The office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is requesting written public comment on the Intellectual Property (IP) protections, enforcement and market access in El Salvador. The comments will influence the USTR decision on whether to place El Salvador on the Trade Act of 1974 Section 182 sanctioned “Priority Watch List,” which indicates IP violations exist in a particular country. Those interested should submit comments by 10 a.m. Dec. 13 via http://www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2013-0038 and include the term “2013 Special 301 Out-of- Cycle Review of El Salvador” in the “Type Comment” field. Those interested in obtaining further information should contact USTR official Michael Diehl at (202) 395-6126.

The office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) extended the deadline for submission of petitions to waive competitive need limitations (CNLs) under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program. The deadline is extended to 5 p.m. Dec. 20 from the previous Nov. 22 deadline (see 13072614). Unless President Barack Obama waives the CNL, the president must terminate duty-free treatment for GSP eligible countries that either (1) exported a quantity of a GSP-eligible article having a value in excess of the applicable amount for that year ($160 million for 2013), or (2) a quantity of a GSP-eligible article having a value equal to or greater than 50 percent of the value of total U.S. imports of the article from all countries. There will be no CNL action taken while GSP remains expired (see 13111808).

U.S. negotiators are eyeing an environmental chapter in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) that will facilitate trade but build on existing conservation efforts in the region, the office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said on Nov. 19 in a press release. The release followed remarks delivered by USTR Ambassador Michael Froman at a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) event. “Over the past decades, the United States has been a pioneer in leveraging comprehensive trade agreements to promote and enhance environmental protection on the ground in our partner countries,” said Froman, according to the release. The WWF did not respond for comment.

The office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is inviting applications to fill positions on North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) binational panels, created to review antidumping and countervailing duty determinations. NAFTA parties must establish the panel in accordance with Annex 1901.2 of the agreement (here). USTR is seeking applicants to serve from April 1, 2014 to March 31, 2015.

The U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement (PTPA) ramped up bilateral goods trade to nearly $16 billion in 2012 through improved “transparency and efficiency,” notably in customs procedure, said U.S. Mission to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Attaché Quentin Baird in prepared remarks at the WTO Trade Policy Review of Peru. The review was conducted on Nov. 13 and Nov. 15. The PTPA took effect in January 2009. Peruvian liberalization efforts, coupled with advantageous commodity prices, contributed to poverty reduction from 42 percent in 2007 to 28 percent in 2011, said Baird.

The U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Michael Froman will speak at the Port of Los Angeles on Nov. 16, after attending a CBP tour and demonstration on the importance of effective trade enforcement, intellectual property protections and import safety standards, the office of the USTR said (here). Froman will also participate on Nov. 16 in a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership panel at the U.S. Spain Council Forum in Santa Barbara, accompanied by Spanish Secretary of State for Trade, Jaime García-Legaz.

The fourth round of Trade in Services Agreement negotiations concluded in Geneva on Nov. 8, the office of the U.S. Trade Representative said (here). “The draft text of the agreement was further stabilized with the removal of all brackets concerning the ‘negative list’ approach,” said USTR. TISA includes 50 participants representing 70 percent of global trade in services, according to the Coalition of Services Industries (here).

U.S. and European Union trade officials convened in Brussels on Nov. 11 to launch five days of Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations, the office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said Nov. 11. Negotiations will initially focus on investment rules and trade in services, USTR said, while officials also plan to broach regulatory coherence, technical barriers to trade, sectoral approaches and sanitary and phytosanitary measures, among other topics. The next round of negotiations is scheduled to be held Dec. 16-20 in Washington, D.C. (see 13110409). Industry leaders pressed comprehensive tariff elimination in a final TTIP pact, along with possible increases to de minimis levels, during an Oct. 30 Senate Finance Committee hearing (see 13103107).

The U.S. and European Union will conduct the second round of Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks from Nov. 11-15 in Brussels, the office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said on Nov. 4 in a press release. Negotiations will cover services, investment, energy and raw materials, and regulatory issues, the USTR said. The following round of negotiations will be held Dec. 16-20 in Washington D.C, USTR added. The Obama Administration canceled the last round of TTIP negotiations, slated for October, due to the government shutdown (see 13100418). Industry leaders pressed comprehensive tariff elimination in a final TTIP pact, along with possible hikes in de minimis levels, during an Oct. 30 Senate Finance Committee hearing (see 13103107). Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the USTR release.

The U.S., along with Mexico and Chile, will be hosting a number of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations with TPP participant nations throughout November, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said in an Oct. 31 statement. The meetings are scheduled as follows: