Policy Areas Archives

USCIB Banking Committee Welcomes New Chair: Bank of America’s Geoff Brady

Published on November 11, 2020
Geoff Brady
Photo credit: Bank of America

USCIB is pleased to announce the appointment of USCIB member Geoff Brady of Bank of America as new chair of the USCIB Banking Committee. Brady, who is head of global trade and supply chain finance at Bank of America, succeeds Michael Quinn of JPMorgan Chase.

According to USCIB Senior Director for Trade, Investment and Financial Services Eva Hampl, USCIB’s Banking Committee works to increase efficiency and decrease the cost of international trade transactions by promoting the standardization of international banking procedures—primarily by providing input into the global work of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

“We look forward to Bank of America’s active participation in this important area,” said USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson. “We are confident in Geoff’s leadership in the ongoing work of the Committee, including ensuring strong U.S. representation in the ICC Banking Commission and ICC’s work to develop global rules and facilitate access to trade finance.”

USCIB Urges Governments to Strengthen Capacity to Protect Human Rights

Published on November 11, 2020

The United Nations held a sixth special session of the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) October 26-30 to negotiate a proposed legally binding instrument on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights. USCIB, through its observatory status in the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), was represented by members of its Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs team, notably Vice President Gabriella Rigg Herzog and Assistant Policy and Program Manager Daniella Goncalves. Other participants this year included sixty-seven governments (down from eighty-nine in 2019), as well as other civil society organizations.

As could be observed by the UN TV-streamed proceedings, no clear consensus on either the draft text or the overall initiative emerged at the session.

“Unlike the unanimous support that the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights received from the UN Human Rights Council in 2011, this IGWG session demonstrated once again the continued and strong divergence of views of governments on this matter” said Herzog. “USCIB and our members remain committed to fulfilling the business responsibility to respect human rights in line with the UN Guiding Principles, and we encourage all stakeholders to redouble efforts to support the advancement of the UN Guiding Principles.”

“Recognized gaps concerning the core role of governments in fulfilling their State duty to protect human rights remain. Encouraging and supporting States as they work to build their capacity to effectively enforce their own national laws should be a priority for all stakeholders if meaningful access to remedy is to be achieved,” added Goncalves.

The United States government has opposed the IGWG since its launch in 2014 and issued a public statement again this year on October 26, citing opposition to the treaty based on its substance and the process around its development.

Other countries, such as Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan and Norway, also did not attend this year’s sessions. Among the sixty-seven countries who did attend, many expressed the need for greater clarity on definitions, scope, liability and jurisdiction, emphasized the differences in state capacity and costs associated with implementation, as well as asserted the need to respect sovereignty.

USCIB will continue to observe and provide direct insights to its Members on this initiative.

USCIB Welcomes US Intention to Rejoin the Paris Agreement

Published on November 10, 2020

Co-creating a U.S. climate plan to restore economies and to deploy American innovation globally

Washington, D.C., November 10, 2020 — The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) welcomes the intention of the incoming Administration to rejoin the Paris Agreement. Multilateralism matters to business, and nowhere is this conviction more important than in addressing climate change, especially against the backdrop of the pandemic and its economic and social impacts.

For over twenty-five years, USCIB members have supported the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and have been fully committed both to international cooperation and partnership with our government to tackle the impacts of climate change while advancing American private-sector driven economic prosperity and environmental stewardship at home and abroad. In our view, it is critical to continue to focus on and champion substantive engagement of U.S. business in all dimensions of the UNFCCC.

Enabling conditions inside and outside the framework of climate policy will be vital to progress towards the objectives of the UNFCCC and its Paris Agreement. USCIB is ready to recommend synergistic approaches that mobilize trade and investment to support and deploy innovative technologies and forms of energy.

As the U.S. affiliate of Business at OECD (BIAC), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Organization of Employers (IOE), and with its own standing at the UNFCCC and at the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), USCIB is uniquely placed to scale and amplify these opportunities across the UN system, and in the OECD and the WTO.

As it re-engages, we encourage the Biden Administration to work closely with the full diversity of U.S. business across every sector of the economy. This will be essential to deliver a U.S. Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) that advances U.S. economic growth, energy security, job creation and climate action, for the widest benefit of all in our society.

While this might take time, we believe it is worth the effort to consult and reflect the views and expertise of USCIB members and other business stakeholders on economic, social, energy and environmental dimensions of U.S. actions at home and abroad in this critical area.

