May/June 2006      │   The Aluminum Association    │   Washington

Trade Talks Up Against DohaNegotiation Deadline; Trade Promotion Authority Ending

President Bush’s trade priorities for the United States, as laid out in a recent speech to the United Nations General Assembly, guides the U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR’s) ongoing efforts to secure an ambitious outcome to the Doha Development Round negotiations in the World Trade Organization (WTO). Bush said the elimination of trade barriers “could lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty over the next 15 years.”

The USTR’s bilateral and regional agenda includes ongoing negotiations with 14 countries to dramatically reduce trade barriers, to set important precedents for future trade negotiations, and to grow the critical mass of countries that recognize the immense benefits that come with more open international commerce. The multilateral Doha round is particularly important, as Trade Promotion Authority—which allows the White House to negotiate trade agreements that Congress must approve or reject without revision—expires in July 2007.

“Holding our trading partners accountable through enforcement of existing trade laws and agreements will continue to be a critical component of our trade agenda,” said Susan Schwab, President Bush's nominee to be the next U.S. Trade Representative, on April 18. “Successful world trade talks remain a top priority,” she added. Schwab would replace USTR Rob Portman, whom the President named as the new director of the Office of Management and Budget.

As this issue of Aluminum Now went to press, the chances for a world trade deal appeared increasingly in doubt. With the negotiating deadline of April 30 looming, countries had failed to make substantive progress on difficult farm and manufacturing issues. The global talks are aimed at expanding trade by reducing farm subsidies in wealthier countries such as the United States and those of the European Union (EU), and lowering tariffs on agricultural and manufactured goods in both developed and developing countries.

The negotiations have snagged on a number of fronts, with Brussels resisting demands for deeper cuts in its farm tariffs and Washington saying it cannot cut its domestic farm subsidies more than it has already offered unless the EU and others provide more new market access. Diplomats are now expecting a major meeting in Geneva in early May aimed at ironing out problems on goods tariffs and agricultural subsidies.

Congress Passes Central American, BahrainFree Trade Pacts

Recently, the U.S. Congress passed both the Central American Free Trade Agreement—with El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua fully on-board—and the Bahrain Free Trade Agreement. The U.S. also has completed trade negotiations with Peru, Oman, and Colombia—which now await Congressional approval—and has launched negotiations with both the Republic of Korea and Malaysia. On the issue of market access, Saudi Arabia, on December 11, 2005, was granted accession to the WTO to become its 149th member.

On March 23, President Bush signed into law legislation authorizing the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment to the products of Ukraine and the permanent normalization of trade relations between the United States and Ukraine. The market-access agreement is one of a number Ukraine must complete before submitting its bid for accession to the WTO.

The U.S. is continuing to work with other candidates for accession to the WTO—including Vietnam and Russia—with the hope of concluding these bilateral agreements in the near future.