Trade groups urge reduced green goods tariffs

Trade groups urge reduced green goods tariffs    A coalition of four trade groups have written to Asia-Pacific trade ministers urging them to use the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting this week in Montana to reduce tariffs on environmental goods.
   The letter, signed by the National Foreign Trade Council along with the Australian Industry Group, Business NZ and the Federation of Korean Industries, suggests 'bold action to address non-tariff measures.'
   'This year, economies have the opportunity to take further action to encourage the development and adoption of environmental technologies,' the letter said. 'While eliminating tariffs is critical to the expansion of markets for environmental goods, companies increasingly face more opaque impediments behind the border that affect their ability to compete. APEC can help advance global efforts to identify, catalog and address NTMs affecting environmental goods.
   'APEC economies are leading the world in the production and use of environmental technologies. While countries often see lowering their own tariffs as a price they must pay, getting rid of high taxes on a broad set of environmental goods would lower the costs of mitigating and adapting to the effects of climate change. Removing environmental tariffs encourages green development and can lower the cost of adopting advanced clean technologies by emerging and least-developed economies.'
   The letter is available here.