Policy Areas Archives

USCIB Hails Launch of U.S.-EU Trade and Investment Talks

Published on June 17, 2013
L-R: European Council President Van Rompuy, President Obama, European Commission President Barroso, UK Prime Minister Cameron.
L-R: European Council President Van Rompuy, President Obama, European Commission President Barroso, UK Prime Minister Cameron.

New York, N.Y., June 17, 2013 – The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) applauded today’s announcement at the G8 Summit in Lough Erne, Northern Ireland that the United States and the European Union have launched negotiations for a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

“The European Union is our biggest export market, while the transatlantic investment relationship is the largest in the world, but there are plenty of additional opportunities if we play our cards right,” said USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson.

“TTIP has the capacity to provide a big boost to our competitiveness, economic growth, and jobs here at home, and can jump-start other trade liberalization efforts at the regional and multilateral levels.”

According to the White House, the initial round of U.S.-EU talks is set to begin in Washington on July 8. It said TTIP will aim to further open EU markets, strengthening rules-based investment to grow the world’s largest investment relationship, while eliminating all tariffs on trade, improving market access for trade in services and tackling costly “behind the border” non-tariff barriers that impede the flow of goods, including regulatory impediments.

Last month USCIB submitted a report on TTIP to the U.S. Trade Representative’s office detailing recommended negotiating objectives in a variety of areas. Earlier this month, USCIB organized a roundtable in New York on the stakes for business in the TTIP negotiations.

Robinson said USCIB would work with fellow industry groups and the U.S. Trade Representative’s office to ensure that American industry views are front and center in the negotiations. USCIB is on the steering committee of the recently launched Business Coalition for Transatlantic Trade.

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. With a unique global network encompassing leading international business organizations, USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment. More at www.uscib.org.

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

More on USCIB’s Trade and Investment Committee

More on USCIB’s European Union Committee

Now Available in USCIB International Bookstore: Uniform Rules for Bank Payment Obligations

Published on June 13, 2013

4531_image002New York, N.Y., June 13, 2013 – Uniform Rules for Bank Payment Obligations (BPOs), a 21st-century standard in supply-chain finance that will facilitate international trade, is now available at the USCIB International Bookstore.

These new rules are set to revolutionize trade finance transactions. BPO is an irrevocable commitment made by one bank to another that payment will occur on a specified date after a specified event has taken place. It is an alternative instrument for trade settlement, designed to complement existing solutions, not to replace them.

The BPO provides the benefits of a letter of credit in an automated and secured environment, and enables banks to offer flexible risk mitigation and enhanced financing services to their corporate customers.

The rules were developed by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Banking Commission, in partnership with the financial messaging provider SWIFT and take into account the expectations of all relevant industries and users. Reflecting consensus of the industry, the rules were unanimously adopted by the ICC Banking Commission in April.

“The importance of collaboration among the banking community is paramount today.” According to Michael Quinn, Co-Chair of the ICC URBPO Education Group, Chair of USCIB’s Banking Committee, and Managing Director of Global Trade at JP Morgan. Quinn went on to say, “we have case studies where banks are successfully using BPO in situations where there is high volume import, short shipment time periods and a need to provide liquidity to suppliers who are providing relatively low-cost retail consumer type goods.” Mr. Quinn also added, “this provides us with excellent examples of how BPO is being leveraged to facilitate trade without getting bogged down in the processing of documents.”

The speed of trade, the complexity of supply chains and the reliance on information and data today is overwhelming. Over the last 10 years banks and corporates have become focused on financing liquidity down supply chains to ensure products can get to customers. The financial crisis forced many companies to rethink their supply chain strategies and consider ways to ensure integrity down the chain while ensuring it remains liquid and appropriately protected. This, Quinn suggests, has led to a convergence of corporate needs for supply chain financing with banks’ need to support them in this and an ambition to reduce paper handling so that greater focus can be put on risk mitigation and financing.

The rules are set to go into effect on July 1. Order your copy today at USCIB International Bookstore.

