Growth, Jobs and Open Markets Archives

The Future of Manufacturing: Spotlight on Investment

Published on March 29, 2016

ITA_manufacturingWhile economists debate whether the U.S. manufacturing industry has hit a recession or a temporary stall due to low energy prices, one thing appears clear – the future of U.S. manufacturing hinges on its ability to evolve and rethink operating models. In a recent study by Morgan Stanley, nearly 75 percent of U.S. plants are more than 20 years old. With such aging infrastructure, the question must be asked, how will the U.S. regain its place as the leader in manufacturing, and what will future manufacturing plants look like?

Bloomberg will convene federal and state policy makers, and leaders of the manufacturing industry to discuss the imperative facing the U.S. manufacturing industry to innovate and evolve their businesses, and to develop an understanding of the benefits and costs of such efforts.

The Future of Manufacturing: Spotlight on Investment

Tuesday, April 19 | Bloomberg, 1101 K Street NW, Suite 500 | Washington, D.C.

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Speakers to include Marion C. Blakey, Chairman, President and CEO, Rolls-Royce North America Inc.; Shaun Donnelly, Vice President, Investment and Financial Services, United States Council for International Business; Marcus D. Jadotte, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry & Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce; Vinai Thummalapally, Executive Director, SelectUSA, U.S. Department of Commerce; Jay Timmons, President and CEO, National Association of Manufacturers; and more.

The day’s discussion will examine the most important priorities and opportunities facing American manufacturing. We’ll focus on:

  • how policymakers can drive industry success
  • fostering STEM education and workforce development
  • reinforcing sustainable practices
  • attracting foreign investment and cooperation

New Report Surveys US Efforts to Assist Companies Overseas

Published on March 24, 2016

Money_globeAmerican commercial diplomacy programs must adapt quickly to today’s global marketplace, characterized by global value chains, integrated production networks and strong competitive pressures for ever-greater efficiency. “Support for American Jobs,” a new report from the American Academy of Diplomacy co-authored by Academy members Shaun Donnelly, USCIB’s vice president for investment and financial services, and Chuck Ford a retired director general of the Foreign Commercial Service and former U.S. Ambassador to Honduras. The report provides recommendations to the U.S. Departments of State and Commerce to inform the development and execution of government programs that help U.S. companies do business abroad.

“The international consensus on the accepted ‘rules of the game’ has broken down, with the emergence of alternative approaches that have yet to fully mature into next-generation rules to guide world trade and investment,” the authors write in the report’s executive summary. “Intellectual property rights, copyrights, trademarks, designs, and trade secrets will be crucial to maintaining America’s competitive edge, yet they will only work if our economy has skilled workers and creative entrepreneurs who are supported by the right policy environments.”

The report notes that global value chains are core contributors to business success internationally and job creation domestically, and that U.S. commercial diplomacy programs that support America’s competitive position must become a central tenet of U.S. foreign policy. To that end, the report provides six recommendations for government action:

  • Develop, as rapidly as possible, a new policy framework to guide the design of a next-generation commercial diplomacy program to advance US national interests in the ever-more-challenging global economy.
  • Review existing commercial diplomacy programs to identify programmatic and personnel capacity gaps and to present solutions so that ambassadors and their teams will be fully equipped to advance our national interest.
  • Set up a private sector consultative mechanism to ensure systemic oversight of commercial diplomacy programs in cooperation with the private sector.
  • Assess new collaborative programs and partnerships with private enterprises to advance national economic and commercial interests across the global marketplace.
  • Create a formal cooperative mechanism to oversee human resources talent-management systems for economic and commercial officers and local employees so as to enhance successful outcomes in recruiting, retaining, and developing the strongest possible team to execute commercial diplomacy programs across the foreign affairs platform.
  • Build a formal mechanism to coordinate economic/commercial training and education programs, with a particular focus on creating new partnerships with private partners to meet the priority business requirement of short customized courses on cutting-edge issues, many of which are vastly complex in the emerging technology sector.

Donnelly contributed to the report’s section on U.S. business views on global value chains and foreign investment, noting the frustration from the business community that arises from a sense that the U.S. government does not understand the importance of global value chains and foreign direct investment for doing business in the 21st century.

“Business representatives perceive that key aspects of US trade and investment policy are based on a simplistic mercantilist view that exports are good but imports are bad; that inward investment/FDI is good but outward investment is bad,” the report states. “Many business representatives would welcome a serious, substantive review by the government on US global investment policy, both inward and outward, in today’s and tomorrow’s globalized economy.”

Before joining USCIB, Donnelly had a 36-year career in the State Department’s Foreign Service, concentrating on international economic policy.  He served as principal deputy assistant secretary of state for economic and business affairs from 2000 to 2005 when he moved to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) at the White House as assistant USTR in charge of Europe and the Middle East. Earlier he had served as U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives. At various times he was also deputy assistant secretary of state in charge of international trade policy, international energy policy, and economic sanctions.

The report’s findings were drawn from interviews with more than 50 corporate executives, including USCIB members, and senior executives at the Departments of State and Commerce.

Download “Support for American Jobs: Requirements for Next-Generation Commercial Diplomacy Programs”

Defending Investor Protections in Trade Agreements

Published on March 18, 2016
Shaun Donnelly
Shaun Donnelly

Investment protections such as the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism have become the most contentious aspect of many ongoing trade deals, including the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). Shaun Donnelly, USCIB vice president for investment and financial services, traveled around Europe this week defending strong investment policies in U.S. trade agreements.

On March 14, Business and Industry Advisory Committee (BIAC) to the OECD Investment Committee Chair Winand Quaedvlieg and Donnelly led business panelists in an all-day OECD conference on “Investment Treaties: the Quest for Balance.” NGO, labor and academic speakers pressed for radical changes and reduced protections ‎in investment agreements. Donnelly’s panel focused on possible changes in the ISDS regime, including the EU’s proposed investment court and appellate body system.

“I argued the U.S. model BIT already offers a balanced investment regime and that many so-called reforms were simply political attacks on investor rights and protections,” Donnelly said. “I, along with other speakers and participants, was skeptical of the EU’s ‎proposals to abandon the ISDS arbitration system.”

USTR’s lead investment negotiator for TTIP, Jai Motwane, was a co-panelist with very similar positions. Senior State Department Investment policy makers Lisa Kubiske and Michael Tracton spoke on other panels.

Donnelly attended other consultations throughout the week in Paris, both formal and informal, on investment issues with OECD Investment Committee members, senior OECD staff, and country delegations. He participated in the OECD’s special ministerial meeting on Anti-Bribery on March 16 with Klaus Moosmayer from Siemens, Chair of the BIAC Task Force on Anti-Bribery and Corruption. U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch led the U.S. Delegation to the special ministerial meeting.

Donnelly wrapped up in The Hague‎ on Friday, representing USCIB at the International Chamber of Commerce’s Trade and Investment Commission, chaired by USCIB member Jim Bacchus (Greenburg Traurig). USCIB has contributed to major ICC policy papers on investment and cross-border data flows that were discussed at the meeting.

Read BIAC’s media release: Curbing Bribery and Providing a Level Playing Field for International Business

World Trade Week 2016

Published on March 10, 2016

New York HarborUSCIB is a proud partner of World Trade Week NYC, an active network of more than 40 organizations in the New York metro region working together to underscore the importance of international trade, logistics and port operations on the region’s economy and to use their collective expertise to help the region’s businesses grow through international trade.

Every year, the President of the United States declares the third full week of May as World Trade Week. Trade organizations, businesses and other stakeholders come together both nationally and locally to promote and facilitate international trade in the U.S. economy. The New York tri-state region’s trade and transportation community celebrates World Trade Week throughout the month of May, offering a full agenda of educational seminars, global business networking events and the International Trade Awards Breakfast that recognizes the exemplary achievements by practitioners in the field.

We work together to:

  • Recognize the contribution of international trade to economic growth and job creation in the New York metropolitan region
  • Highlight the link between international trade and transportation and the region’s economic well‐being
  • Celebrate companies and organizations succeeding in the global marketplace and highlight their contribution to the region’s economy
  • Share knowledge, resources and ideas to facilitate small business success internationally
  • Provide scholarships to undergraduate students of international business

Find out more at the World Trade Week 2016 website.

Trump’s Apple Rant Raises ‘Forced Localization’ Fears

Published on March 10, 2016

Via Politico Pro

Trade experts and economists have criticized Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump’s proposals to force Apple and other U.S. companies to bring manufacturing jobs back from China, saying that such a move would raise costs for consumers, force companies to reorganize their supply chains and harm prospects for trade liberalization.

USCIB Senior Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs Rob Mulligan spoke with Politico about how Trump’s plans are similar to the forced localization policies that many countries adopted after the financial crisis, with negative effects on global trade:

Trump’s proposal also smacks of “forced localization” policies that the United States is currently fighting around the world, where governments use the power of public procurement to require goods to be made domestically to qualify for contracts, said Rob Mulligan, a senior vice president at the U.S. Council for International Business.

If all countries started requiring their companies to bring manufacturing jobs back home, “it’s going to raise the cost for everybody,” Mulligan said.

Read the full Politico Pro article. (Paywall)

U.S., China Offer New Environmental Goods Staging Proposals

Published on March 7, 2016

Bloomberg BNA

“For China, EGA is a part of their climate agenda and certainly something that can move forward for them,” said Eva Hampl, a director of investment, trade and financial services at the U.S. Council for International Business. “Whereas the December WTO ministerial was an action-forcing event, now the G-20 would appear to be the next opportunity to move something forward,” she told Bloomberg BNA in a telephone interview.

Read the full article Bloomberg BNA article. (Paywall)

USCIB Reports from Peru: APEC SOM I

Published on February 29, 2016

Lima_PeruUSCIB staff attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Senior Officials Meetings (SOM) in Lima, Peru last week, to coordinate business engagement on a variety of issues including customs, chemicals in products, and information and communication technologies (ICT). Comprised of 21 Asia-Pacific economies that account for 40 percent of the world’s population, 50 percent of global GDP and half the world’s trade, the APEC forum is the region’s top economic dialogue dedicated to encouraging economic growth, regional cooperation and trade and investment. The Asia-Pacific region is of great interest to USCIB members, as global companies are eager to tap the region’s growing markets.

Trade Facilitation

USCIB’s Director of Customs and Trade Facilitation Megan M. Giblin participated in meetings of the Global Supply Chain Integrity Workshop, APEC Alliance for Supply Chain Connectivity (A2C2), and attended the APEC Subcommittee on Customs Procedures meetings through her role as Industry Co-Chair of the SCCP – Customs Virtual Working Group. USCIB member priorities were front and center at all the meetings attended, including the World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), single window, customs reform, and other key topics such as e-commerce from a customs perspective and de minimis.

Giblin reported that the TFA and its implementation are on the minds of all APEC member economies. TFA implementation was the focus at most meetings. With respect to where APEC economies stand on TFA ratification, only 13 of the 21 APEC economies have ratified the agreement. 108 WTO members must ratify it before the agreement – which is estimated to reduce worldwide trade costs by up to 17 percent – can enter into force. Giblin leveraged her time with government delegations to promote TFA ratification, entry into force, and robust implementation of the commitments, and to simultaneously assess where the governments are in the ratification process.

Further, Giblin, assisted in a USAID-led presentation on the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, a new public private partnership tied to implementation of the TFA. In Giblin’s role representing USCIB as “ICC USA,” she spoke to the engagement with ICC Paris on the alliance, the structure and composition of the secretariat, broader alliance network, and aided in fielding questions from the delegates. She looks forward to continued communication and engagement on Alliance matters with ICC, but also with USCIB member companies in efforts to engage them directly in support of the alliance. For more information, please contact Giblin at mgiblin@uscib.org

E-Commerce and Data Privacy 

USCIB’s Vice President for ICT Policy Barbara Wanner participated in the APEC Electronic Commerce Steering Group’s Data Privacy Subgroup meetings from February 23 to 25 in Lima. The meeting’s highlights included a stock-take of the 11-year-old APEC Privacy Framework, exploration of efforts to expand participation in the Cross-Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) system in the both APEC and non-APEC economies, and the launch of a new effort to develop a communications strategy to more effectively explain the benefits of the CBPR system.

