As Josh Kagan leaves as assistant U.S. trade representative for labor, USTR Katherine Tai announced that Katy Mastman will replace him in an acting capacity. Tai said, "Josh’s leadership has been instrumental in our successful use of the USMCA Rapid Response Labor Mechanism and work to eradicate forced labor in supply chains."
The latest annual Notorious Markets List, which isn't exhaustive, didn't highlight any American-owned platforms, though the Jan. 30 report from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said intellectual property rights holders are concerned "about the proliferation of counterfeit sales facilitated by the confluence of e-commerce platforms and social media."
Sarah Bianchi, deputy U.S. trade representative for Asia and Africa for more than two years, left the agency Jan. 29.
Japan, which suffered economic coercion from China earlier than any other country, is largely on the same page as the U.S. when it comes to supply chain resilience and restrictions on exports, but the two diverge in their attitudes about China's role in the global economy.
U.S. negotiators will travel to Kenya to have talks under the Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership at the end of the month. "The negotiators last met in person under the STIP in October 2023 in Washington, DC, and have continued to make progress in deepening mutual understanding and resolving differences," the Office of U.S. Trade Representative said. The discussions will cover agriculture, good regulatory practices and workers' rights, it said.
Senate Finance Committee member Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, announced he will oppose the nomination of Nelson Cunningham, founder of McLarty Associates, as deputy U.S. trade representative. He pointed to Cunningham's advocacy for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and his firm's lobbying for a Chinese firm that makes glass in Moraine, Ohio, outside Dayton. That firm settled a case in 2018 with the National Labor Relations Board, which alleged it fired three workers who tried to get their colleagues to vote for United Autoworkers representation at the plant. The vote failed 2-1 in 2017.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative notified CBP that liquidation can resume for goods imported from the Autoliv Steering Wheels facility in El Marques, Mexico.
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For the second time, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative asked the Mexican government to investigate whether service center workers were being denied their right to form a union, under the rapid response labor mechanism in the USMCA.
The International Trade Commission published notices in the Jan. 19 Federal Register on the following AD/CVD injury, Section 337 patent or other trade proceedings (any notices that warrant a more detailed summary will be in another ITT article):