Industry praises U.S.-Colombia FTA’s advance

Industry praises U.S.-Colombia FTAÆs advance    The White House on Wednesday said it has addressed labor rights concerns with Colombia and is ready to move the U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement forward to Congress.
   The long awaited U.S.-Colombia FTA would expand U.S. goods exports alone by more than $1.1 billion and give key U.S. goods and services duty free access in sectors from manufacturing to agriculture. It will increase U.S. gross domestic product by $2.5 billion and support thousands of additional U.S. jobs, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
   Industry groups praised the Obama administration for its action on the U.S.-Colombia FTA.
   'From the business perspective, this agreement will level the playing field, since many Colombian products already enter the U.S. duty-free,' said Peter M. Robinson, president and chief executive officer of the U.S. Council for International Business, in a statement. 'We also believe that the U.S. has a compelling foreign policy interest in supporting a democratic ally like Colombia through enhanced economic ties.'

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   Once the agreement is ratified, 80 percent of U.S. exports of consumer and industrial products to Colombia would become duty-free, with the remaining tariffs phased out over the next 10 years. More than half of U.S. agriculture exports to Colombia would also become duty-free, with almost all tariffs eliminated within 15 years.
   'As a result of delays in approving the pending FTA, the U.S. has lost market share to competitors in Colombia,' said American Soybean Association President Alan Kemper. 'In 2010, U.S. soybean product exports to Colombia were valued at $103 million, down 64 percent from 2008.'
   The U.S.-Colombia FTA will benefit soybean farmers by immediately eliminating tariffs ranging from 5 percent to 20 percent on soybeans, soybean meal and soybean flour, and phase out the 24 percent tariffs for crude soybean oil over 10 years and refined soybean oil over five years. The agreement will provide immediate duty-free access for crude soybean oil through a 31,200-ton quota with 4 percent annual growth, the ASA noted.
   U.S. Grains Council President and CEO Thomas C. Dorr said he is pleased with the cooperation from Colombian and U.S. politicians in continuing efforts to make the pending FTA a reality. 'In light of today's good news, I am hopeful Congress will be able to ratify this much needed agreement with Colombia in the near term,' he said.
   'With other countries, namely Canada, working to implement agreements with Colombia over the next few months, we are encouraged that the administration has taken the necessary steps to move the FTA forward as soon as possible this year,' said Chuck Dittrich, National Foreign Trade Council's vice president for regional trade initiatives.
   “Lowering trade barriers is vital to the American retail sector'an industry that employs more than 12.45 million U.S. workers,' said Sandy Kennedy, president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association. 'RILA encourages Congress and the Administration to act expeditiously to approve all three pending free trade agreements and to reaffirm bipartisan support for free trade.' ' Chris Gillis