These meetings came on the heels of recent negotiations between the United States and the European Union on a new data protection framework, the EU-US Privacy Shield, and USICB members took the opportunity to underscore the importance of APEC’s CBPR as a solid, accountable, and enforceable privacy code of conduct for cross-border data transfers and the need to more effectively communicate to all stakeholders its potential for enabling global interoperability. For more information, please contact Wanner at bwanner@uscib.org

Chemical Dialogue

The APEC Chemical Dialogue convenes government officials and industry representatives for discussions about how to best regulate the chemicals trade in a way that protects the environment while minimizing costs to business. USCIB’s Vice President for Product Policy and Innovation Helen Medina attended the Chemical Dialogue and closely followed plans to revise the dialogue’s goals, which currently are: to facilitate trade by expanding and supporting cooperation and mutual recognition among chemical regulators in the region, to enhance understanding of the chemical industry’s role as an innovative solutions industry and to encourage chemical product stewardship, safe use and sustainability.

Highlights from the Chemical Dialogue include considering new work on sustainable chemistry, a self-certification form for chemical imports, and future workshops related to GHS and sharing of best practices in chemicals regulation. For more information, please contact Medina at hmedina@uscib.org

USCIB, Deloitte Host Roundtable on Streamlining Transatlantic Customs

Published on February 26, 2016

USCIB-Deloitte Event SpeakersWith the U.S. Customs Reauthorization bill having been recently signed into law, and the European Union (EU) preparing for the pending implementation of the changes to the Union Customs Code (UCC) this year, USCIB worked with Deloitte to put together a roundtable discussion about current issues facing transatlantic trade in the Customs space.

The event, titled “Strengthening Customs Efficiencies to Facilitate Trade and Investment: Current Dynamics Shaping Customs in the U.S. and the EU,” took place on the morning of February 17 at the Washington, D.C. offices of USCIB member General Electric. The off the record roundtable brought together business, government and other key stakeholder groups for an informal discussion on some of the key dynamics shaping customs policy in the U.S. and the EU and their impact on helping drive forward a strong and integrated transatlantic economy.

Speakers at the roundtable will included Jerry Cook (HanesBrands) Chair of the USCIB Customs Committee; Fernand Rutten (Deloitte) who briefed the committee on the UCC last month; Nasim Delami Fussell, Trade Counsel, House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade, and Christina Kopitopolous, Director, Customs and Trade Affairs, WTO and Multilateral Affairs Office, USTR. USCIB Director of Customs and Trade Facilitation Megan Giblin moderated the roundtable discussion.

“This was a very timely discussion that explored the opportunities and challenges in dealing with customs fit for the 21st century,” said Giblin. “The transatlantic voice has much to offer in helping shale a way forward.”

Participants talked about how the United States and the EU are working to streamline customs rules and regulations that are more appropriate for today’s global and digital marketplace. They addressed how such customs developments are aligning – or not – with the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations, the World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation Agreement and other trade liberalization initiatives to further integrate both economies.

USCIB 2016 APEC Priority Issues and Recommendations

Published on February 23, 2016

APEC_PERUThe Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is comprised of 21 member economies, which account for approximately 40 percent of the world’s population, over 50 percent of the world’s total GDP and half of the world’s trade. It is the top economic forum in the region that actively encourages economic growth, regional cooperation and trade and investment.

The APEC forum has established partnerships with the private sector to leverage the many economic, trade and regulatory opportunities available in the region. Each year, USCIB issues a statement outlining business priorities and recommendations in the region.

