Category: NFTC In the News
President Obama Signs Bill, Clearing Way for Smoother Business Travel To Asia-Pacific Nations
US trade officials welcome Japan’s interest in Asian-Pacific trade agreement
Excerpt: U.S. trade officials welcomed Japan’s announcement on Friday that they are interested in a seat at the negotiating table of an Asian-Pacific trade agreement…. “Japan’s decision to seek entry to the TPP negotiations potentially marks an historic change in the direction of Japan’s economy and that of the Asia-Pacific region,” said Bill Reinsch, president, National Foreign Trade Council. “With the inclusion of Japan under the right conditions, the TPP Agreement has the prospect to become the central force in shaping the future of U.S. economic engagement with the Asia-Pacific region and shoring up unprecedented market access for America’s exporters, investors, workers, farmers, ranchers and service providers.” http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/1005-trade/193095-us-trade-officials-welcome-japans-interest-in-asian-pacific-trade-agreement
USTR Says Japan Welcome To Talks If Standards Met
Excerpt: U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk hailed Japan’s “important” announcement Friday to move toward joining negotiations on a free-trade zone in the Asian-Pacific region, but stressed that Tokyo must be prepared to dismantle trade barriers…. Chuck Dittrich, vice president for regional trade issues at the National Foreign Trade Council, said Japan could help make the Trans-Pacific trade deal the “gold standard” of trade agreements. But first, Japan must “truly dismantle deeply rooted tariff and nontariff barriers to trade and open market access in key sectors, including autos, insurance, pharmaceuticals and agriculture–where decades of negotiations have often failed to translate into meaningful and systemic reform,” he said.
US says Japan must meet high standards to join TPP
Excerpt: The United States on Friday welcomed Japan’s interest in joining negotiations on a regional free trade agreement among nine countries in the Asia Pacific but said Tokyo must be prepared to “meet high standard for liberalizing trade” to be allowed to join…. The National Foreign Trade Council, which represents big U.S. exporters like Boeing, Caterpillar and Microsoft, said Noda’s request to join the talks “potentially marks an historic change in the direction of Japan’s economy and that of the Asia-Pacific region.” But they said it was crucial that TPP negotiators finish the first phase of the negotiations “in months rather than years to jump-start the global economy.”http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/11/apec-japan-usa-idUSN1E7AA10L20111111
