ISRI has added its strong support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement (TPP), which includes 12 countries (Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and the United States) and spans nearly 40 percent of global GDP.
The U.S. Coalition for TPP, a broad-based and cross-sectoral group of U.S. companies and associations representing the principal sectors of the U.S. economy, has prepared letters to Members of Congress from all 50 U.S. states urging strong support for the TPP agreement. Each letter underscores the importance of the TPP to the future growth of trade, jobs, prosperity, and competitiveness of the United States – for each of the 50 states in particular – and urges Members of Congress to support moving forward on a strong, market-opening TPP this year.
The TPP will create a level playing field for U.S. businesses by eliminating more than 18,000 tariffs on Made in America products sold overseas and establishing the highest standards on labor, the environment, and the digital economy ever to be included in a trade agreement.
The National Treatment and Market Access for Goods Chapter (also known as the Goods chapter) helps the U.S. reach this goal by removing barriers to export of Made-in-America manufactures. In particular, the Goods chapter will eliminate tariffs for scrap commodities (e.g., scrap iron and steel, copper, aluminum and stainless, plastics, paper, rubber, and precious metals, etc.) and recycling equipment, thereby opening new markets and expanding access to existing trade partners with the potential to generate tens of millions of dollars in additional sales revenue.
In addition, to ensure that countries do not maintain or expand other discriminatory trade barriers at the same time that they are eliminating tariffs or invent new barriers to circumvent TPP’s obligations, the Goods chapter incorporates the broad World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations regarding import and export restrictions into TPP as the fundamental framework for trade in goods between the Parties. In addition, the Goods chapter prohibits import licensing conditioned on performance requirements, as well as prohibiting requirements that exporters establish contractual relationships with domestic distributors as a condition of importation.
To ensure that traders understand the rules they will be required to follow in trading with each TPP Party, the Goods chapter includes a requirement that Parties publish all information related to import and export procedures and requirements, tariff rates, taxes and fees related to importation, tariff quotas, and import and export restrictions.
The TPP is consistent with ISRI’s longstanding free and fair trade policy. The TPP text can be accessed at: https://ustr.gov/tpp/