President
Bush Issues Changes to GSP and Other Agreements
United States and Oman Conclude Free Trade Agreement
U.S. –Morocco FTA Effective January
1
Customs Delays Implementation of Wood Packaging Rules
New Travel Rules Instituted
State Department Expedites Visa Issuance for Foreign Business Travelers
Most Popular Locations for Low Cost Sourcing Ranked in Survey
China Drops Dollar-Yuan Peg, Shifts to Currency Basket
South Korea and Singapore Sign FTA
Japan and Thailand Conclude Free Trade Pact
Vietnam Seeks to Join WTO by 2006
President Bush Issues Changes to GSP and Other Agreements
President Bush issued Proclamation 7912 containing changes that
went into effect July 1 to modify duty-free treatment under the
Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and certain rules of
origin under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA),
as well as a variety of other import-related changes, including
the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004
and the AGOA Acceleration Act of 2004.
The
changes will provide expanded duty-free trade benefits to Thailand,
Indonesia, and other countries devastated by the December
2004 tsunami, and facilitate increased imports from
Iraq. The proclamation also designated Serbia and Montenegro
as eligible for benefits under the GSP program.
The
Administration determined that over $1 billion in imports from
selected developing
countries are competitive in the U.S. market, and thus decided
that these items should no longer be eligible for duty-free
treatment under the GSP program. Importers must now pay normal
tariff rates
on these items. GSP benefits were restored to many goods of
India and Pakistan, including hand-woven rugs, jewelry, contact
lenses,
electrostatic photocopying apparatus, certain food products,
and other items.
Proclamation 7912 can be accessed on-line at: www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/06/20050629-8.html
A Federal Register notice providing the details of the changes
implemented by
the proclamation can be accessed on-line at: www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html search
term "37959." Select the PDF link for the document title that
reads "fr30jn05E To Modify Duty-Free Treatment.
top
United States and Oman Conclude Free Trade Agreement
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced the completion
of a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA) designed to eliminate
tariffs and barriers and expand trade between the U.S and Oman.
The Administration has notified Congress that the President
intends to sign the agreement.
The
USTR stated that the FTA with Oman builds on existing agreements
with Israel, Jordan, Morocco and Bahrain, noting that the United
States is negotiating an FTA with the United Arab Emirates and
has signed eight Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFA)
with Middle East nations.
U.S.
manufactured exports to Oman in 2004 totaled $330 million,
including machinery, automobiles,
optic and medical instruments, and electrical machinery;
and U.S.
exports of agricultural products to Oman in 2004 totaled $20 million, including
vegetable oils, and sugars, sweeteners, and beverage bases.
Source: www.ustr.gov
top
U.S. – Morocco FTA Effective January 1
Although it's been postponed several times, trade officials say
the U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement is expected to be implemented
on January 1, 2006. The latest delay was due to the Moroccan
government's need for more time to implement certain commitments
regarding intellectual property rights protection. According
to the U.S. Trade Representative, once the pact comes into
force, 95 percent of the two-way trade in industrial and consumer
products will be duty-free.
Source: www.ustr.gov
top
Customs Delays Implementation of Wood Packaging Rules
Customs said it will delay the enforcement of new standards for
treating wood packaging to help minimize the importation of potentially
destructive insects until February 1, 2006. The new requirements
were supposed to go into effect September 16. Customs said it
will instead implement a period of informed compliance from September
16 - January 31 to notify shippers of cargo that does not comply
with the new treatment requirements. The agency said it will
reject and re-export non-compliant shipments, beginning February
1. Full enforcement is slated to begin July 5, when non-compliant
materials will not be allowed to enter the U.S. Customs has set
up a temporary toll-free phone number to field questions about
the new rules, at 866-738-8197. International shippers can call
301-734-5346.
Source: www.cbp.gov
top
New Travel Rules Instituted
The latest banned item on U.S. flights is the lighter. Lighters
have not been permitted in checked luggage for more than
30 years because of the potential to start a fire in the
cargo hold, but
now you can no longer carry on a lighter at all. Passengers
are still permitted to carry on four books of safety matches.
The
Transportation Security Administration’s website has the
most recent travel restrictions at www.tsa.gov.
There are also some coming changes in the passport rules for
travel to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Bermuda and Panama.
By the end of 2005, you will need a passport to visit the Caribbean
and Bermuda, as well as Central and South America. For all transportation
by air or sea to Canada and Mexico, you will need a valid passport
by the end of 2006 to enter. All border crossings will require
a passport at the end of 2007. For updates on the latest passport
regulations, visit http://travel.state.gov.
Source: www.aaa.com
top
State Department Expedites Visa Issuance for Foreign Business
Travelers
Since 9-11 the difficulty of obtaining visas to enter the U.S.
has made it more difficult for American businesses to conclude
transactions with foreign buyers and suppliers. The U.S. State
Department announced the creation of a worldwide Business Visa
Center that will provide information to U.S. companies about
the application process for visas for those seeking to travel
to the U.S. for business purposes. The Center will work with
both the companies and the consular officers, when needed, to
communicate information effectively between U.S. businesses and
the embassies and consulates worldwide. The Business Visa Center
can be contacted via email at BusinessVisa@state.gov or by telephone
at 202-663-3198.
Source: www.state.gov
top
Most Popular Locations for Low Cost Sourcing Ranked in Survey
In a survey conducted by the Aberdeen Group of Boston, 48%
of companies surveyed said they expect to expand their
sourcing
in India, 44% in China, and 31% in Brazil during the next
3 years. The survey highlighted the importance of Brazil
as a source of
low-cost raw materials and components. Thirty-one percent
also said they expect to expand sourcing in Central Europe
and 21%
in Eastern Europe, largely because of the eastward expansion
of the European Union.
Source: www.joc.com
top
China Drops Dollar-Yuan Peg, Shifts to Currency Basket
On July 21, the Chinese government dropped the dollar-yuan exhange
rate fixed at 8.28 yuan to the dollar, and allowed the yuan to
float within a 2.1% range against a new basket of currencies
including the dollar, yen, won and euro. The new rate of exchange
between the dollar and yuan was fixed at 8.11 yuan to one U.S.
dollar. The shift to a basket of currencies means that the weight
allotted to each currency can be adjusted at any time, limiting
the size of yuan exchange rate shifts. The U.S. hopes a rise
in the yuan will slow down the rise of the U.S. trade deficit
with China.
China’s central bank publicly criticized foreign reports that
referred to the 2.1% revaluation as an initial adjustment. The
People’s Bank of China announced that the yuan was not adjusted
by 2% as an initial step, with further adjustments to come later.
Source: www.joc.com
top
South
Korea and Singapore Sign FTA
In August, South Korea and Singapore signed a free trade agreement
expected to take effect by the end of 2005. This is the second
free trade agreement South Korea has signed - the first was signed
with Chile in April 2004.
Details
of the FTA:
