Senators Threaten South Africa AGOA Removal Over AD Duties on US Poultry
Unfair South African antidumping duties on U.S. poultry products are jeopardizing the country’s beneficiary status under the African Growth and Opportunity Act, said Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del., and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., in a Dec. 9 letter to South African President Jacob Zuma (here). Set to expire in September 2015, AGOA provides duty-free access for sub-Saharan African exports, including agricultural goods, to the U.S. market. President Barack Obama chose to keep South Africa in the preference program in June, despite some speculation that the Obama administration would graduate the country from AGOA due to its economic growth (see 14062706).
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“The antidumping duties South Africa has levied on U.S. poultry have been in place for fourteen years, effectively blocking our companies from accessing your market,” said the letter. “We urge you to ensure that conversations continue to make progress towards eliminating the antidumping duties on U.S. poultry and that this issue is resolved before Congress takes up AGOA reauthorization, which could be early next year. We will need to reconsider the extension of duty preferences under AGOA for South Africa if this situation is not resolved.”
Industry representatives have pushed lawmakers and administration officials hard for more than a year to renew AGOA early in order to keep in place supply chain relationships. Many lawmakers, including soon-to-be Finance Committee chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, continue to pledge to renew AGOA, along with the Generalized System of Preferences and other trade laws (see 1412050021).