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Australia Free
Trade Agreement
On February 18, 2004, the
White House published a Federal Register notice announcing that President
Bush has advised the U.S. Congress of his intention to enter into the
U.S.-Australia Free Trade Agreement. According to a press release
issued by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S.-Australia
Free Trade Agreement is the first FTA between the United States and a
developed country since the U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement in 1988. USTR
called the pact "a 21st Century, state-of-the-art agreement that reflects
the modern globalized economy, opening markets and streamlining mutual
access in intellectual property, services, government procurement,
e-commerce, and investment."
Australia is a major
trade and investment partner of the United States, and in 2002 was
America's 13th largest export market for goods, according to the release,
which also included the following facts:
Two-way annual goods and
services trade is approximately $28 billion, and two-way foreign direct
investment is $60 billion.
Australia purchases more
goods from the United States than from any other country, and the U.S.
enjoys a bilateral goods and services trade surplus of $9 billion.
Australia is a key export
market for important U.S. manufacturing sectors such as aircraft, autos
and auto parts, machinery, computers and electronic products, chemicals,
and wood and paper products.
Each of the fifty U.S.
states exports to Australia, and Australia is among the top 25 export
destinations for 48 of the 50 states.
The leading states
exporting to Australia are Washington, California, Illinois, Texas,
Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida.
Additional information on
the U.S.-Australia FTA, including an extensive fact sheet, can be
accessed on the USTR web site at:
http://www.ustr.gov/new/fta/australia.htm |
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 President
Notifies Congress on CAFTA Agreement
The White House issued a
statement announcing that President Bush has advised the U.S. Congress of
his intention to enter into the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)
with the governments of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and
Costa Rica.
The Journal of Commerce
reports that under the Trade Act of 2002, the Bush administration must
notify Congress at least 90 days before signing the agreement. The
administration will continue to consult with Congress on the agreement to
prepare the way for eventual consideration, according to a press release
issued by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).
President Bush announced
his intention to negotiate a free trade agreement with the CAFTA countries
on January 16, 2002. On October 1, 2002, the Administration notified
Congress that it would begin the CAFTA negotiations. CAFTA negotiations
began in January 2003, and took place in 9 rounds of negotiations.
USTR published the draft
text of CAFTA on its web site during the first week of February. The draft
of the agreement, which can be accessed on-line at:
http://www.ustr.gov/new/fta/Cafta/text/index.htm , includes the
following sections:
National Treatment and
Market Access for Goods
Rules of Origin and Origin Procedures
Product-Specific Rules of Origin
Textile and Apparel Product-Specific Rules of Origin
Customs Administration and Trade Facilitation
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
Technical Barriers to Trade
Trade Remedies
Cross-Border Trade in Services
Intellectual Property Rights |