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. With a unique global network encompassing leading international business organizations, including ICC, USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment. More at www.uscib.org.

USCIB’s Trade Services include: ATA Carnet, commonly known as the Merchandise Passport, which allows goods to enter over 85 customs territories tax- and duty-free for up to one year; eCertificates of Origin, fully electronic processing of Certificates of Origin, returned to you by e-mail, fast and complaint with ICC Guidelines for Certificates of Origin; and the USCIB International Bookstore, which enables customers to learn international business through unique titles covering a range of topics.

Contact:
Hsin-Ya Hou, USCIB International Bookstore
+1 212.703.5066, hyhou@uscib.org

USCIB International Bookstore

More on USCIB’s Trade Services 

More on USCIB’s Banking Committee

World Bank President Upholds Doing Business Report

Published on June 13, 2013

As we reported last month, governments and interest groups that are highly critical of the World Bank’s annual “Doing Business” report and ranking launched a broad attack on the program under the guise of a review. In response, USCIB joined with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and International Organization of Employers
(IOE) to urge the Bank to maintain the integrity and rigor of the report. These efforts appear to have paid off.

Last week, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim issued a statement in response to an independent review panel’s assessment of the Doing Business report, essentially upholding the report’s methodology and ranking while committing the Bank to work toward its improvement going forward.

Kim’s statement read in part:

“The World Bank Group’s work on business climate development, including the Doing Business report, is core to our mission of ending poverty, and in fact we expect it to grow. Our client countries are demanding it, because there is broad consensus about the need for jobs to eliminate poverty and boost growth. We are committed to this work.

“It is indisputable that Doing Business has been an important catalyst in driving reforms around the world. The Panel has made valuable suggestions for how to enhance the report, which merit consideration. Going forward, I will be pushing World Bank Group staff to focus their efforts on improving all aspects of Doing Business, including its data, methodology, and rankings. I am committed to the Doing Business report, and rankings have been part of its success.”

USCIB will continue to monitor the evolution of the Doing Business report, which we regard as a uniquely valuable catalyst for market-oriented reform, private investment, economic growth and job creation around the world.

Staff contacts: Shaun Donnelly and Adam Greene

New York Times: How the World Bank Makes Doing Business Easier

More on USCIB’s Trade and Investment Committee

More on USCIB’s Labor & Employment Committee

Business Keeping the Pressure on Negotiators at UN Climate Talks

Published on June 13, 2013

4530_image002Governments meeting in Bonn on climate change continue to face contentious issues in the context of new, game-changing energy options, economic challenges in Europe and the emerging influence of the BRICs countries.

Disagreements about UN decision-making rules will further complicate the negotiations, adding to the tough choices ahead for the next high-level climate meeting in Warsaw in November, which UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will attend. The current agreement has been plagued by volatility in carbon markets, inflexibility on technological options and only partial coverage of emitting countries.

USCIB members – including Arkema, Dupont, GE and Qualcomm – have been on hand over the last two weeks, consulting with government delegations, UN representatives and other non-governmental organizations, making the case for a durable, flexible agreement that recognizes business as an important partner, and delivers policy and market clarity for climate and energy.

“U.S. companies are already addressing climate change risks in many institutional, regulatory and market settings, domestically and internationally,” according to Norine Kennedy, USCIB’s vice president for strategic international engagement, energy and environment. “So we encourage governments to lay the foundation in Warsaw for an international framework that works in harmony and synergy with existing structures for trade, investment and intellectual property rights protection, rather than in opposition.”

Working with and helping to support the International Chamber of Commerce delegation in Bonn, Kennedy delivered business statements to the incoming Polish chairmanship of the climate discussions, and to the Norwegian and Indian co-chairs of the post-2020 agreement negotiating track.

The UN climate change regime aims to develop a more inclusive and ambitious post-2020 agreement by 2015. Many developing country governments are reluctant to adopt greenhouse gas emissions commitments, without the delivery of financial and technical support from developed countries. Consequently, governments in Bonn are keen to mobilize private-sector financial resources toward the $100 billion per year commitment made by the U.S. and other OECD countries to assist developing countries with climate challenges.

