News Stories Archives

USCIB Issues Recommendations for WTO Modernization

Published on January 14, 2019

As World Trade Organization (WTO) member governments move forward this year with efforts to reform the WTO, USCIB issued recommendations on how business can support the WTO and its efforts to improve the organization.  USCIB’s recommendations also noted the importance of the WTO as a cornerstone of the global rules-based trading system that has helped spread growth and development for decades.

USCIB recommendations focused on addressing subsidies and other market-distorting support provided to state-owned enterprises (SOEs), the establishment of new rules for current issues such as digital trade and customs processes on electronic transmissions, and ensuring a properly functioning appellate body, among others.

“Our recommendations for modernizing the WTO should not in any way be read as questioning the business support for WTO,” said USCIB Senior Vice President Rob Mulligan. “Instead, they are intended to highlight areas for action that would strengthen the ability of the organization to more effectively meet the demands of a changing world as it deals with the rapid evolution of technology that can quickly reshape the way companies do business and operate globally. USCIB believes that effective WTO dispute settlement is a critical part of the global rules-based trading system.”

USCIB’s recommendations also urged Member States, as they continue to discuss modernization and improvements of the WTO and its underlying agreements, to be mindful that among the WTO Member States, private entities conduct the transactions that constitute trade and investment.

“The private sector has a direct stake in the rules that will be the outcome of the government-to-government discussions and, accordingly, private sector comments and recommendations should be actively solicited and given careful consideration by the Member States,” added Mulligan.

Donnelly Stresses Need for US Commercial Diplomacy

Published on January 9, 2019

The January-February edition of The Foreign Service Journal, which examines economic diplomacy from many angles—and from all over the world, included a piece from USCIB Vice President Shaun Donnelly, who is a former U.S. Ambassador. Donnelly’s piece “Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has made commercial diplomacy a foreign policy priority. Here’s how to get it right,” was co-authored with Daniel Crocker, a foreign commercial service vice president on the governing board of the American Foreign Service Association.

Donnelly and Crocker outline six critical elements in an effective U.S. economic/commercial diplomacy program, including that top leaders must be personally involved and that American business has a broad agenda in today’s and tomorrow’s global economy.

“As American companies compete to grow, prosper and win, they will need support from the government across a much wider agenda: services, regulatory coherence, license arrangements, international joint ventures, supply chain relationships, inward investment to the United States and outward investment by U.S companies to foreign markets,” Donnelly and Crocker note in the article. “A truly supportive, comprehensive “Team USG” approach to support our companies will have to be able to address that full range of issues.”

Three fundamental realities underline the importance for our country of an effective economic/commercial diplomacy program. First, more than 80 percent of global purchasing power now lies outside the United States, including several large emerging markets with annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates that are double our own, or more. Second, it’s an ultra-competitive world; in all key sectors, American companies face broader, deeper and more aggressive foreign competitors, some of whom promote their standards, military platforms and state-subsidized or state-owned companies for both commercial and political gain.

US-China Trade: Hampl Speaks With BBC Radio

Published on January 8, 2019
USCIB’s Eva Hampl

As talks between the United States and China aimed at de-escalating their tariff war ended their first day, USCIB Senior Director for Investment, Trade and Financial Services Eva Hampl spoke with BBC World News on what American business wants out of the negotiations.

Hampl said the business community wants to see progress on fundamental market-access concerns they face in China, and would be disappointed with more cosmetic takeaways from the talks. But she warned that the Trump administration’s strategy of applying tariff pressure across the entirety of U.S.-China trade could prove counter-productive.

“We see this as a very heavy-handed approach” said Hampl. “We would prefer a more targeted approach to address the underlying issues of IP and forced tech transfer.”

Click here to listen to the full report on the BBC website.

USCIB Outlines Priorities for Trade Agreement With Japan

Published on January 2, 2019
USCIB submitted comments to USTR outlining negotiating objectives for a U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement
Japan is currently the fourth largest goods trading partner of the U.S.

