by Andrea | Sep 9, 2018 | access to finance, CSME, international trade rules, small business financing, tools for importers
A few weeks ago (July 2018), I led a seminar on international trade for high school students which brought home to me how much misunderstanding exists about what is a tariff. The assumption was that tariffs are inherently protectionist. The current use of tariffs by...
by Andrea | Jun 25, 2018 | access to finance, international trade rules, tools for importers
Citing national security concerns the Trump Administration has imposed an additional 25% duty on steel mill and a 10% duty on aluminum articles imported into the United States. As of June 1, 2018, imports from all countries, with 4 exceptions, are subject to the...
by Andrea | May 21, 2018 | access to finance, international trade rules, tools for importers
Should the system of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) be reformed? That is the question being considered by the United Nations Commission on Trade Law (UNCITRAL). ISDS provisions are contained in about 3,000 investment treaties and investment chapters of free...
by Andrea | Apr 26, 2018 | access to finance, international trade rules
GSP is back! As of April 22, 2018 importers can once again take advantage of the retroactive renewal of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program. This means: Entering GSP-eligible products without having to pay duties; and Claiming refunds for duties paid...
by Andrea | Feb 27, 2018 | access to finance, CSME, international trade rules, markets in Africa, tools for importers
The threat to “Kill NAFTA” was a consistent promise of Trump as a presidential candidate. Instead, while the threat remains, on May 18, 2017 the Trump Administration announced its intention to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). To what end?...
by Andrea | Jan 17, 2017 | access to finance, CSME, international trade rules, Recent Trends in Trade, Russia WTO membership, world financial crisis, world trade month 2016
It should come as no surprise to anyone who has been paying attention that several developments of 2016 will bear fruit in 2017. Trade Watch 2017 lists some key issues to watch out for in the trade arena this year: Brexit: Britain must act on its vote to leave the...
