Department Of Energy Issues Final Approvals For LNG Exports To Non-FTA Countries From Two Terminals
[authors: Cole Pfeiffer & Clint Long]
On September 10, 2014, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued licenses to Cameron LNG and Carib LNG to export natural gas to countries without Free Trade Agreements with the United States, including Japan and Taiwan. Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) praised the Cameron LNG project, expressing excitement that the United States can "begin exporting this game-changing resource around the world." Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) agreed, calling the two approvals "a step in the right direction." In total, the DOE has authorized 4.5 billion cubic feet per day in LNG exports to date.
21st Round Of Trans-Pacific Partnership Negotiations Completed In Hanoi
[authors: Szymon Maziakowski & Shannon Doyle Barna]
The 21st round of talks toward a Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement took place September 1–10 in Hanoi, with twelve Pacific Rim countries making progress on issues of state-owned enterprises, intellectual property, investment, rules of origin, transparency, anti-corruption, and labor. The parties continue to hone commitments for preferential access to each other's markets for goods, services/investment, financial services, and government procurement.
As diplomats in Hanoi worked with multiple partners, U.S. bilateral negotiations with Japan moved forward in a series of working-level meetings divided into issues of non-tariff barriers to motor vehicle trade and tariffs on agricultural goods. An automobile agreement would phase in reciprocal market access for U.S. and Japanese auto manufacturers over several decades, but the more contentious issue of agriculture tariffs has threatened to derail negotiations. Japan's farm minister stated that the United States must offer concessions to achieve any TPP agreement (detailed coverage of Japan's agricultural tariff positions can be found in the May 2014 issue). Automobiles account for as much as three-quarters of the U.S. trade deficit with Japan, but the Japanese agricultural sector has become vulnerable due to a smaller labor force and systemic inefficiencies. Japan entered negotiations for accession to the TPP during the 18th round of talks in July 2013, and the significance of the partnership as a whole hinges on the future of Japan's economic influence.
A meeting between Japanese Economy Minister Akira Amari and U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman took place on September 23rd and 24th in Washington without a breakthrough, indicating stalled progress toward an unofficial deadline for bilateral understanding in time for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Beijing on November 10 and 11 (information on previous rounds of talks can be found in the September 2013 issue).
The Federal Circuit Again Restricts The Scope Of Trade Relief
[author: Brian E. McGill]
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently reversed both the Department of Commerce's (Commerce) scope decision involving certain steel threaded rod from China and the Court of International Trade's affirmance of Commerce's decision. A.L. Patterson v. United States, Ct. No. 13-1526 (September 22, 2014). This is the second recent scope decision in which the Federal Circuit has reversed a Commerce scope decision and a CIT affirmance of that decision. See Fedmet Resources v. United States, Ct. No. 13-1539 (June 20, 2014). In the Patterson case, the Federal Circuit found that merely because an imported product is "facially covered by the literal language of the order," the imported product "may still be outside the scope if the order can reasonably be interpreted so as to exclude it." Slip Op. at 10 (emphasis by the court). The Federal Circuit emphasized that Commerce was required to make findings on whether the imports at issue were "the kind of steel threaded rod sold in the domestic industry that the Commission investigated and found injury." Id. at 11. The Federal Circuit found that the International Trade Commission did not investigate the imported product at issue, despite the fact that the Commission was not a party to the litigation. Based on the absence of evidence of inclusion of the imported product in the underlying investigations, the Federal Circuit concluded that the imports were "other kinds of steel threaded rods" not covered by the antidumping order's scope.
U.S. Department Of Commerce Seeks Applicants For Manufacturing Council By October 14, 2014
[authors: Erienne Kilgore & Patrick J. Togni]
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced the renewal of the Manufacturing Council on April 5, and it is currently seeking applications for the appointment of 30 new members to serve two-year terms beginning in December 2014. The Council functions as an advisory committee under the Federal Advisory Committee Act and is tasked with advising the Secretary of Commerce on matters relating to the U.S. manufacturing industry. The Council's work includes reviewing government policies and programs that affect the U.S. manufacturing base and identifying and recommending new programs and policies to ensure that U.S. manufacturing remains competitive both domestically and in the global marketplace.
The agency's announcement emphasizes that prospective candidates should be "active manufacturing executives" that "are leaders within their local manufacturing communities and industry sectors." In addition, the Council aspires to reflect the diversity of American manufacturing in terms of industry sectors, geographic locations, demographics, and company size. Interested persons should submit applications by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 14, 2014. Additional information regarding the application requirements and preferred qualifications may be accessed here.