 

USCIB submitted comments in late 2018 to the United States Trade Representative (USTR) outlining negotiating objectives for a U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement. USCIB supports negotiation of a comprehensive trade agreement with Japan as part of a broader strategy to open international markets for U.S. companies and remove barriers and unfair trade practices in support of U.S. jobs. USCIB outlined its priority issues, which include digital trade, intellectual property, media and entertainment services, investment, customs and trade facilitation, express delivery services, electronic payment services, regulatory coherence, government procurement and financial services.

Japan is currently the fourth largest goods trading partner of the U.S. and in 2017, Japan was the United States’ fourth largest export market as well. U.S. goods and services trade with Japan totaled an estimated $283.6 billion in 2017, with exports totaling $114 billion. The U.S. also has a surplus in services trade with Japan, totaling $13.4 billion.

“A successful trade agreement with Japan should cover not just market access for goods, but also address important services issues, as well as issues like digital trade and intellectual property,” said USCIB Senior Director for Investment, Trade and Financial Services Eva Hampl. “We look forward to working with the Administration toward a favorable outcome for U.S. business in a U.S.-Japan FTA.”

USCIB welcomed the conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) back in October 2015, noting at the time that a comprehensive, market-opening agreement would provide a significant boost to the United States.  The Administration has released negotiating objectives for a U.S.-Japan FTA, negotiations for which may begin as soon as late January.

USCIB in the News: Taxes, Trade and Tariffs

Published on December 13, 2018

USCIB’s voice and views were reflected in many of the top stories of the past several months, which saw a heavy focus on taxes, trade and tariffs. USCIB and its global network were featured prominently in numerous stories covering NAFTA modernization, China tariffs and the OECD’s work on global tax policy.

In October, USCIB CEO and President Peter Robinson contributed a letter to the Financial Times in response to an editorial urging action on the digital divide. In his letter, Robinson noted that “public-private partnerships are indeed needed to broaden access to the internet, and companies are already moving ahead in this regard, in addition to taking action on their own.”

In discussing G20 trade tensions, USCIB Senior Vice President Rob Mulligan sat down with BBC World News to do a live television interview. Mulligan said that Trump is right to address the balance of trade between the U.S. and China, but that tariffs aren’t the answer and will ultimately cause higher prices and job losses.

To read more of USCIB activity in the media, please visit this link.

USCIB Submits Negotiation Objectives for US-EU Trade Deal

Published on December 11, 2018
USCIB submitted negotiation objectives for a U.S.-EU Trade Agreement to USTR.
The EU countries together make up the number one export market for the U.S., with goods exports to the EU in 2016 totaling $269.6 billion, constituting 18.6% of total U.S. goods exports.

 

USCIB submitted negotiation objectives for a U.S.-EU Trade Agreement to the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on December 11. The submission was filed in response to USTR’s request for comments and emphasized the importance of a comprehensive negotiation, covering not only market access for goods, but also critical services issues.

The USTR request for comments follows the Trump administration’s announcement to Congress on October 16 of its intention to initiate negotiations on a U.S.-EU Trade Agreement. USCIB supports negotiation of a comprehensive trade agreement with the EU as part of a broader strategy to open international markets for U.S. companies and remove barriers and unfair trade practices in support of U.S. jobs. USCIB priority issues for negotiation of a U.S.-EU agreement include investment, customs and trade facilitation, express delivery services, improved regulatory cohesion, digital trade, intellectual property, government procurement and SOEs, and financial services.

“The EU is an important trade partner for the United States,” said USCIB Senior Director for Investment, Trade and Financial Services Eva Hampl. “USCIB members see the value of common approaches toward establishing a more integrated and barrier-free transatlantic marketplace. Regulatory discrimination and differentiation across the Atlantic is an increasingly frustrating obstacle to trade, investment and the ability to conduct business.”

USCIB supported the negotiations of a comprehensive, high-standard U.S.-EU trade agreement, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), which commenced in 2013 and aspired to eliminate tariff and no-tariff barriers on goods and services trade between the U.S. and the EU. These negotiations were halted by the current administration, but the range of issues that were on the table at the time, ranging from strong investment protections, to increased trade facilitation, and regulatory coherence, continue to be of great importance to our members.

