CRS Says U.S. FTAs Are More Comprehensive than Others, Can Affect Growth
The Congressional Research Service has issued a report (RL33944), in question and answer format, providing information on U.S. trade performance and policy.
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According to the report, trade is a large and increasingly integral part of the U.S. economy and how U.S. trade policy is shaped and implemented can affect a broad spectrum of people in the U.S. CRS states that for some industries, congressional decisions to support a particular free trade agreement (FTA) or Department of Commerce rulings on antidumping and other cases could affect both employment and growth. Such congressional decisions could also influence product choices of U.S. consumers.
CRS states that the FTAs that the U.S. negotiates are more comprehensive than those that are negotiated among other countries, particularly developing countries. The standard U.S. FTA model includes not only the elimination of tariffs on trade in goods among the FTA partners, but also reduction of barriers on trade in services, rules on foreign investment, requirements for intellectual property rights (IPR) protection, and provisions on labor rights and environment protection. CRS notes that these rules may not necessarily guarantee “free trade,” but may condition or influence the terms of competition in specific markets.