We look forward to this new chapter of vigorous American involvement and cooperation towards a successful COP26 climate meeting in 2021, and to U.S. involvement in the UNFCCC process into the future.

About USCIB: USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and prudent regulation. Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms with operations in every region of the world. USCIB has represented U.S. business at the UNFCCC since 1993. Furthermore, as the U.S. affiliate of leading international business organizations and as the sole U.S. business group with standing in ECOSOC, 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 Congratulates President-elect Biden, Stands Ready to Support US Global Leadership

Published on November 9, 2020
President-elect Joe Biden. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Washington, D.C., November 9, 2020: The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) issued a statement by USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson:

“We congratulate President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on having been declared the winners of this important election. We note with pride the record number of voters in these very challenging times.

“Looking ahead and facing the wide-ranging impacts of the pandemic, it is more important than ever for the United States to provide global leadership on a range of issues affecting our national prosperity, including international trade, climate change, sustainability, rule of law and support for a rules-based global economy.

“Working together, we can and must overcome the public health and economic obstacles that weigh so heavily on the American people and economy by bringing American business ingenuity and commitment to the fore, both at home and abroad.

“The Administration’s top priority should be to develop and implement, with the Congress, a strategy for U.S. recovery from the pandemic’s economic and health impacts, in engagement with the wider world. U.S. government and business leadership working together is indispensable to this effort.

“Such a comprehensive multi-stakeholder strategy will need to build upon America’s strengths in its innovation, entrepreneurship, know-how, educational system and world-class work force. It should seek to further leverage American business to reinforce U.S. global leadership and effectively engage with multilateral institutions for international rules that support American competitiveness. It should also insist that those institutions become more accountable to and inclusive of key global stakeholders, including the private sector, in pursuit of shared goals and values.

“USCIB members are already responding on many fronts to support response and recovery to the global health crisis, and for that reason have a major stake in expanded U.S. positive influence and impact internationally, renewed investment and growth at home, and restoration of the global economy to a shared and inclusive prosperity. As the U.S. affiliate of Business at OECD, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Organization of Employers (IOE), USCIB is uniquely placed to scale and amplify these opportunities.

“We are ready to work with the Administration to realize the promise of the American economy, to reap the gains from participation in global markets and trade, to advance sustainable development, and to deliver benefits in the form of jobs and opportunities for U.S. workers. These objectives should be pursued together as the U.S. moves to build forward better and stronger, in partnership with its allies worldwide.” 

About USCIB: USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and prudent regulation. Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms with operations in every region of the world. As the U.S. affiliate of the leading international business organizations, and as the sole U.S. business group with standing in the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment. More at www.uscib.org.

Business Letter to US Senate on Dire Situation in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Published on November 9, 2020

USCIB joined with several other associations, including the U.S.-China Business Council, the National Retail Federation and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, among others, to express great concern regarding the dire situation in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). The letter was sent to the Honorable Sherrod Brown and the Honorable Ron Wyden of the United States Senate on November 6 and is copied below.

Dear Senators Brown and Wyden:

Thank you for your October 27, 2020, letter regarding the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).

The situation in XUAR is of enormous concern to the undersigned associations and our member companies. We have been working together and with other stakeholders to respond to this issue for some time. Forced labor in any form is horrific and intolerable, wherever it takes place. What is even more concerning is that forced labor – as horrific as it is – is only one component of a much larger campaign of oppression in this region.

Our members have long implemented rigorous due diligence activities to support and advance ethical manufacturing globally. These efforts have uncovered forced, bonded, and prison labor in facilities around the world. When they find such practices, our members act to root out and redress unacceptable and unethical practices.

Our members have been on the frontlines of deploying a range of best practices to prevent, identify, and mitigate instances of forced labor as well as joining forces in a collective effort to address the situation. Our members have been mapping out their supply chains and engaging with their supplier base and other partners to ensure there is no forced labor in their supply chains. We continue to explore alternative sourcing strategies and more effective due diligence mechanisms and technologies. That work has been and will continue in earnest. However, the situation in this region is of a scale, scope, and complexity – coupled with a lack of transparency – that is unprecedented in modern supply chains and goes beyond the capability of our members to fight this alone.

We strongly believe that the U.S. government must take a leadership role in a global approach that mobilizes the Administration and Congress, in conjunction with foreign governments, and engaging and partnering with industry, labor, and other important stakeholders. Marshalling the collective might of all stakeholders will be the most effective and only way of achieving our shared goal – ending forced labor practices and the larger campaign of oppression in the region.