The EU countries together make up the number one export market for the United States, with goods exports to the EU in 2016 totaling $269.6 billion, constituting 18.6% of total U.S. goods exports. U.S. goods and services trade with the EU totaled nearly $1.1 trillion in 2016, with exports totaling $501 billion. The United States also has a surplus in services trade with the EU, totaling $55 billion in 2016. According to Hampl, a successful trade agreement with the EU should cover not just market access for goods, but also address important services issues.

Annual APEC Summit Fails to Reach Consensus

Published on December 5, 2018

The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leadership Summit held its annual summit this year in Papua New Guinea (PNG) November 12-18, but for the first time in the Forum’s history, economies attending failed to reach consensus. The area of contention was around the Multilateral Trade System (MTS) section. This was also the first year that USCIB did not send a delegation to the APEC Summit, however USCIB contributed to earlier meetings this year, including the APEC meetings in Chile held September 11-12, which produced new principles in transit.

“This is clearly a disappointing outcome,” said USCIB Vice President for Product Policy and Innovation Mike Michener, who coordinates USCIB’s work on APEC. “APEC’s strength is the ability of member economies to find consensus on topics of mutual benefit, like trade. It is apparent that differing visions of trade policy blocked agreement for the first time in nearly 30 years.”

Following the summit, PNG released Statements to highlight what has been accomplished this year, including a reaffirmation of APEC’s commitment to achieve balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure economic growth and prosperity in the APEC region, while pledging to combat protectionism and unfair trade practices. The Statements also emphasized the need to reform the World Trade Organization (WTO) in order to improve and strengthen the body to better address existing and emerging global trade challenges.

Furthermore, the Statement noted continuing support for the Work Program on E-commerce to advance initiatives on e-commerce, investment, small and medium enterprises, and trade and women’s economic empowerment.

For the 2018 APEC year, PNG chose the theme of “Harnessing Inclusive Opportunities, Embracing the Digital Future.” APEC will be led by Chile in 2019 and will focus on the digital economy, regional connectivity, and women’s role in economic growth. Chile previously hosted APEC in 2004.

G20 Highlights 2019 Priority Issues in Leaders Declaration

Published on December 5, 2018

As Japan prepares to assume the role of host of the G20/B20 in 2019, G20 leaders issued a Declaration on December 1, outlining items needed to build consensus for fair and sustainable development.

According to USCIB Vice President for ICT Policy Barbara Wanner, there is noteworthy focus in the Declaration on the digital economy. “Of the 31 points, at least three of the top ten focus on the opportunities and challenges of digital transformation,” noted Wanner. “Points 6-7 focus primarily on potential job displacement and the need for reskilling and vocational training while point 9 draws upon the work of the G20 Digital Task Force. This underscores the importance of bridging the gender digital divide, securing the use of ICTs, and ensuring the free flow of information, ideas, and knowledge ‘while respecting applicable legal frameworks and working to build consumer trust, privacy, data protection, and intellectual property rights protections.’” Point 9 of the Declaration also calls for the establishment of a G20 Repository of Digital Policies to share and promote adoption of innovative digital economy business models.

Beyond the digital economy, G20 leaders pointed out other critical areas of work, such as international trade and investment, which serve as engines of growth, productivity, innovation, job creation and development. However, the group added that the multilateral trading system has fallen short on some objectives and voiced continued support for the necessary reform of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to improve its functioning. The Group also reaffirmed its commitment towards preventing and fighting corruption.

On sustainable development, leaders emphasized commitment to leading the transformation towards sustainable development and support for the United Nations 2030 Development Agenda as the framework for advancing the G20 Action Plan. Regarding the role of energy, the G20 leaders recognize the opportunities for innovation, growth, and job creation, while acknowledging the role of all energy sources and technologies in the energy mix and different national paths to achieve cleaner energy systems.

