Chamber urges House to approve Andean trade preferences extension

Chamber urges House to approve Andean trade preferences extension The U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to House lawmakers on Monday urging them to quickly approve the 2008 Andean Trade Preference Extension Act (H.R. 5264) while awaiting Capitol Hill's approval of pending U.S. free trade agreements with Panama and Colombia.
   'The chamber supports this extension of the program so that U.S. investors, large and small, will not be penalized while Congress determines how and when to move forward on the pending free trade agreements,' the chamber's letter said.
   The Andean Trade Preferences Agreement was first enacted in 1991 and allows duty-free access on many imports from the region into the United States. The current ATPA expires on Feb. 29.
   'Across the board, ATPA provides American consumers with more choices at better prices for an array of products,' the chamber's letter added. 'Goods imported under the program generally do not compete directly with U.S. products.'