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The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday urged the incoming Obama administration to approve the free trade agreements with Korea and other countries. It called for "negotiating more agreements to expand trade opportunities for American workers, farmers, and companies."
In a policy report titled "International Engagement," the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said, "Before considering any new initiatives, the new administration and Congress must look first to the pending trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and Korea." It said recent analysis by the chamber "determined that these accords would provide an immediate boost for American workers, farmers and companies worth an estimated US$42 billion within five years."
"The average tariff applied to U.S. manufactured goods arriving in overseas markets is 7.5 percent, and the figure for U.S. agricultural exports is 17 percent," it points out. The chamber believes "that American workers, farmers, and companies must be allowed to operate on a level playing field when it comes to trade. Trade agreements should treat American manufacturers, service providers, farmers and ranchers the same as their foreign competitors." It adds, "In recent years, 40 percent of U.S. exports went to the 14 countries with which the U.S. has free trade agreements."
Korea, with a trillion-dollar economy, "is already America's seventh-largest trading partner. From passenger aircraft and soybeans to insurance and consumer electronics, Korean consumers have shown a strong preference for American goods and services, and nearly 17,000 small and medium-sized U.S. companies already export to Korea."
The chamber in an open letter to president-elect Barack Obama made 19 policy suggestions, including trade, energy, and intellectual property rights, asking him what he would gain by opposing trade deals in uncertain economic times.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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