The G20 focused this year on infrastructure for development, the future of work, and a sustainable food future and a gender mainstreaming strategy across the G20 agenda.

OECD Emphasizes Adverse Impact of US-China Trade Tensions on Economy

Published on November 26, 2018

The OECD’s semi-annual Economic Outlook, issued on November 21, warns that U.S.-China trade tensions are adversely affecting the global economic outlook and that the majority of the burden will be felt by U.S. consumers.  And if the U.S.-China trade disputes continue to escalate, world trade could reduce significantly by 2021.  In his remarks presenting the latest Economic Outlook, OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria highlighted downward adjustments in OECD’s forecasts for GDP growth rates from their May Outlook: dropping from 3.7% to 3.5% growth globally for 2019, with an additional 3.5% drop in 2020.

For the U.S. specifically, the OECD forecast for 2019 growth drops from 2.9% in May to 2.7% in this report and a further drop to 2.1% in 2020. For Europe’s “Euro Area”, the OECD now estimates 1.6% (down from 1.8% in the May Outlook) and 1.6% growth again in 2020. For China, the OECD is now forecasting 6.32% annual growth in 2019 (down from 6.6% in the May forecast) and 6.3% growth again in 2020.  The slides from the OECD presentation demonstrate in more detail key trends the OECD identifies over the coming years.

Gurria highlighted one major reason for this decline in global growth prospects is a breakdown in international cooperation. The imposition of new tariffs and uncertainty about further restrictive trade actions are contributing to a marked slowdown in trade growth, dampening global investment and threatening jobs and living standards. The international rules-based system that has governed trade since the end of the Second World War has been undermined. Gurria’s perspective is blunt – “Protectionism is not the answer.” While Gurria does not explicitly call out U.S. trade policies, it seems clear that the U.S.-China trades disputes and U.S. more aggressive unilateral trade policy are significant factors helping drive down global economic forecasts.

USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson took note of the OECD’s semi-annual Economic Outlook. “The OECD has earned international respect for its detailed and apolitical economic outlooks,” said Robinson.  “All of us – governments, businesses and citizens – need to take heed to this OECD alarm bell.  Economic growth is the force that drives investment, trade, jobs and better lives for citizens around the world.  It seems clear that one key concerns causing the OECD and other experts to adjust their economic forecasts downward is increased protectionism.  I agree with Secretary General Gurria that protectionism is not a solution; protectionism begets protectionism and downward pressures.  We call upon the U.S. government, as well as other leading trade powers, to reject protectionism and provide global leadership to open trade and investment opportunities around the world.”

The OECD’s press release provides an excellent summary of their key analysis, findings and recommendations.

WATAC Raises Awareness About Carnets Among Indian Exports and Customs

Published on November 20, 2018
USCIB Senior Vice President and CFO Declan Daly, who oversees USCIB’s ATA Carnet department, attended the meetings.
WATAC discussed and reviewed the operation and administration of the ATA Carnet System in member countries with the aim of spreading awareness about ATA Carnet among Indian exports and Indian customs.

 

Meetings of the World ATA Carnet Council (WATAC), were held in Jaipur, India on November 15-16 at Hotel Jai Mahal Palace and SMS Convention Centre respectively. USCIB Senior Vice President and CFO Declan Daly, who oversees USCIB’s ATA Carnet department, attended the meetings. WATAC discussed and reviewed the operation and administration of the ATA Carnet System in member countries with the aim of spreading awareness about ATA Carnet among Indian exports and Indian customs.

“Being that this was my first WATAC meeting, it was a great opportunity to meet member colleagues from all around the world,” said Daly.

The meeting was jointly organized by WATAC, which is part of the International Chamber of Commerce, and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry under the aegis of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), which is part of India’s ministry of finance.

The ATA Carnet is the global gold standard for temporary admissions under the auspices of the World Customs Organization. ATA Carnets are international tools of trade facilitation, which serve as a temporary export-import documentation. The ATA System is in place in 87 countries and territories, and provides duty-free and tax-free imports on goods that will be re-exported within 12 months.