The undersigned associations strongly condemn human rights abuses, including forced labor and the persecution and detention of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in China. We stand ready to work with you and your staff, and with all stakeholders, to find meaningful measures that would effectively safeguard human rights. We would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you to discuss what our organizations and our members are doing and determine possible paths forward.

Thank you for your time and consideration in this matter.

 

Sincerely,

American Apparel & Footwear Association

Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America

National Retail Federation

Retail Industry Leaders Association

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

U.S.-China Business Council

U.S. Council for International Business

U.S. Fashion Industry Association

USCIB Issues Recommendations to EU on a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism

Published on November 4, 2020

The European Union concluded a public consultation last month on a proposed Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), part of the EU’s ambitious Green Deal, focusing on deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. USCIB submitted its members’ response on October 28, drawing on the expertise of its Committees on Customs, Environment, Taxation as well as Trade and Investment.

“The EU CBAM proposal is complex, seeking to “level the playing field” by imposing extra costs on imports from countries with different climate change policies” said USCIB Vice President for Environment, Energy and Strategic International Engagement Norine Kennedy. “In our comments, we addressed climate change, trade and technical aspects of the proposal which we believe to be most relevant to American companies doing business with, and in, the EU.”

One critical recommendation was on timing; USCIB encouraged the EU to undertake thorough consultative and data-based economic and trade impact assessments, especially with regards to developing countries, to avoid unintended and counter-productive consequences on livelihoods. “As countries continue to experience the fall out and economic disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, we believe governments should proceed cautiously before adding stresses to the global trading system,” warned Eva Hampl, USCIB senior director for trade, investment and financial services.

USCIB also stressed the importance of ensuring compatibility with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, warning that some elements of the EU CBAM proposal are unclear, which may lead to time-consuming disputes and delay the positive potential for deployment of innovative technologies and materials vital to climate change action, as well as hinder economic growth and recovery.

Hampl added: “Any further development of this currently counter-productive proposal must avoid and head off climate disputes at the WTO that may lead to unpredictable or unintended negative outcomes in environment, climate and trade negotiations.”

On technical practicality and administrative burdens, USCIB’s recommendation included reducing those burdens and the associated costs of compliance, which would inevitably subtract from resources available for other areas of environmental improvement.

USCIB believes that synergies between trade and environment protection should be the focus of international cooperation, and unilateral measures should be discouraged.

“Open trade advances economic prosperity and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and it is an essential vehicle to achieve widespread and rapid deployment of climate-related investments and cleaner and more efficient technologies and forms of energy,” emphasized Kennedy. “To meet the commitments and objectives of the SDGs, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement, it is clear that more trade will be needed.”

For more information:

Earlier this year, USCIB published a paper Seeking Synergies: Environment, Climate and Trade Policy.

USCIB Competition Committee Hosts DOJ Antitrust Division Deputy

Published on November 4, 2020

USCIB’s Competition Committee held its fall meeting on October 28 in a virtual format due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Following welcome and introductory remarks by Dina Kallay (Ericsson) and Jennifer Patterson (Arnold & Porter), Chair and Vice Chair of the Committee, respectively, the group received an update on the upcoming meetings of the OECD Competition Committee from John Taladay (Baker Botts), Chair of the Business at OECD (“BIAC”) Competition Committee, and on the current work of the ICC Competition Commission from USCIB Senior Director for Trade, Investment, and Financial Services Eva Hampl.

The meeting featured Alexander Okuliar, deputy assistant attorney general, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), as the main speaker. Okuliar recently returned to the DOJ following two decades at both federal antitrust agencies and the private sector, and is responsible for civil merger and conduct investigations and litigation. He delivered remarks to USCIB members that included the DOJ’s recent work regarding competition in digital markets; the recent DOJ Business Review Letter to IEEE; and China, including due process challenges in China’s antimonopoly agencies and the new China Standards 2035 policy. Following his remarks, DAAG Okuliar engaged in an open Q&A session with committee members.

The Committee, under the direction of Kallay also discussed various issues of concern, including on advocacy for international convergence re compliance. Finally, Lisa Kimmel (Crowell & Moring) provided the group an update of the recent report of the House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative law, on the Investigation of Competition in Digital Markets.