USCIB’s 2016 APEC policy priorities reflect our longstanding and overarching objectives of promoting open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility. USCIB members have identified key issues that are detailed in this paper and cover the following areas:

business ethics
chemicals
climate change
corporate social responsibility
cross-border data flows
customs transparency and trade facilitation
digital trade
environmental goods and services
food and agriculture
foreign direct investment
global value chains
good regulatory practices
healthcare and regulatory policy

infrastructure
innovation policy
intellectual property rights enforcement
localization barriers to trade
metals
privacy
self-regulation in marketing and advertising
services
state-owned enterprises
trade facilitation in remanufactured goods and e-waste
trade liberalization
women in the economy

Read the USCIB 2016 APEC Priority Issues and Recommendations

USCIB Heads to Peru for APEC Policy Dialogues

Published on February 22, 2016

APEC_PERUSupporting six million American jobs and hosting two thirds of the global middle class, the Asia-Pacific region is of great interest to the business community, as global companies are eager to tap the region’s growing markets. The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum – the most influential economic dialogue in the region – continues to be a priority for USCIB members, as it is key to accelerating regional economic integration and promoting balanced, sustainable growth.

To aid private-sector engagement in the dialogue, USCIB works with the U.S. APEC business coalition to give members access to APEC officials and participate in APEC meetings throughout the year, culminating in the APEC CEO Summit, a meeting of CEOs and leaders from the APEC economies.

USCIB is in actively engaged in a number of the APEC working groups related to customs, product policy, and information and communication technologies. Each year, USCIB compiles an APEC priorities and recommendations paper to help direct and coordinate work with our members and APEC officials.

Three of USCIB’s policy team will be attending the upcoming first APEC Senior Officials Meeting (SOM 1) in Lima Peru, which began this past weekend.

Action on trade facilitation

Megan Giblin, USCIB’s director for customs and trade facilitation, will participate in the APEC Alliance for Supply Chain Connectivity (A2C2) and the Subcommittee on Customs Procedures meetings, and will identify linkages to the work underway within the USCIB Customs and Trade Facilitation Committee including, but not limited to, e-commerce, single-window efforts, and other aspects that tie directly to WTO TFA implementation.

Giblin was also confirmed last week as the industry Co-Chair to the APEC Subcommittee on Customs Procedures Virtual Working Group (VWG) along with the government of New Zealand. USCIB both helped create the working group and has facilitated its work, co-chairing the group, since its inception. The VWG is comprised of both customs officials and members of the private sector.

Smarter chemicals regulations

Helen Medina, USCIB’s vice president of product policy and Innovation will attend the APEC Chemical Dialogue (CD) meetings to support USCIB’s work and recommendations on a coordinated approach to implementation of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) and future GHS capacity building workshops. Medina will also support USCIB’s Customs priorities in the area of Chemical Import Procedures.

USCIB will continue to encourage work within the CD on metals risk assessment, specifically follow-up to the workshop on this topic in 2015 as well as the dissemination of pending OECD metals assessment scientific guidance as joint OECD-APEC guidance for APEC Economies.  Lastly, Medina will meet with the Lima Chamber of Commerce, Peru’s most representative organization promoting Peru’s global economic integration, to share USCIB priorities during the Peru host year and collaborate on areas of mutual interest.

Facilitating cross-border data flows

Barbara Wanner, USCIB’s vice president of ICT policy will participate in the SOM 1 meetings of the Electronic Commerce Steering Group (ECSG), with particular focus on the Data Privacy Subgroup. The meetings will focus on expanding APEC economies’ understanding of and participation in the Cross-Border Privacy Rules system (CBPR). The CBPR system requires firms in participating economies to develop their own internal business rules on cross-border data privacy procedures, complying with the system’s minimum requirements. The meetings will also explore a selection of next-generation privacy issues, such as data portability, open data and privacy, and big data.

Wanner  will also participate in a special workshop, “Building a Dependable Framework for Privacy, Innovation and Cross-Border Data Flows in the Asia-Pacific Region,” which will set the stage for subsequent discussions on APEC CBPR and other privacy issues during the informal and formal ECSG and DPS meetings.

If you would like any further information on the above meetings or issues, please feel free to reach out to our team.

Customs: Megan Giblin, mgiblin@uscib.org
Chemicals: Helen Medina, hmedina@uscib.org
ICT and Data Privacy: Barbara Wanner, bwanner@uscib.org
APEC priorities: Rachel Spence, rspence@uscib.org