Trade and Investment Archives

2017 USCIB International Leadership Award Dinner

USCIB is delighted to honor Ajay Banga, president and chief executive officer of MasterCard. Each year this gala event attracts several hundred industry leaders, government officials and members of the diplomatic community to celebrate open markets and the recipient of USCIB’s highest honor.

Established in 1980, USCIB’s International Leadership Award is presented to a senior business executive who has made significant policy contributions to world trade and investment, and to improving the global competitive framework in which American business operates. Join us for what will be a truly memorable evening!

Donnelly Testifies on NAFTA at USTR-led Public Hearings

Published on June 30, 2017

With the Trump administration having served notice of its intention to modernize the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), USCIB has been advocating for modernization of certain aspects of NAFTA through op-eds, testimonies and meetings. Most recently, USCIB Vice President for Trade and Finance Shaun Donnelly presented USCIB views at the “NAFTA Testimony” hearings held on June 27 at the International Trade Commission (ITC). While held at the ITC, USTR was running the three days of public hearings. Staff from Commerce, State, Treasury, Department of Homeland Security, and Agriculture also sat on the panel and joined in questioning presenters.

Donnelly’s testimony stemmed USCIB’s written submission, which had been developed with member input, focused on NAFTA’s importance to U.S. business and that it should be updated given that it is no longer a “cutting edge” trade agreement. “By all means, update, modernize,” said Donnelly. “But NAFTA does not need a fundamental “root and branch” renegotiation. Give NAFTA a facelift, not a lobotomy,” he emphasized.

Donnelly also highlighted five key messages from USCIB’s written submission:

  1. Get strong digital economy provisions into NAFTA – e-commerce, cross border data flows, telecoms competition, prohibitions on data localization requirements.
  2. Update other key areas – e.g. standards and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBTs), cover new forms of services, strengthen IPR provisions and enforcement to incentivize innovation, develop a meaningful chapter on State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs).
  3. Update and strengthen customs and trade facilitation provisions; get higher de minimis levels.
  4. Strong investment provisions are essential. Implementation/arbitration through Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) is essential. ISDS works and it is important for many U.S. investors even in North America; don’t be seduced by criticism from the EU and NGOs about ISDS or the EU’s investment court proposal.
  5. Government Procurement chapter is important and its working. It’s balanced. Don’t rip it up. U.S. firms are selling a lot of goods and services to Canadian and Mexican government entities.

“Do the update quickly, seriously, trilaterally, in transparent manner, based on real issues of concern to the U.S. business community not with a political focus on bilateral trade balances or imposing unilateral trade barriers,” Donnelly concluded. “Work with U.S. business, we want to be partners in this important exercise.”

 

 

USCIB Pushes for a Pro-Business Policy in Multilateral Forums

Published on June 27, 2017

As an increasing number of multilateral organizations consider proposals to keep business out of policy deliberations, USCIB met with Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Organizations (IO) Affairs Nerissa Cook on June 26 to encourage the administration to implement a consistent pro-business access policy in multilateral forums and to build on existing positive interactions between the UN and U.S. business.

The State Department has the lead for managing U.S. government engagement with international organizations, including many in the UN system which take decisions impacting U.S. business interests from the standpoint of regulations, norms and standards in the global marketplace.  USCIB members have voiced concerns about several of these bodies, such as the World Health Organization (WHO), whose rules limit engagement with some private sector interests and set business-discriminatory precedents across the UN system.

“We appreciate the strong efforts across the State Department, IO and EB to advance and protect U.S. business interests,” said Mike Michener, USCIB’s vice president for product policy and innovation, who leads USCIB work in the health, agriculture, and chemicals policy.  “American business strongly supports continued U.S. government engagement in multilateral forums particularly where decisions are being made that impact U.S. business bottom lines.  Moreover, business brings its commitment, innovation, know-how, and investment to solving the very problems that these UN agencies seek to address via the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. UN agencies stand to benefit from employing the inclusive multi-stakeholder partnership approach used by the UN Environment Program (UNEP) in the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) and the Montreal, Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm treaties.”

In concluding the discussion, USCIB President and CEO, Peter Robinson, highlighted the practical importance of good governance principles throughout the UN, stating, “access, transparency and accountability to the U.S. private sector are prerequisites for business engagement in implementation of UN initiatives and policies.”

