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- Newsgroups: misc.activism.progressive
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- From: Hannah Holm <hholm%igc.apc.org@MIZZOU1.missouri.edu>
- Subject: TRADE NEWS DECEMBER 15, 1992
- Message-ID: <1992Dec16.211254.9143@mont.cs.missouri.edu>
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- Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 21:12:54 GMT
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-
- TRADE NEWS BULLETIN
- Tuesday, December 15, 1992
- Volume 1, Number 211
- __________________________________________________
- GATT News Summary
- __________________________________________________
- FARM MINISTERS DELAY GATT DISCUSSION, PROTEST
- CONTINUES
-
- EC farm ministers meeting Monday did not immediately address
- the recent U.S.-EC deal on agriculture subsidies, but were
- expected to discuss the issue tonight. "An acrimonious GATT
- debate would sour prospects of an agreement on other issues,"
- said one official. Other items, such as a new regime for banana
- trade, farm trade exchange rates and animal health and
- hygiene standards, must be dealt with in order to complete the
- EC market by the first of next year. Opinion in the press was
- divided on whether or not the EC would continue negotiating
- the details of the subsidy deal before the farm ministers
- evaluated the its compliance with the Community's Common
- Agricultural Policy (CAP).
-
- The building where the ministers are meeting is barricaded
- with barbed wire against farmers protesting the U.S.-EC deal.
- Protest exists off the street as well, with the Greens of the
- European Parliament instigating a motion of censure against the
- EC Commission for its part in the negotiations. The Greens argue
- that the Commission went beyond its mandate and violated its
- commitment not to go beyond the CAP.
-
- Source: Paul Ames, "Europe-Farm Trade," AP, December 14,
- 1992; "EC Farm Ministers Delay GATT Debate, Start on
- Agrimony," REUTER, December 14, 1992; John Zaracostas,
- "Lack of Tariff Cuts Stalls GATT Talks," JOURNAL OF COMMERCE,
- December 14, 1992; Press Release from the Green Group In the
- European Parliament, November 27, 1992.
- __________________________________________________
- CHINA MUST PROVIDE DETAILS ON ECONOMY TO JOIN
- GATT
-
- GATT members have said that, in order to join GATT, China
- must by January 15 answer detailed questions on subsidies and
- internal price support mechanisms and give assurances that
- GATT trade rules are applied. "It's (China) a peculiar animal
- that you have to get to know before accepting it," said one
- person close to the negotiations. China said this week-end it
- meets all requirements and should be admitted promptly.
- China has offered to sign any agreement reached in the Uruguay
- round of negotiations.
-
- Source: "GATT Members Ask China To Explain Economy,"
- REUTER, December 11, 1992.
- __________________________________________________
- NAFTA News Summary
- __________________________________________________
- DATABASE ON U.S.-MEXICO WAST MOVEMENT
-
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Sedesol,
- Mexico's environmental agency, have developed a database
- designed to make it easier to control cross-border movement of
- hazardous waste. The Binational Hazardous Waste Tracking
- System is part of a new procedure under which freight carriers
- are supposed to have an EPA-assigned number accompanying
- their manifests to show that the agency was notified of the
- shipment. As the database expands, it is expected to make it
- easier to track production, movement and treatment of
- hazardous waste on both sides of the border.
-
- Source: Charles W. Thurston, "U.S. - Mexico Database Lists
- Hazardous Waste," JOURNAL OF COMMERCE, December 14,
- 1992.
- __________________________________________________
- FARM GROUPS, BLACK LEGISLATORS OPPOSE NAFTA
-
- The North Dakota Farmers Union and the Rural Coalition, a
- group of U.S. and Mexican grass-roots organizations, have both
- issued statements against the North American Free Trade
- Agreement. The groups fear that NAFTA could have negative
- consequences for family farmers.
-
- The National Black Caucus of State Legislators also has
- expressed strong reservations about NAFTA, and GATT as well.
- NBCSL's "Resolution on NAFTA and GATT".says both GATT and
- NAFTA would allow other countries to challenge a variety of
- state and federal laws and would "in effect start a bidding war"
- to attract corporate investment by lowering worker standards.
- The NBCSL resolution also says minorities would be
- disproportionately hurt by the loss of low-wage jobs to Mexico
- under NAFTA.
-
- Source: "NDFU Urges Bush Not To Sign NAFTA Trade Accord,"
- UNION FARMER, December, 1992; Rural Coalition letter, fall
- 1992; "Resolution on NAFTA and GATT," by the Labor and
- Management Committee of the NBCSL, Honorable Charles
- Quincy Troupe Chairman.
- __________________________________________________
- Resource:
-
- 1. An in-depth examination of the links between current and
- former United States Trade Representative (USTR) officials and
- foreign corporations by the Center for Public Integrity: OFFICE
- OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE - AMERICAS
- FRONTLINE TRADE OFFICIALS, by Charles Lewis. The report
- found that since 1974, 47% of the former USTR officials have
- registered (or their firms have registered) with the Justice
- Department as foreign agents. Detailed career histories of
- current and past officials are included. Available from: The
- Center for Public Integrity, 1910 K Street NW, Suite 802,
- Washington, D.C., 20006.
- __________________________________________________
- Produced by:
- Hannah Holm
- The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)
- 1313 Fifth Street SE, Suite #303
- Minneapolis, MN 55414-1546 USA
-
- Telephone:(612)379-5980 Fax:(612)379-5982
- E-Mail:kmander@igc.org
- _________________________________________________________
-
-