USCIB has recently secured accreditation to the UN climate agreement’s Green Climate Fund, to provide business recommendations to this new entity for the enabling conditions to catalyze private-sector resources. USCIB is emphasizing quality as well as quantity of investment and aid, via cost-effective and prioritized projects and the deployment of new technologies for efficiency, adaptation and greenhouse gas reduction.

USCIB has also worked through the Major Economies Business Forum (BizMEF) to argue for meaningful and recognized engagement opportunities for business in the UN climate process, modeled on the consultative relationship between BIAC and OECD. “Business input and advice is indispensable to well informed choices by policymakers on the technologies and investments that the new agreement will depend on,” Kennedy said.

Next year’s release of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Fifth Scientific Assessment Report will certainly intensify government and business focus on the international climate process. After a UN climate change summit for heads of state in New York in September 2014, Peru will host ministerial-level climate meetings in December. USCIB will remain closely involved, attending international meetings and conveying member views to the U.S. negotiating team, and ultimately seeing the completion of the new agreement through to its resolution at a summit in Paris in 2015.

Staff contact: Norine Kennedy

More on USCIB’s Environment Committee

New York Roundtable Looks at Stakes for Business in Transatlantic Trade Talks

Published on June 12, 2013

On June 6, at Pfizer’s headquarters in New York City, USCIB joined with the American Chambers of Commerce in Europe, a confederation of all the AmChams in the region, and the American Business Forum on Europe to hold a roundtable on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and what is at stake for business.

On May 10, USCIB submitted a report on TTIP to the U.S. Trade Representative’s office detailing recommended negotiating objectives in a variety of areas. Click here to download a copy.

The meeting was opened by Richard Blackburn, Pfizer’s vice president of international public affairs, USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson and Jake Slegers, chair of AmChams in Europe.

The event featured two panel discussions providing perspectives on the upcoming negotiations from both sides of the Atlantic. The first featured Susan Danger, managing director of the AmCham EU in Brussels, and Rob Mulligan, USCIB’s senior vice president for policy and government affairs. Danger described how European business is organizing itself to advocate for the TTIP, and stressed the importance of complementary activity on the U.S. and European sides throughout the negotiations.

Mulligan provided a snapshot of how USCIB is working alongside fellow business groups in Washington to set up the Business Coalition for Transatlantic Trade and cited examples of some common themes on regulatory cooperation issues the business community is already communicating to governments. Country-specific outlooks were provided by Marina Niforos, managing director of AmCham France, and Joanne Richardson, chief executive of AmCham Ireland.

The second panel delved into the details of what specific industries are looking for in the TTIP. Dontai Smalls, vice president of corporate public affairs with UPS, and Doug Goudie, director of international government relations at Pfizer spoke on behalf of their companies. Both agreed that while the TTIP will be a challenge to navigate in several key areas, including regulatory matters and intellectual property protected, the benefits derived from the deal will create jobs and opportunities on  both sides of the Atlantic. The business community should therefore keep up outreach to governments, to build momentum and ensure a successful conclusion.

The roundtable also saw the launch of the 2013 Case for Investing in Europe, by Joseph Quinlan, economist at Bank of America. Quinlan spoke about the  current climate for investing in the European market and stressed that it is as strong as ever. The launch of the report was complemented by a case study presentation on investing in Europe by Salvatore Gabola, director for European public affairs with The Coca-Cola Company.

The event was attended by more than 70 members of the business, diplomatic and policy communities.  USCIB looks forward to working with the AmChams in Europe and AmCham EU in sharing information and coordinating business views during the TTIP negotiations.

Click here for photos from the event.

Staff contacts: Rob Mulligan and Justine Badimon

More on USCIB’s Trade and Investment Committee

More on USCIB’s European Union Committee

ICC Marketing Commission Advances Global Advertising Standards

Published on June 11, 2013
ICC’s Marketing and Advertising Commission met near an epicenter of advertising, New York’s Times Square.
ICC’s Marketing and Advertising Commission met near an epicenter of advertising, New York’s Times Square.

