Miscellaneous International Trade Notices
According to UAEInteract, global marine terminal operator DP World has been certified as a partner in U.S. Customs and Border Protection's C-TPAT (Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism) Program - the only international port operator to have achieved such recognition. (UAEInteract, dated 06/11/08, available at http://www.uaeinteract.com/docs/DP_World_joins_US_Security_Initiative_C-TPAT/30561.htm)
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1. DP World Becomes First Int'l Port Operator to Join C-TPAT
2. Senator Expresses Concern Over Korea's Delay of U.S. Beef Imports
Senator Thune has issued a press release expressing concern regarding the South Korean government's decision to delay the importation of U.S. beef, months after U.S. and Korean negotiators formed an agreement that would lift South Korea's ban on U.S. beef. (Press release, dated 06/02/08, available at http://thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=1ea3d1ce-8611-43ac-9971-0e913715cdc4.)
3. House Subcommittee Markup of FY 2009 DHS Appropriations Bill
On June 11, 2008, the House Appropriations Committee's Homeland Security Subcommittee approved for full Committee action the fiscal year (FY) 2009 Homeland Security Appropriations bill. (Congressional Record, dated 06/11/08, available at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/B?r110:@FIELD(FLD003d)@FIELD(DDATE20080611).)
4. House Passes Resolution on Spending Rebate Checks on American-Made Products
On June 11, 2008, the House of Representatives passed a resolution (H. Res. 977) to express the sense of the House that rebate checks would better stimulate the economy if spent on American-made products and services from American-owned companies. (H. Res. 977 available at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_bills&docid=f:hr977eh.txt.pdf.)
5. WTO Issues Trade Policy Review on the U.S.
According to a World Trade Organization Secretariat trade policy review of the U.S., openness and transparency of the U.S. trade regime have been key contributing factors to the efficiency that characterizes the U.S. economy. In the face of economic uncertainty, U.S. welfare would be best promoted by continuing to reduce barriers to market access and other distorting measures, including those that result from high levels of assistance in agriculture and energy. (WTO press release, dated 06/11/08, available at http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/tp300_e.htm)
6. EC Report on Safety Measures in Toy Supply Chain Released
European Consumer Affairs Commissioner Kuneva presented a report by independent experts entitled "Evaluating Business Safety Measures in the Toy Supply Chain." The report underlines that product safety cannot be guaranteed by final product testing alone but that it has to be a key part of the "quality culture" of an organization and needs to be embedded in the entire product supply chain. (EC press release, dated 06/05/08, available at http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/879&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en)
7. EU Announces Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement with U.S., Etc.
On June 3 and 4, 2008, representatives from the European Union and other economies held discussions on the proposed Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) at the U.S. Mission in Geneva. This was one of a series of meetings through which the participants plan to move negotiations on the agreement forward. Participants included Australia, Canada, the EU, Japan, Jordan, Korea, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, and the U.S. (EC press release, dated 06/05/08, available at http://ec.europa.eu/trade/issues/sectoral/intell_property/pr050608_en.htm)
8. European Study on Value-Added Methods for Textile Rules of Origin
The European Commission has posted a report entitled, "Study on the Application of Value Criteria for Textile Products in Preferential Rules of Origin." (Report available at http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2007/october/tradoc_136620.pdf)
9. European Study on Effect of End of Textile and Apparel Quotas on Prices
The EC has posted a report entitled, "Impacts of Textiles and Clothing Sectors Liberalisation on Prices," which examines the impact of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing phase-out on European producers and consumers, focusing on price transmission at various transaction levels within the EU. (Report available at http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2007/june/tradoc_134778.pdf)
10. IPPC's Working Group to Study Int'l Recognition of Pest Free Areas
The International Plant Protection Convention's Open Ended Working Group will undertake a feasibility study on international recognition of pest free areas. (IPPC news release, updated 05/29/08, available at https://www.ippc.int/servlet/CDSServlet?status=ND0xOTczMDYuMjAyNjA3JjY9ZW4mMzM9bmV3cyYzNz1pbmZv)
11. Colombia Establishes Temporary Quotas on China Apparel/Footwear
The Hong Kong Trade Development Council has issued a press release announcing that the Colombian government has established temporary quantitative restrictions on virtually all imports of apparel and footwear from mainland China. The apparel quotas entered into force on May 24, 2008 and are scheduled to expire on August 31st, rather than on December 31st as had been initially proposed. The footwear quotas entered into force on May 15th and will also expire on August 31st. (HKTDC, dated 06/05/08, available at http://garments.hktdc.com/content.aspx?data=garments_content_en&contentid=1037136&w_sid=194&w_pid=679&w_nid=10353&w_cid=1037136&w_idt=1900-01-01&w_oid=167&w_jid)
12. FAS' Global Agriculture Information Network Reports
The Foreign Agriculture Service issued the following GAIN reports:
Canada Agricultural Situation: This Week in Canadian Agriculture, Issue 16
European Union-27 Oilseeds and Products: Annual