On September 19, 2011, U.S. Trade Representative Kirk met with Indonesian Minister of Trade Pangestu under the U.S.-Indonesia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA). The two ministers discussed bilateral, regional and multilateral trade issues, including the importance of expanding cooperation on APEC issues prior to the Leaders’ Summit in November. The ministers agreed to explore new initiatives to build further momentum in the relationship, and expressed interest in holding a high-level business dialogue during the next year.
On September 19, 2011, the Senate took an initial procedural step to move forward with H.R. 2832, the House-passed bill to reinstate the GSP program retroactive to its expiration date and raise the Merchandise Processing Fee. A second procedural step is scheduled for September 20; consideration of the actual bill is scheduled to begin on the 20th also.
On the evening of September 19, 2011, the Senate is scheduled to conduct one or more procedural votes on H.R. 2832, the House-passed bill to reinstate the GSP program retroactive to its expiration date and raise the Merchandise Processing Fee. It is not known if a vote to pass H.R. 2832 could also occur on this date, or if there is significant opposition to the measure.
On September 15, 2011, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Sapiro gave remarks on the Administration’s May 2011 call for a Trade and Investment Partnership Initiative between the U.S. and the Middle East and North African (MENA) region. Sapiro stated that the U.S. envisions beginning a dialog, focusing initially on Egypt and Tunisia, to identify the most promising avenues for increasing trade and investment with, and within, the region.
During a September 13, 2011 press conference, Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) indicated that he plans for the Senate to consider China currency legislation after the Senate completes its consideration of a bill to retroactively reinstate the GSP program, increase the Merchandise Processing Fee, and renew Trade Adjustment Assistance.
Press reports indicate that Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) has announced a deal for a time line on amending and passing H.R. 2832 to reinstate the GSP program retroactive to its expiration date and raise the Merchandise Processing Fee.
Broker Power is providing readers with some of the top stories for September 6-9, 2011 in case they were missed last week.
In the past, when the GSP program expired for non-AGOA countries and had been retroactively renewed, CBP had stated that ABI filers who continued to use the GSP SPIs (A or A+) during the expiration period would not need to take any further action to request a refund (as filing with a GSP SPI during the expired period constituted a valid claim for a refund).
The House recently passed a bill (H.R. 2832) which would retroactively renew GSP through July 31, 2013. This bill also contains a provision that would increase the MPF for formal entries to 0.3464% (from the current 0.21%) for the October 1, 2011 through June 30, 2014 period.
On September 7, 2011, the House of Representatives passed by voice vote H.R. 2832, a bill to retroactively renew GSP through July 31, 2013 and temporarily increase the MPF for formal entries by approximately 65%.