 

Donnelly Talks NAFTA in California

Published on June 27, 2017

USCIB Vice President for Investment and Trade Shaun Donnelly traveled to Riverside, California to address the Inland Southern California World Affairs Council on “NAFTA: Is It Good or Bad for America?” on June 22.  Clue – the correct answer is GOOD!  Donnelly, a retired U.S. diplomat and trade negotiator, laid out the history of NAFTA and broader U.S. trade policy and the key issues currently on the table as the U.S. government heads into a major effort to update the 23 year-old agreement with the Canadian and Mexican governments.

Addressing an audience of academics, students, business and community leaders plus Mexican consular representatives from the local consulate, Donnelly made clear the strong and broad support for NAFTA, and an updated, strengthened NAFTA, across USCIB’s membership and the broader business community.

“NAFTA has, on balance, clearly been advantageous to all three countries,” noted Donnelly.  “It’s time to update the agreement to address new issues but we should be thinking in terms of ‘a facelift, not a lobotomy.’”

USCIB To Testify on NAFTA at Interagency Panel

Published on June 27, 2017

Following up on the June 12 formal written submission to the Office of the US Trade Representative, USCIB will testify before the USTR-led interagency panel on “NAFTA Modernization” this week.  USCIB Vice President for Investment and Trade Shaun Donnelly will participate on Panel 8 “General Trade Matters” at 4:00pm today.  The hearings, which are open to the public, are scheduled to run 9:00 am to 8:00 pm at the Main Hearing Room of the U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street, SW, Washington, DC 20436.

Donnelly will draw on the USCIB written submission, developed with strong input from its members across its cross-sectoral membership.

The group calls on the administration to update the 20 year-old pact to accommodate new realities in global commerce, including the rise of the digital economy, while keeping what works from the original agreement.

“Our member companies, who collectively encompass America’s most successful enterprises on the global stage, strongly support modernization of NAFTA,” said USCIB President and CEO Peter M. Robinson. “But they are united in believing that this must take place 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 calls upon the administration to update and strengthen key NAFTA provisions, including the liberalization and protection of investment flows, protection of intellectual property, trade facilitation and improved agricultural market access. It also recommends tackling new areas not included or anticipated in the original agreement a quarter-century ago, such as the digital provision of goods and services, data localization requirements, treatment of state-owned enterprises. It further urges U.S. negotiators to work closely with a range of private-sector stakeholders to ensure that a revamped agreement meets business needs in the 21st century.

USCIB Members Play Lead Role at 2017 SelectUSA

Published on June 23, 2017

President Donald Trump‘s administration has adopted and expanded upon the Obama Administration’s “SelectUSA” annual conference to promote foreign direct investment (FDI) into the U.S. The 2017 “SelectUSA” conference was held June 18-20 at National Harbor in suburban Maryland, outside Washington.  Senior Executives from USCIB member companies including General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt and UPS President of Global Public Affairs Laura Lane, as well as representatives from Deloitte, Lockheed Martin, AT&T and JPMorgan Chase shared the podium as speakers in plenary, panels and breakout sessions with U.S. cabinet members, state development officials, and foreign business leaders.

USCIB congratulates the Administration for the successful conference and commends them for recognizing the importance of FDI for U.S. economic growth, global competitiveness and job creation.  Details on the SelectUSA’17 conference are available here.  Questions about SelectUSA or U.S. government support for foreign investment into the United States should be addressed to SelectUSA office at the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Robinson’s Op-ed in The Hill on Modernizing NAFTA

Published on June 21, 2017

USCIB President and CEO Peter M. Robinson wrote an Op-ed in The Hill, “How to Modernize NAFTA: First, do no Harm.”

Robinson cites a recent study by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, since the agreement’s implementation, U.S. trade with Canada and Mexico has more than tripled, with a positive impact on U.S. GDP of 0.5 percent, or several billion dollars of added growth per year.

However, he also writes that NAFTA needs to be updated in a way that solidifies the gains Americans have reaped from these transformations, while further enhancing our competitiveness.

The Op-ed is available here.

