Differences between the U.S. and EU are narrowing in Transatlantic and Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations, President Barack Obama said on April 24 during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Hannover Messe trade show, in Hannover, Germany (here). Defending trade deals’ dispute settlement mechanisms, Obama rejected the notion that the agreements give corporations unfair opportunities to sue countries to prevent enforcement of health and environmental laws and financial regulations. “None of these things have happened with the many trade agreements that currently exist, and that Germany and the United States and the EU and others are already party to,” Obama said. “So I think it’ important for us to look at the facts and not a bunch of hypothetical pronouncements.” U.S. and EU negotiators are meeting in New York this week for the 13th round of TTIP talks.

There may be a need for more competition within the supply chain in order to address "market structure changes," said the White House in a brief about the benefits of competition released on April 15 (here). The transportation and warehousing industry was among a list of highly concentrated industries, with an 11.4% increase in revenue earned by the 50 largest firms over the period 1997-2012. "A natural question is whether increased concentration in one area of the supply chain leads to increased concentration in other parts of the supply chain," said the Council of Economic Advisors, which produced the brief. "One might imagine that consolidation could improve a firm’s bargaining position with upstream suppliers and downstream customers. More generally, economists are beginning to model and better understand empirically how consolidation in one part of the supply chain affects market outcomes and consumer welfare in other parts of the supply chain." Research on this "will continue to be of use to antitrust authorities and regulators, ultimately helping to benefit consumers," it said.

Negotiation of another U.S.-Canada softwood trade agreement, dual government restrictions on timber supply, and creation of a joint governmental commission are all feasible paths forward out of the U.S.-Canada lumber dispute, trade experts and former officials from both countries’ governments said during a panel discussion on March 29. The 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement between the two nations—the fifth iteration of such a deal—expired on Oct. 12 (see 1510070032). The White House on March 10 announced that President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tasked the countries’ trade ministers with exploring “all options” for concluding another softwood agreement, and with reporting back to the heads of state within 100 days on their findings.

Officials from the U.S. and Argentina this week signed a bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), and are forming six working groups to identify trade barriers and chart the course for a more fruitful trade relationship between the two countries, the White House said this week as President Barack Obama visited Argentina. “I think at the beginning, right now, there’s a lot of underbrush, a lot of unnecessary trade irritants and commercial irritants that can be cleared away administratively,” Obama said (here) during a March 23 joint press conference in Buenos Aires alongside Argentine President Mauricio Macri. “And that's some of the work that we intend to do right away.”

President Barack Obama will not suspend South Africa’s duty-free benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), after the nation removed sanitary and phytosanitary barriers on imports of poultry, beef, and pork, from the U.S., according to a March 14 presidential proclamation (here). U.S. meat products recently hit store shelves in South Africa (see 1603020036), after Obama in November threatened to terminate duty-free treatment on agricultural goods that the country enjoys through AGOA. "South Africa has met all of the benchmarks to remain eligible for African Growth and Opportunity Act benefits, and today the President issued a proclamation revoking the impending suspension of these benefits on March 15," a White House spokesman said.

President Barack Obama “welcomed” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s interest in a new long-term bilateral trade agreement for softwood lumber, according to a White House fact sheet (here). Both U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman and Canadian Minister of International Trade Chrystia Freeland were tasked with exploring “all options” for concluding such an agreement and with reporting back within 100 days on ways to address the issue. The 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement lapsed on Oct. 12 (see 1510130010). Obama also noted to Trudeau “recent legislative and regulatory action” to repeal country-of-origin labeling (COOL) requirements for beef and pork, which bring the U.S. into compliance with international trade obligations, the White House said. The Agricultural Marketing Service on March 2 completed its repeal of the COOL requirements for certain products (see 1603020019). “Canada and the United States have a shared interest in a return to a fully integrated North American market for cattle and hogs that provides more opportunities and greater economic benefits for producers on both sides of the border,” the fact sheet says.

President Barack Obama is expected to sign H.R.-644, the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 the afternoon of Feb. 24, one day after House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., signed the legislation during a ceremony on Capitol Hill, the White House said (here). "Later in the afternoon, the President will sign...H.R. 644 – Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015," states Obama's daily press schedule. International Trade Today will provide a multi-part summary of the new law in coming issues.

The Obama Administration will send Trans-Pacific Partnership-enacting legislation to Congress sometime this year, President Barack Obama said on Feb. 22 during a reception of the National Governors Association in Washington, according to remarks transcribed by the White House (here). Obama called on the governors to reach out to local industries in their states’ U.S. Congressional delegations to convey the importance of the agreement. “We’re going to sign to enter this agreement, presented formally with some sort of implementation documents to Congress at some point this year,” Obama stated.

President Barack Obama on Feb. 18 signed the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act, HR-757, into law, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement (here). The House passed the bill on Feb. 12, two days after the Senate’s unanimous approval. The legislation would require Obama to regularly brief Congress on implementation efforts and to sanction and block the assets of the Foreign Trade Bank of North Korea and the Daedong Credit Bank (see 1602120026).

President Barack Obama outlined reforms necessary for parties to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and the White House is launching a “new effort” to help all ASEAN countries understand important provisions of the pact, according to a readout of a press conference on the sidelines of the U.S.-ASEAN Summit in Rancho Mirage, Calif. (here). “I reiterated that the Trans-Pacific Partnership -- which includes four ASEAN members -- can advance economic integration across ASEAN and set stronger rules for trade throughout the Asia Pacific,” Obama told reporters. During the opening session of the summit on Feb. 15, Obama highlighted the efforts of ASEAN member states Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei, who he said have “committed to high labor and environmental standards” by signing the TPP.