The World Trade Organization remains relevant and important, said Alan Wolff, deputy director-general of the WTO, in a Council on Foreign Relations blog post. Wolff's defense came in response to a provocative piece by CFR's Edward Alden that said the WTO's role was further diminished by President Donald Trump's Section 232 tariffs. While there are serious issues with the appeals system, the WTO has seen progress in negotiations, Wolff said. Two years ago in Nairobi, countries agreed to create a trade facilitation agreement, ban agricultural export subsidies and expand the information technology agreement (see 1512220018). He also pointed to e-commerce as an area of progress at Buenos Aires, but little was agreed to then (see 1712130048).
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said in a March 12 tweet that President Donald Trump gave a commitment that Australian steel and aluminum will not be subject to tariffs. The path to get an exemption for the European Union, however, looks rocky. Trump tweeted on March 10: "The European Union, wonderful countries who treat the U.S. very badly on trade, are complaining about the tariffs on Steel & Aluminum. If they drop their horrific barriers & tariffs on U.S. products going in, we will likewise drop ours. Big Deficit. If not, we Tax Cars etc. FAIR!"
The government of Canada recently issued the following trade-related notices as of March 9 (some may also be given separate headlines):
CBP is beginning work to implement the new steel and aluminum tariffs within ACE, the agency said in a CSMS message. "It is our intent to have both our PROD and CERT environments updated with the new HTS records no later than close of business Tuesday, March 13, 2018," the agency said. The details of the tariffs (see 1803080025) are spelled out in separate proclamations on steel and aluminum.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said that Mexico, Canada and other countries may avoid the soon-to-be-announced tariffs on steel and aluminum. "There are potential carve-outs for Mexico and Canada based on national security, and possibly other countries as well based on that process," she said during a March 7 press briefing. President Donald Trump is still expected to "sign something by the end of the week," she said.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell broke his silence on steel and aluminum tariffs, which have sparked strong reactions from Republicans in both chambers since the surprise announcement last week (see 1803010029). "There is a lot of concern among Republican senators that this could metastasize into a larger trade war, and many of our members are discussing with the administration just how broad, how sweeping this might be," he said at a news conference March 6. He noted that President Donald Trump has suggested an exemption for Canada and Mexico might be tied to concessions in NAFTA renegotiations. "From a Kentucky point of view, NAFTA's been a big one, we've benefited from it in every way," the senator from Kentucky added. McConnell said that if the tariffs create disruption, "it could send our economy in the wrong direction."
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Feb. 26 - March 2 in case they were missed.
The government of Canada recently issued the following trade-related notices as of March 5 (some may also be given separate headlines):
President Donald Trump tweeted March 5 that he won't exempt Mexico and Canada from steel and aluminum tariffs unless the U.S. gets its way at the NAFTA negotiating table. The tweets came on the last day of round 7 of the NAFTA talks. "NAFTA, which is under renegotiation right now, has been a bad deal for U.S.A. Massive relocation of companies & jobs. Tariffs on Steel and Aluminum will only come off if new & fair NAFTA agreement is signed. Also, Canada must treat our farmers much better. Highly restrictive. Mexico must do much more on stopping drugs from pouring into the U.S. They have not done what needs to be done. Millions of people addicted and dying," Trump wrote.
Canada's Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and Mexico's Economy Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo expressed optimism that their countries and the U.S. will be able to reach an agreement that can be sold to the public in all three countries, while U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer sounded a more cautionary note at a joint press conference at the end of the seventh round of negotiations in Mexico City. "I fear the longer we proceed the more political headwinds we will feel," Lighthizer said March 5.