USCIB Urges Administration to Push Anti-Bribery Agenda in G20

Published on June 19, 2017

USCIB joined with the Coalition for Integrity, the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable and the AFL-CIO in a June 13 letter to President Donald Trump urging the administration to push aggressively for other leading global trading nations to match U.S. efforts against international bribery and corruption.  Specifically, the group urged the administration to press all of the 41 signatory countries to the OECD’s Anti-bribery Convention to take concrete steps to strengthen their implementation and enforcement of their foreign bribery laws.

In the context of the G20, USCIB joined in urging the administration to press for all G20 countries to become signatories and full partners in that OECD convention by the end of 2018.  Currently four G20 members (China, India, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia) have not signed the OECD Anti-bribery Convention.

The G20 Summit meeting will be held July 7-9 in Hamburg, Germany.

 

 

USCIB Emphasizes Government Role in Labor Migration Policy at ILC

Published on June 16, 2017
USCIB Vice President for Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs gives remarks during the International Labor Conference in Geneva, Switzerland

USCIB Vice President for Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs Gabriella Rigg Herzog was among approximately 6,000 delegates who attended the 106th session of the International Labor Conference (ILC) in Geneva, Switzerland (June 5-16). The ILC touched upon pressing global issues such as the application of labor standards, peace and stability, women in the workplace, immigration and climate change. Herzog attended the ILC as a member of the U.S. Employers Delegation, headed by Ed Potter, USCIB senior counsel and U.S. employer spokesperson to the International Labor Organization (ILO) Governing Body.

Herzog gave remarks at the Committee for Labor Migration, emphasizing the important role the ILO has to play in ensuring that labor migration policies are grounded in sound facts in order to assist governments in devising and implementing policies in ways that work for both employers and workers.

“Labor migration is a necessary and important phenomenon,” said Herzog in her remarks. “It can help fulfill personal aspirations, balance labor supply and demand, spark innovation, and develop and transfer skills.  But for workers to be able to move of their own volition, where and when their labor is needed and valued, and with their rights protected, governments must have clear, transparent and efficient migration policies.”

Update NAFTA, but Keep What’s Working, Says USCIB

Published on June 13, 2017

Washington, D.C., June 13, 2017 – The United States Council for International Business (USCIB), which represents the global interests of American companies, has released its recommendations to the Trump administration on priorities for the modernization of the North American Free Trade Agreement. The group calls on the administration to update the 20 year-old pact to accommodate new realities in global commerce, including the rise of the digital economy, while keeping what works from the original agreement.

“Our member companies, who collectively encompass America’s most successful enterprises on the global stage, strongly support modernization of NAFTA,” said USCIB President and CEO Peter M. Robinson. “But they are united in believing that this must take place 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 calls upon the administration to update and strengthen key NAFTA provisions, including the liberalization and protection of investment flows, protection of intellectual property, trade facilitation and improved agricultural market access. It also recommends tackling new areas not included or anticipated in the original agreement a quarter-century ago, such as the digital provision of goods and services, data localization requirements, treatment of state-owned enterprises. It further urges U.S. negotiators to work closely with a range of private-sector stakeholders to ensure that a revamped agreement meets business needs in the 21st century.

The USCIB statement notes that, since NAFTA’s implementation, U.S. trade with Canada and Mexico has more than tripled, with a positive impact on U.S. GDP of 0.5%, or several billion dollars of added growth per year. It cites a recent study by the Peterson Institute for International Economics which found that NAFTA did not foster noticeable growth in the overall U.S. trade deficit, and that increased trade with Mexico did not perceptibly raise U.S. unemployment.

USCIB says that several other areas currently covered by the agreement also require modernization, including rules on intellectual property protection, regulatory cooperation, services market access, and customs and trade facilitation. The group says that language agreed during the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations provides a useful foundation on these topics upon which to build for NAFTA modernization, as Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer have remarked. In other areas where NAFTA disciplines have stood the test of time, USCIB is urging the administration to focus on ensuring that those provisions not be weakened.

About USCIB:
USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and regulatory coherence. Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms from every sector of our economy, with operations in every region of the world. As the U.S. affiliate of several leading international business organizations, 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, USCIB
Tel: +1 917 420 0039
jhuneke@uscib.org