 

US Nominates Liddell for OECD Secretary General

Published on November 4, 2020
Chris Liddell

The United States government formally nominated Chris Liddell on October 20 to be the next Secretary General of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the influential Paris-based thirty-seven-member international economic policy group.  Current OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria’s third five-year term will expire mid-2021. The selection process is underway with multiple candidates nominated, headed toward a final selection in early 2021.

Liddell is currently serving as Assistant to the President and White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Coordination. He is a dual national, American and his native New Zealand. According to USCIB Senior Advisor and Former U.S. Ambassador Shaun Donnelly, Liddell brings a very impressive private sector resume to his current White House senior position and to his OECD candidacy. Prior to joining the Trump Administration, Liddell served as Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer at General Motors, where he led global finance operations and managed the company’s $23 billion IPO in November 2010, which, at that time, was the largest public offering in history. Liddell has more than three decades of experience in corporate leadership, including Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Microsoft Corporation and Chief Financial Officer of International Paper.

USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson welcomed Liddell’s nomination. “We at USCIB are pleased to see the U.S. government coming forward with a strong nominee for the important OECD Secretary General position, succeeding Angel Gurria with whom we have enjoyed working over the past fourteen years,” said Robinson. “We are particularly pleased to see a nominee with strong private sector background and hands-on policy experience at the top levels of the U.S. government. The competition for the post will be tough with other strong nominees but there has never been an OECD Secretary General from the U.S.”

The nomination process closed on November 1. The governments of Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Geece, Poland, Switzerland and Sweden have also formally nominated candidates for the Secretary General position. The United Kingdom Ambassador, as Dean (i.e. longest serving) of the OECD’s Council of Ambassadors, is leading the selection process. According to Donnelly, the target is to have the next Secretary General elected by the Council by March 1, 2021 and in place for a five-year term beginning June 1, 2021, presumably shortly after the organization’s annual Ministerial meeting scheduled to take place in Paris.

“USCIB and our business colleagues in the OECD’s Business at OECD (”BIAC”) organization hope to be able to play a constructive, informal role in the selection process,” said Donnelly.

USCIB Provides Feedback on AI to the National Institute of Standards and Technology

Published on October 21, 2020

As the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) works on its principles of explainable “Artificial Intelligence (AI),” USCIB welcomed an opportunity to submit comments on behalf of its members. The comments, sent to the NIST Director and Undersecretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology Dr. Walter Copan, draw from industry experience, as well as from USCIB’s direct input to the development of the OECD’s AI Principles through USCIB’s affiliation with Business at OECD (known as “BIAC”).

“NIST’s effort represents a positive first step in terms of grappling with the issue of AI explainability,” remarked USCIB Vice President for ICT Policy Barbara Wanner. “The draft, and NIST’s broader program to develop approaches to AI trustworthiness, should significantly contribute to the private and public sector’s understanding of the many considerations necessary to implement AI, while ultimately enabling broader, faster and more responsible use of AI. We believe that, to be most effective, humans and machines should collaborate, combining their respective strengths to provide sustainable value for consumers, businesses, governments and society.”

In its comments, USCIB also highlighted the work of USCIB members such as Facebook, Google, IBM and Microsoft within an Experts Group that developed the OECD’s AI Principles. The U.S. government also contributed actively to the development of the OECD principles, under the leadership of the State Department.  On May 22, 2019, the OECD’s 36 member countries, along with Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, and Romania,  endorsed the OECD Council Recommendation on Artificial Intelligence. The principles contained in the recommendation were subsequently endorsed by the G20.

USCIB Delegation Makes Interventions at UN Meetings on Investment Reform

Published on October 14, 2020

USCIB member Lauren Mandell from Wilmer Hale and USCIB Senior Director Eva Hampl represented the USCIB delegation at the meetings of the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Working Group III on Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) Reform that took place October 5-9. The meeting sought to address a variety of issues crucial to USCIB and its membership.

USCIB participated in the discussions as an observer and made interventions on alternative dispute resolution and mediation, shareholder claims and reflective loss, frivolous claims, as well as treaty interpretation.

“USCIB appreciated the opportunity to make interventions at UNICTRAL,” said Hampl. “As next steps, we are planning a briefing with the U.S. government negotiators in these discussions to take place in November.”

The next meeting of UNCITRAL Working Group III will take place April 12-16, 2021 in New York. UNICTRAL will also hold a Virtual Pre-intersessional Meeting of the working group on November 9.