In early June, marketing experts from around the world gathered in New York as the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)’s Commission on Marketing and Advertising held two days of meetings, at the headquarters of News Corporation, to address emerging challenges in mobile marketing, alcoholic beverages and a number of other areas.

ICC, the world business organization for which USCIB serves as the American national committee, has served for many years as the standard-bearer in developing respected industry advertising standards worldwide. The commission is chaired by Brent Sanders (Microsoft), who also chairs USCIB’s Marketing and Advertising Committee.

Digital communications were top of mind for many commission members. A working group chaired by David Fares (News Corp.) weighed the possible development of new rules on marketing to mobile devices, and reviewed current regulatory initiatives as well as technical solutions designed to promote consumer choice, and protect privacy, in an increasingly mobile environment.

“We had a good discussion of the various programs and tools being developed to ensure company compliance with the EU’s e-privacy directive and self-regulatory programs to address online behavioral advertising,” said Sheila Millar (Keller & Heckman), a vice chair of the commission. “Industry is being pro-active in the face of fast-moving technological changes, demonstrating that it takes both choice and privacy seriously.”

Alcohol framework

The commission agreed to develop a new global framework for responsible marketing of alcoholic beverages, responding to global commitments for robust rules that can serve as a baseline for the establishment of local codes in markets where these do not already exist. An experts’ group discussed a draft guide, which identifies existing principles from the Consolidated ICC Code of Marketing and Advertising and offers interpretation and further guidance to help marketers and self-regulatory authorities. The final product may be ready as early as this fall.

“This voluntary effort, initiated from within the alcohol beverage industry, reflects the goal of the industry to act responsibly around the world,” observed Carla Michelotti (Leo Burnett Worldwide), the vice chair of USCIB’s Marketing and Advertising Committee and a member of the Advertising Self-Regulatory Council in the United States. “These voluntary principles, if adopted by ICC, would certainly have a significant impact on advertising for alcohol beverages in many countries where no self-regulation is in existence.”

Looking to the Asia-Pacific

USCIB and ICC are also working with other stakeholders to encourage further progress on advertising standards within the Asia-Pacific region. Alongside relevant sectoral associations in several APEC countries, we are supporting initiatives by the Australian government and advertising standards body. At a dialogue last November in Vietnam, APEC governments, industry and experts from economies using globally aligned advertising standards recommended further work towards a common APEC approach, including educational and capacity-building programs.

Also at the meeting, John Manfredi, the former longtime chair of the ICC Commission and USCIB’s Marketing and Advertising Committee, was presented with the ICC Merchant of Peace Award by USCIB Chairman and ICC Chairman-elect Terry McGraw, the CEO of McGraw-Hill Financial. Manfredi, managing partner with Manloy Associates, and previously an executive with Proctor and Gamble, Gillette and Nabisco, led efforts to develop and revise ICC codes and guidance resources on topics such as environmental advertising, marketing and advertising on the Internet, and food and beverage marketing. Click here to read more about the award presentation on ICC’s website.

Staff contact: Jonathan Huneke

More on USCIB’s Marketing and Advertising Committee

Experts Developing Framework for Responsible Marketing of Alcohol

Published on May 30, 2013

4522_image001The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), for which USCIB serves as the American national committee, has a long and distinguished history of establishing global self-regulatory standards for marketing and advertising.

Now, heeding the call of industry to ensure that robust rules are well understood and coherently applied across markets, the ICC Commission on Marketing and Advertising is developing a new global framework for responsible marketing communications of alcohol.

An experts’ group will convene at the upcoming commission meetings in New York on 3-4 June to discuss the draft guide, which identifies existing principles from the Consolidated ICC Code and offers interpretation and further guidance to help marketers and self-regulatory authorities.

