On 18 October 2017, the WTO announced that the WTO Committee on Government Procurement agreed on 18 October to grant observer status to Afghanistan and Brazil. The announcement said:
On 11 October 2017, the UK Department for International Trade (DIT) released a UK-EU joint letter to the WTO membership that shows progress and coordination to prepare for future trading arrangements. The DIT release stated:
On August 21, 2017, the Department of Commerce and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) published in the Federal Register a request for comments in response to Section 3(e) of the Presidential Executive Order on Buy American and Hire American, which directs the Secretary of Commerce and the USTR to assess the impacts of all United States free trade agreements and the World Trade Organization Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) on the operation of Buy American Laws, including their impacts on the implementation of domestic procurement preferences.
Welcome to the August 2017 edition of Baker McKenzie’s International Trade Compliance Update. Here are some highlights:
On July 17, 2017, the U.S. Trade Representative released a 17 page document entitled, Summary of Objectives for the NAFTA Renegotiation. The publication of objectives is in accordance with section 105(a)(1)(D) of the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015. The specific objectives cover the following topics:
On July 7, 2017, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published in the Federal Register notice that it has issued a final determination (HQ H283088 (June 30, 2017) concerning the country of origin of a digital radiography system (also commonly referred to as an x-ray system) known as the Carestream DRXAscend Digital Radiography system. Based upon the facts presented for purposes of U.S. Government procurement, CBP has concluded that the United States is the country…
On June 26, 2017, the Secretary of Public Function – Sub-secretary of Administrative Responsibilities and Public Contracts published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación (the Official Federal Gazette) a circular [Oficio №. UNCP/309/TU/370/2017] with tables showing in national currency the thresholds under the various free trade agreements of which Mexico is a party that apply from July 1, 2017 through December 31, 2017, when foreign goods and services are to be offered to the Government.
On April 18, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive Order – Buy American and Hire American [not yet published in the Federal Register]. The Executive Order (EO) states that it is the policy of the executive branch to buy American (maximize, consistent with law, through terms and conditions of Federal financial assistance awards and Federal procurements, the use of goods, products, and materials produced in the United States) and hire American (rigorously enforce and administer the laws governing entry into the United States of workers from abroad, including section 212(a)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act). In this respect, the EO directs every agency to “scrupulously monitor, enforce, and comply with Buy American Laws, to the extent they apply, and minimize the use of waivers, consistent with applicable law.”
On April 3, 2017, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) published in the Federal Register a notice indicating that USTR has determined not to list any countries
On March 30, 2017, the Department of State published in the Federal Register a final rule [Public Notice: 9939] stating that a determination has been made that a number of foreign persons have engaged in activities that warrant the imposition of measures pursuant to Section 3 of the Iran, North Korea, and Syria Nonproliferation Act.