candis, Author at Carson International

November 9, 2020

Biden’s Trade Policies Likely To Remain Protectionist

President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to work more closely with U.S. allies in confronting China on trade, and is seen as unlikely to roll back Trump’s tariffs on imported steel, aluminum, Chinese and European in the foreseeable future, maintaining a protectionist stance towards U.S. trade policies.

Biden, who captured the presidency on Saturday after days of vote counting, was elected with the strong backing of trade unions who have been skeptical of past free trade deals, resulting in pressure to maintain protections for vulnerable industries, such as steel and aluminum.

His top economic priority will be to focus on economic recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, so trade agreements will likely take a back seat to stimulus efforts and infrastructure development.

Biden advisers say he will seek to end “artificial trade wars” with Europe and would immediately consult with U.S. allies before deciding on the future of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods, in a bid for “collective leverage” against Beijing.

Additionally, Biden is not seen likely to try to revive the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the 12-country Pacific Rim trade deal negotiated by the Obama administration but abandoned by Trump in 2017.

Instead, reforming the World Trade Organization with new rules against subsidies and other non-market practices is viewed as a bigger priority.

(Source: Reuters)

November 6, 2020

Shipping Demand Expected To Suffer Amidst Second Wave of European Lockdowns

Freight rates are about to face renewed downward pressure, on the back of a new wave of lockdowns around the world, including Germany, France, and England most notably in Europe.

In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Allied Shipbroking said:

“The winter season for the northern hemisphere has shown that the pandemic has far from dissipated, with one after another, major OECD economies entering into a second wave of lockdowns, as had been feared earlier in the year, in an effort to bring the spread of COVID-19 under control… Vitally important to trade commodities have not been able to escape the turmoil, with crude oil prices dropping once more to their lows of May, while others such as iron ore are still holding at fair levels though having seemingly lost now most of the momentum gained during the summer months.”

Analysts predict that despite the anticipation of a a strong recovery in 2021, the coming months may prove to be the most difficult we have yet faced during the pandemic. A second round of lockdowns may cause considerably more damage on major economies around the world, given their fragile states.

With uncertainty coming in the months ahead, analysts continue to look to the bigger picture and the long game in terms of the re-stabilization of shipping rates and economic frameworks.

(Source: Hellenic Shipping News)

November 4, 2020

Canada’s Trade Deficit Widens, Despite Rise in Imports and Exports Through September

Canada’s exports and imports rose in September, though both remain below pre-pandemic levels, while the country’s trade deficit widened more than expected, according to data from Statistics Canada.

The trade deficit widened to C$3.25 billion ($2.47 billion), missing analyst predictions of C$2.6 billion, with August’s deficit also upwardly revised to C$3.21 billion from an initial C$2.45 billion.

“Canada’s trade gap has widened notably through the pandemic,” said Benjamin Reitzes, Canadian Rates & Macro Strategist at BMO Capital Markets, in a note. “With energy prices remaining low, it’s going to be difficult to meaningfully narrow the gap in the short term.”

“On the bright side, the rise in overall trade activity bodes well for the economy in September,” he added.

Imports rose by 1.5%, mainly on higher crude oil imports, while exports were up 1.5%, led by lumber and aircraft. Eight out of 11 export product sections increased, with non-energy exports up 2.2%, Statscan said.

Exports to the United States, Canada’s largest trading partner, declined 1.6%, while imports rose 1.2%.

With the outcome of the U.S. presidential election still unclear, analysts have been unable to predict the immediate impact on Canadian trade.

However, it is likely that regardless of the winner of the election, the United States will remain in a protectionist state due to the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic, among other reasons.

(Source: Reuters)

November 3, 2020

U.S. CBP Issues Updated Section 232 Guidance for Canadian Aluminum Imports

On October 29, in Cargo Systems Messaging Service (CSMS) #44591106, U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued updated Section 232 guidance on imports of aluminum articles from Canada.

The guidance reflects the changes made to Presidential Proclamation 10060 by U.S. President Trump on October 27, 2020, reinstating the Section 232 exclusion for certain non-alloyed unwrought aluminum articles from Canada.

This exclusion is effective from September 1, 2020. Goods entered prior to September 1, 2020 are still subject to the additional 10% duties under Section 232.

The guidance confirms a statement made by U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer:

After consultations with the Canadian government, the United States has determined that trade in non-alloyed, unwrought aluminum is likely to normalize in the last four months of 2020, with imports declining sharply from the surges experienced earlier in the year. Average monthly imports are expected to decline 50 percent from the monthly average in the period of January through July. Accordingly, the United States will modify the terms of the 10 percent tariff imposed in August on imports of Canadian non-alloyed unwrought aluminum… Based on these expectations, the United States will resume duty-free treatment of non-alloyed, unwrought aluminum retroactive to September 1, 2020.

Click here to read the full message in CSMS.

November 2, 2020

Webinar: Leveraging The Benefits Of Free Trade Agreements

Carson International is pleased to partner with Miller Thomson LLP in our webinar coverage addressing international trade issues, and how best to navigate changes.

Canada’s economic prosperity is closely linked to its ability to maintain free trade agreements that provide benefits to Canadian business as a result of global access. Many of Canada’s FTAs go beyond trade in goods and cover areas such as services, intellectual property (IP), investment, labour and the environment.

Join the conversation regarding how free trade agreements can benefit Canadian businesses by increasing efficiencies, reducing costs and providing opportunities to expand.