“The ICC framework will complement steps already taken by sectoral groups to bolster existing self-regulatory efforts and expand on them in markets where they are lacking,” said Brent Sanders, chair of ICC’s Marketing and Advertising Commission and associate general counsel with Microsoft (who also chairs USCIB’s Marketing and Advertising Committee). “While the commission’s work is oriented to rules for broad business interests and not sectoral codes, we agreed that the interpretive instrument proposed would help self-regulatory bodies implement existing ICC Code articles more effectively and coherently across markets.”

“The goal is to increase existing confidence in the self-regulatory approach even further, and ensure that it reaches across all markets,” said Oliver Gray, co-chair of the ICC experts’ group drafting the framework and executive director of the European Advertising Standards Alliance. “This new initiative will do just that and, by building on the global commitments of the major alcohol beverage companies, will demonstrate responsibility via strong and coherent industry rules.”

Development of an ICC framework was initially proposed by the International Center for Alcohol Policies (ICAP) with strong support of the World Federation of Advertisers. The base draft was developed against the background of the ICAP guiding principles. These represent a consensus built and globally committed to by CEOs of 13 major companies representing beer, wine and spirits producers.

ICC has served as the authoritative rule-setter for international advertising since the 1930s, when the first ICC Code on advertising practice was issued. Since then, it has updated and expanded the ICC self-regulatory framework on many occasions to assist companies in marketing their products responsibly and to help self-regulators apply the rules consistently.

Staff contact: Jonathan Huneke

More on USCIB’s Marketing and Advertising Committee

OECD Releases New Study on Global Value Chains

Published on May 29, 2013

At this week’s OECD Forum in Paris, OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria launched a new OECD report on Interconnected Economies: Benefitting from Global Value Chains, which discusses the challenges and opportunities facing advanced, emerging-market and developing economies as they seek to integrate into the global marketplace.

USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson participated in a program at the Forum discussing global value chains and this new report. He commended the OECD for this work and highlighted the importance of policies that will facilitate the ability of companies to operate through the global supply networks they need to compete and reach consumers around the world.

Robinson cited the recent study by Matthew Slaughter of Dartmouth, American Companies and Global Supply Networks: Driving U.S. Economic Growth and Jobs by Connecting with the World. That study, commissioned by USCIB and the Business Roundtable, references the latest data on company operations and employment to underscore how global companies’ success abroad also benefits America – by expanding exports, generating demand for intermediate inputs, promoting domestic R&D and spurring new jobs at home to support sales to overseas markets.

More information on OECD work on global value chains is available on the OECD website at http://oe.cd/gvc.

In a related move, the OECD and the World Trade Organization have released an update of their joint database on trade in value added, which was first unveiled in January. The update deepens the database’s analytical depth by presenting the indicators for a wider country coverage, and by expanding the reference years. Read more at http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news13_e/miwi_17may13_e.htm.

Business Meets With OECD Ministers

USCIB Senior Counsel Ronnie Goldberg was among the business leaders from BIAC, the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD, who met on May 29 with the OECD Ministerial Counsel, which is made up of top government officials from across the 34-nation OECD. At the annual high-level consultation, BIAC members urgently called for a more business-enabling environment. The OECD Economic Outlook for 2013 points to an uneven recovery of the global economy and challenges for governments to implement appropriate policies for more growth and employment. Click here to read BIAC’s press release on the meeting.

Staff contact: Rob Mulligan

More on USCIB’s Trade and Investment Committee

On Bangladesh Global Employers Call for Focus on Tripartite Process

Published on May 24, 2013
Rescue workers at the collapsed Rana Plaza building site in Bangladesh
Rescue workers at the collapsed Rana Plaza building site in Bangladesh

Employers around the world have closely followed developments surrounding the tragic collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh that killed more than 1,000 people.

The International Organization of Employers (IOE), part of USCIB’s global; network, issued a statement reiterating its deep regret and sadness, and expressing solidarity with the victims and their families. “Efforts must now be intensified to ensure that these kinds of tragedies are not repeated,” the IOE said.

