Trade

Receiving Trade Finance

A crisis in trade finance – credit used to cover delivery and receipt of goods – is contributing to a general drop in trade. Several countries are joining together to solve the problem.  This feature on our sister site, IIPDigital.gov, has this eJournal on Trade issues.

27 January 2012 U.S., Egyptian Officials Announce Efforts to Increase Trade Ties   U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and Dr. Mahmoud Eisa, Egyptian minister of industry and foreign trade, adopted a joint statement declaring their intention to promote the U.S.-Egypt Trade and Investment Partnership and provide opportunities for job creation. The statement notes the United States’ commitment to support Egypt’s economic growth and Egypt’s commitment to enhance the conditions for fostering dynamic economic activity in the months ahead.

2011

28 December 2011 U.S. Treasury Dept. Reports on International Exchange Rate Policies   The U.S. Department of the Treasury on December 27 released its Semi-Annual Report to Congress on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies.  The report highlights the need for greater exchange rate flexibility, most notably by China, but also in other major economies.

17 November 2011 U.S. Highlights $25 Billion in Trade Deals with Asia-Pacific  As President Obama wraps up the last leg of his nine-day Asia-Pacific tour, the White House highlights a series of “high-value, historic” private trade deals in the region exceeding $25 billion in value and supporting an estimated 127,000 jobs in the United States alone.  Obama has highlighted the Asia-Pacific region as a key market for U.S. exports due to the region’s “tremendous economic growth and its large and growing middle class.

13 November 2011 USTR Fact Sheet on Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement Outline   Leaders of the nine Trans-Pacific Partnership countries announced the achievement of the broad outlines of an ambitious, 21st-century Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement that will enhance trade and investment among the TPP partner countries, promote innovation, economic growth and development, and support the creation and retention of jobs.

05 October 2011 Remarks by USTR Official at U.S.-Russia Business Council Meeting  Remarks by Chistopher Wilson, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for WTO and Multilateral Affairs at the U.S.-Russia Business Council Annual Meeting.

12 August 2011 U.S. Trade Deficit Surges to Highest Level Since 2008  The U.S. trade deficit has surged to $53.1 billion — its highest level in almost three years — as a drop in the country’s exports exceeded a decline in imports from abroad. June’s trade deficit was up 4.4 percent from May, largely due to a 2.3 percent drop in total exports to $170.9 billion.

21 July 2011 U.S. Ready to Meet Doha Trade-Liberalization Goals  The United States stands ready to address the challenges of meeting the trade-liberalization goals outlined in the World Trade Organization’s 2001 negotiations in Doha, Qatar, says Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Michael Punke.

13 May 2011 Presidential Proclamation on World Trade Week

31 March 2011 Secretary Clinton's Remarks at a Ceremony Celebrating the Negotiation of Agreements Between the U.S. and 100 Open Skies Partners
• Fact Sheet: U.S. Open Skies Civil Aviation Partnerships

03 March 2011 Trade Policy Agenda & 2010 Annual Report of the President of the United States on the Trade Agreements Program 
In 2011, the Administration’s trade policy will continue to provide leadership for the global economy and help American manufacturers, service providers, farmers, and ranchers sell more goods and services around the world, supporting more jobs here at home. 
The President’s Trade Policy Agenda for 2011 outlines an ambitious scope of work to meet these goals. Across the global stage, we will advance market-opening negotiations with our trading partners and bolster existing ties. We will continue to actively enforce U.S. rights under our trade agreements. We will conduct these efforts based on high standards that reflect American values on labor and on the environment, and on public engagement and transparency.

01 October 2010 U.S. Trade Policy Extremely Open, World Trade Organization Finds   “The U.S. trade and investment regimes are among the most open in the world,” the World Trade Organization (WTO) Secretariat reported in its 10th review of the trade policies and practices of the United States.  “Like most other WTO Members, the United States very largely resisted pressures to respond to the global economic recession by tightening restrictions on imports,” the Secretariat reported in its executive summary. “The restraint shown by the United States helped forestall a worldwide slide into protectionism.”

09 December 2009 Anti-Bribery Convention Has Made a Difference  Bribing public officials to obtain business advantages in international transactions carries a stigma and exposes corporations and their executives to an increased risk of successful prosecution, thanks to the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions.

15 November 2009 APEC Leaders Agree on Sustainable Growth Strategies.  President Obama’s Remarks at APEC Leaders' Summit

16 October 2009 World Trade Body Membership Tops U.S. Trade Agenda for Russia 

16 October 2009 Clinton: China, Russia Trade Pacts Show Economic Interdependence

13 October 2009USTR Kirk Says Services Trade Plan Essential to Trade Talks

12 August 2009Trade Panel Tells China to Allow More U.S. Entertainment Imports

17 July 2009 Trade Representative Announces New Enforcement Measures

14 July 2009 Regional Trade Hubs Help Foster U.S.-Africa Trade 

14 July 2009 U.S.-Africa Trade Increased 28 Percent in 2008

25 June 2009 United States Seeks Expanded Economic Growth in Africa

01 June 2009 U.S., China Cooperating to Help Shape Global Economic Recovery

29 May 2009 Trade Finance Drought Forces Exporters to Find Alternatives 

22 May 2009 U.S. Trade Representative Underscores Safety of U.S. Meat Exports

14 May 2009 USTR Kirk Says a New Path for Trade Talks May Be Needed

14 May 2009 Statement on U.S.-EU Beef Hormone Agreement

23 April 2009 United States Will Push for Increased Trade Liberalization

23 April 2009 International Monetary Fund Sees Global Economic Decline in 2009

10 March 2009 Near Confirmation, U.S. Trade Nominee Doesn’t Have Deal Fever

Intellectual Property Rights

2009 Special 301 Report

• 2009 Special 301 report Full text.

Trade Basics and Statistics

• See Ready Reference: the U.S. in Statistics