Speakers:

Dave Pentland, Carson International
Dan Kiselbach, Miller Thomson LLP

Webinar Details:

Leveraging The Benefits Of Free Trade Agreements
Thursday, November 12, 2020
Time: 12:00 p.m. (PST) / 3:00 p.m. (EST)

Webinar connection details will be provided by Miller Thomson before the webinar.

R.S.V.P. by November 11, 2020.

The webinar will be approximately 30 minutes in length.

October 27, 2020

Canadian Blueberries Under U.S. Trade Scrutiny

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and the Trump administration fear that domestic producers are being unfairly harmed by what they perceive as a recent increase in blueberry imports from Canada and Mexico.

Lighthizer asked the U.S. International Trade Commission to investigate whether domestic farmers, who are feeling the pinch from the COVID-19 pandemic, are being hurt by an increase in foreign competition.

Ordering a USITC investigation, which Lighthizer also did on raspberry imports earlier this year, “is just one of a number of steps the administration is taking to support American producers of seasonal and perishable agricultural products.”

Blueberry imports from Mexico appear to be the primary concern, however, Canadian producers are also taking note.

Canada is the world’s single largest importer of fresh American blueberries by a wide margin, but remains far from the single largest supplier to the U.S., well back of Chile and Mexico.

(Source: Global News)

October 23, 2020

Canadian Trade Shrank in August Due to Slumping Transportation Exports

A lower number of auto exports caused Canadian trade numbers to drop in August, suggesting Canadian economic recovery may be losing steam sooner than economists had predicted.

Merchandise exports fell 1% in August, after jumping 42% between April and July, according to Statistics Canada, while imports decreased 1.2 %. That leaves total trade at about 94% of pre-pandemic levels, a decrease from July when it had rebounded to about 96%.

Lower imports of aircraft and other transportation equipment were the largest contributors to slumping August numbers.

The trade deficit narrowed slightly to $2.45 billion in August, from a revised $2.53 billion in July. Economists had forecast a deficit of $2.05 billion.

Strike action at the Port of Montreal was also cited by Statistic Canada as a potential reason for lowering trade numbers.

(Source: BNN Bloomberg)

October 21, 2020

Global Trade Rebounding Slowly To Pre-Pandemic Levels, Though Future Remains Uncertain

Global trade is staging what the United Nations termed a “fragile recovery,” as economies battered by the pandemic claw their way back to full activity.

UN trade body UNCTAD’s assessment for the latter half of 2020 recorded sea freight volumes in September that were close to the previous year’s level.

A revival of global commerce is a key prerequisite for the economy to exit the historic recession unleashed by the COVID-19 pandemic that forced many businesses around the world shutter their doors.

The International Monetary Fund predicts a 4.4% drop in global gross domestic product this year, and has warned the path of recovery is uneven.

If the pandemic resurges in coming months, that could lead to a deteriorating environment for policy-makers and sudden increase in trade restrictive policies, it said.

China’s exports rebounded strongly in the third quarter after falling in the early months of the pandemic, and have posted year-on-year growth rates of nearly 10%, UNCTAD said.

“Overall, the level of Chinese exports for the first nine months of 2020 was comparable to that of 2019 over the same period,” it said.

In its report on Wednesday, UNCTAD said that despite the third-quarter rebound, global trade is forecast to plummet about 7% this year. An even deeper slump is possible if the pandemic intensifies again or if there is a “sudden increase in trade restrictive policies.”

(Source: Bloomberg)

October 20, 2020

Canadian Dairy Farmers Demand Compensation Amid CUSMA Losses

Canadian dairy farmers are demanding compensation from the government because of losses to their industry they say have been caused by a series of international trade deals.

Dairy Farmers of Canada representatives say they have received $1.75 billion in compensation from the government for losses they have incurred due to Canada’s trade deals with Europe and with Pacific Rim countries.

But they have yet to be compensated for a third trade deal: the new North American trade pact with the United States and Mexico — CUSMA.

The lobby group says that by 2024, trade concessions which came into effect on July 1, 2020, will mean that 18% of domestic milk will be outsourced to foreign dairy farmers.

David Wiens, the vice-president of the organization, says it didn’t want to push too hard at the start of the pandemic because the government had its hands full but now the dairy farmers are done waiting.

(Source: Kamloops This Week)

October 20, 2020

Washington Pushes for Tighter Sanctions for eCommerce Counterfeits

U.S. President Trump is cracking down on counterfeit trafficking by way of ecommerce platforms, such as Amazon and eBay.

Trump has signed a memorandum asking the executive branch to exercise tighter control over ecommerce sites in the U.S. that offer third-party selling. The proposed set of sanctions would give the Secretary of Homeland Security, through the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the right to seize counterfeit goods imported to the U.S. on ecommerce platforms, while imposing fines on the online sites.

“Trafficking in counterfeit goods infringes on the intellectual property rights of American companies, undermines their competitiveness and harms American workers,” the memorandum stated. “Counterfeit trafficking also poses significant health and safety threats to online consumers. E-commerce platforms serve as key contributors to counterfeit trafficking by acting as intermediaries and providing marketplaces that match up buyers and sellers.”

The Secretary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General have 120 days to develop a legislative proposal backing the memorandum.

In January, U.S. Customs and Border Protection launched a pilot program with marketplaces and shipping services, such as Amazon, Zulily, eBay and FedEx — all of which volunteered for the program — to disclose information on shipments, package contents, manufacturing and recipient details.

(Source: Yahoo News)