The problems culminating in the Rana Plaza collapse affect more than one sector of Bangladesh’s economy, not just the garment sector, the IOE noted. “Fire safety, and issues of health and safety generally, are applicable across sectors and across business size, whether it produces for export or for domestic consumption.”

The IOE voiced support for the action plan the International Labor Organization created as the result of a high-ILO level mission to Bangladesh, following broad tripartite consultation with the Bangladesh Employers’ Federation, workers representatives and the Bangladesh government.

The IOE “calls on donor governments to provide the ILO with the resources necessary to implement the plan of action and in doing so to respond to the needs of constituents in Bangladesh that they have themselves identified.”

According to Adam Greene, USCIB’s vice president for labor and corporate responsibility, lasting change can only come from within the country, with the national government working directly with the social partners in Bangladesh.  “That is why we fully support the ILO-lead National Action Plan and will support a Better Work program in Bangladesh after the government makes the necessary labor law reforms,” he said.

A joint initiative of the ILO and the World Bank, with strong support from the IOE and USCIB, the Better Work program brings together governments, employers, workers and global companies to address working conditions in supplier factories. The program assesses compliance with international labor standards and national labor laws, posts reports online and provides targeted remedial training to improve compliance with labor standards.

Staff contact: Adam Greene

More on USCIB’s Labor & Employment Committee

Washington Tax Conference to Weigh New Scrutiny of Global Companies

Published on May 23, 2013

4517_image001Washington, D.C., May 23, 2013 – Against a backdrop of slow economic growth and increased attention to international corporate tax practices, executives from a range of global companies will meet with tax experts from the OECD and member governments at the 2013 OECD International Tax Conference, June 3-4 in Washington, D.C.

Now in its eighth year, the sold-out conference is organized by the United States Council for International Business (USCIB) in cooperation with the 34-nation OECD, which is the leading global forum for discussion of international tax policies.

“The OECD is a valuable source of guidance on sensible policies and regulation, especially on the tax front,” said Rob Mulligan, USCIB’s senior vice president for policy and government affairs. “Decisions on tax policy can have a major impact on cross-border investment flows, and policy makers must make wise choices to maximize economic growth, job creation and development.”

The conference will focus on the challenge of adapting longstanding international tax principles to the modern economy. At their summit in Mexico last year, G20 leaders explicitly referred to “the need to prevent base erosion and profit shifting,” or BEPS. G20 finance ministers subsequently asked the OECD to report on this issue by their meeting last February. The OECD report and follow-on action will be high on the agenda at this year’s conference.

Related issues up for discussion include transfer pricing of intangibles, jurisdiction to tax issues and tax transparency. Efforts to integrate the views of emerging and developing economies into the OECD’s work are also on the program.

Speakers at the two-day event will include:

  • Pascal Saint-Amans, director of the OECD’s Center for Tax Policy and Administration
  • Robert B. Stack, deputy assistant secretary for international tax policy, U.S. Treasury
  • Will Morris, director of global tax policy, GE International
  • Mike Williams, director of business and international tax, Her Majesty’s Treasury, U.K.
  • Bill Sample, corporate vice president for worldwide tax, Microsoft

“Governments need clear, consistent rules to collect an appropriate amount of tax from multinational enterprises doing business in their jurisdictions,” said Carol Doran Klein, USCIB’s vice president for tax policy. “Businesses need clear and consistent rules to foster trade and investment across borders.  Developing these rules requires dialogue among countries and business. This conference is an important part of that dialogue.”

The conference is co-organized by USCIB, the OECD and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee (BIAC) to the OECD, which officially represents the view of industry in the Paris-based body, and for which USCIB serves as the U.S. member federation. Supporting organizations include the International Fiscal Association, Tax Foundation, National Foreign Trade Council, Organization for International Investment, Tax Council Policy Institute, International Tax Policy Forum and Tax Executives Institute. Details are available at www.uscibtax.org.

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. With a unique global network encompassing leading international business organizations, including BIAC, 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

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