs. We therefore are urging our respective legislatures to quickly ratify the TPP.

Especially in the face of growing protectionist and isolationist sentiment, we cannot stress strongly enough the critical importance of closer cooperation between our two governments in fostering a strong U.S.-Mexico relationship – one that contributes to shared economic growth, competitiveness and prosperity throughout North America. As neighbors, we have a shared responsibility to keep the neighborhood safe and prosperous.

Harold McGraw III is chairman of the United States Council for International Business. Maria Fernanda Garza chairs the Mexican chapter of the International Chamber of Commerce.

Despite Clampdown, High-Seas Piracy Still a Threat

Published on October 31, 2016

piracyKidnapping and hostage-taking persists off the coasts of West Africa and South East Asia, despite a 20-year low in piracy on the world’s seas, according to new figures from the International Chamber of Commerce‘s International Maritime Bureau (IMB).

IMB’s latest global piracy report shows that pirates armed with guns or knives took 110 seafarers hostage in the first nine months of 2016, and kidnapped 49 crew for ransom. Nigeria, a growing hotspot for violent piracy and armed robbery, accounts for 26 percent of all captures, followed by Indonesia, Malaysia, Guinea and Ivory Coast.

But with just 42 attacks worldwide this quarter, maritime piracy is at its lowest since 1996. IMB’s Piracy Reporting Center has recorded 141 incidents so far this year, a 25 percent drop from the same period in 2015. A total of 111 vessels were boarded, five were hijacked, 10 were fired at, and a further 15 attacks were thwarted.

Read more on ICC’s website.

USCIB Identifies Foreign Telecom and Other Trade Barriers

Published on October 27, 2016

Smartphone_mobile_globeUSCIB has cited numerous countries for maintaining barriers to exports of U.S. telecommunications and other products and services. In an extensive submission to the office of U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman, we recommended the following countries (and regions encompassing multiple countries) for inclusion in USTR’s annual National Trade Estimate (NTE) Report:

Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, European Union, Fiji, Germany, Ghana, Gulf Cooperation Council, India, Indonesia, Korea, Latin America Malaysia, Mexico, Middle East and North Africa, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Russia, South Africa, Thailand, Tonga, Turkey, Uganda, Uruguay and Vietnam.

USCIB’s submission was in response to a request from USTR for public comments to assist it in identifying significant barriers to U.S. exports of goods, services, and U.S. foreign direct investment for inclusion in the Congressionally mandated NTE. Also part of this request, USTR asked for information regarding trade barriers to telecommunications products and services pursuant to Section 1377 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988.

The submission included comments detailing a wide assortment of trade barriers affecting a broad range of industries. Such cross-sectoral barriers include local content requirements, data storage requirements, customs-related issues, and intellectual property protection. The submission also delved into burdensome financial services regulations, problems with food safety laws, problematic tax laws, foreign direct investment restrictions, and foreign telecommunications policies and regulations that have the effect of restricting efficient and economic provision of these services, among others trade barriers.

 

Ensuring a Level Playing Field With State-Owned Enterprises

Published on October 24, 2016
USCIB's Eva Hampl speaks at an OECD meeting on state-owned enterprises.
USCIB’s Eva Hampl speaks at an OECD workshop on state-owned enterprises.

Last week at OECD headquarters in Paris, business representatives highlighted the importance of avoiding market distortions and maintaining a level playing field between public and private companies.

Two OECD workshops on state-owned enterprises (SOEs) focused on the twin challenges of preventing corruption and of SOEs as global competitors. BIAC/Business at OECD, part of USCIB’s global network, arranged for private-sector participation and released key messages for the discussions.

In the workshop on SOEs as competitors, Eva Hampl, USCIB’s director of investment, trade and financial services, discussed where the gaps remain and what can be done about them. She emphasized the importance of addressing the challenges presented by SOEs in a world that is hungry for investment — including foreign direct investment — and economic growth. To the extent that SOEs are now operating on a global scale, they can crowd out private FDI in a way that may hamper competition, including in third markets.

Because SOEs can take on many forms, one important issue is increased transparency on SOE governance structures, as well as any advantages they enjoy which tilt the playing field in their favor versus private companies. Increased transparency alone, however, does not resolve many of the underlying systemic issues of SOEs competing, and does not automatically level the playing field, business representatives said.

Transparency is important since SOEs can be a prime vehicle for corruption. “Many SOEs operate in sectors with high corruption risks,” the BIAC messages note. “The 2014 OECD Foreign Bribery Report identified state-owned or state-controlled enterprises as the single biggest category of foreign officials who were bribed.”

US Small Business Speaks Up for Global Trade

Published on October 18, 2016

tradematters_world_technologyInternational trade has gotten a bad rap in the U.S. electoral campaign and elsewhere around the world. Pushing back against the misconceptions around global trade is a key focus of the #TradeMatters campaign from the International Chamber of Commerce. A key feature of the campaign are testimonials from entrepreneurs and small business owners around the world explaining why trade matters to them, and how governments could make cross-border trade easier for small business.

World Technology Corporation, a New York-based exporter of environmentally friendly technologies, was recently featured in the campaign. Peter Tierney, the company’s managing director, said in his contribution to the campaign: “Exporting has helped our company stabilize its sales and provided a financial cushion during the last recession. People say what we do – exporting – is risky. We believe that not exporting in today’s global economy is a much riskier position to take.”

You can view World Technology’s posting on the ICC website here.