ACI NA Air Cargo Conference Presented by: Ana M. Guevara Deputy Assistant Secretary for Services International Trade Administration U.S. Department of Commerce March 28, 2007 1
FTAs In Force -Australia -Bahrain -Chile - Dominican Republic - El Salvador -Guatemala -Honduras - Morocco - Nicaragua -Singapore Implementation Pending - Colombia - Costa Rica - Oman - Panama - Peru Under Negotiation -Korea - Malaysia -Thailand 2
Customs Issues in FTAs Industry studies estimate air cargo accounts for 40% of U.S. trade by value Addressed in every FTA in individual chapter (Customs) Strong commitments for: --increased transparency --reduced customs clearance times; incl. express delivery shipments --improved automation procedures to reduce errors Air cargo s growing role in trade -- high value, high tech 3
Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) Allows Administration to bring trade agreements to Congress for approval: -- Up or down vote -- No amendment by Congress Current TPA expires 30 June 2007 President Bush has requested its extension TPA is widely seen abroad as sign of U.S. credibility in negotiations 4
U.S.-EU Open Skies U.S.-EU Now: -- 16 Open Skies agreements -- 5 restricted agreements: Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Spain, United Kingdom -- 6 without agreements: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia U.S.-EU Open Skies: -- One agreement 27 European countries -- 60 percent of Global Air Traffic covered -- Cargo and passenger, scheduled and charter flights -- All U.S. and EU carriers may serve between any point in the U.S. and any point in the EU - a boon for airports -- Open 5 th Freedom flights --flights on to third countries with pick-up traffic for cargo and passenger 5
What Open Skies Means for Cargo Market Principles Rule: -- Unlimited Frequency of Service -- No Limit on Aircraft Type -- Open Routing: Cargo doesn t fly roundtrip -- Pricing Freedom: Carriers may set their prices; both governments must agree to disallow a price (this has never happened with Open Skies) -- Intermodal in Connection with Flights: Planes to trucks to destination -- Groundhandlining Options: Greater Control of own service -- Cooperation between Airlines -- Guaranteed Access to Customs Facilities and Processing -- Optional 7 th Freedom Services: A service between two countries outside the U.S. without a direct connection to the U.S. 6
Agreements Under Negotiation Argentina (Passenger liberalization: Initialed March 22 Cargo Open Skies now) China (Open Skies with transition) Colombia (Cargo Open Skies) Israel (Open Skies) Japan (Cargo and passenger liberalization) Russia (Cargo and passenger liberalization) 7
Brazil-U.S. Commercial Dialogue Presidential initiative from June 2006 Four Tracks: -- Business Facilitation -- Export and investment promotion -- Intellectual property -- Standards Within these tracks, services working groups in: -- Visa/tourism -- Hotel investment -- Services trade statistics -- Franchising -- Entrepreneurial and venture capital -- Customs Facilitation Commercial approach to practical problems Can be expanded to broader area 8
Americas Competitiveness Forum Atlanta, Georgia June 11 13, 2007 Broad participation from business and government from more than 30 countries. Four broad areas: -- Global supply chain strategies -- Education and workforce development -- Innovation -- Small- and Medium-sized enterprise development 9
Ana M. Guevara Deputy Assistant Secretary for Services International Trade Administration U.S. Department of Commerce 202-482-5261 10