| Trade News Archive: 7 May - 13 May |
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As well as providing fresh news reports every day, AmericanEconomicAlert.org offers a uniques news rating system. Each news item below has been given a rating from 1 to 5 stars, depending on its importance and relevance to
U.S. international economic and trade policy.
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| Tuesday, May 13, 2008 |
Americans Doubtful of Free Trade Benefits
Angus Reid
• Comment: "48 per cent of respondents believe commerce pacts like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the policies of the World Trade Organization (WTO) are bad for the U.S., while 35 per cent disagree." |  |
Indiana Manufacturing Jobs Dropped 2.2 Percent in 2007
NewsBlaze
• Comment: "Indiana lost 15,118 industrial jobs from March 2007 to March 2008 -- comparable to the 2.4% decline MNI reported for the state during the 2006-2007 period and matching the 2.2% loss experienced by the U.S. as a whole within the past 12 months." |  |
WTO cites China as an export platform for the rest of Asia
China Post
• Comment: "The WTO is set to conduct a second China trade policy review on May 21 and 23, with the objectives of facilitating the smooth functioning of the multilateral trading system by enhancing the transparency of the world's third largest trading power's trade policies. With a soaring trade surplus that reached US$253.2 billion last year, and a not fully liberalized trade regime, China has been placed under strict scrutiny by WTO member states." | |
Manufacturers shun their low-wage inland for outsourcing
China Post
• Comment: "With rising labor costs and the yuan's appreciation against the dollar threatening profits, Kang, 45, considered moving from Nanjing, near China's Pacific coast, to the interior to take advantage of a government program to entice businesses into lower-wage provinces.He decided instead to shift 40 percent of his manufacturing capacity to a new plant in northern Vietnam's port city of Haiphong within five years." |  |
GM deals Windsor new blow
Globe and Mail
• Comment: "The shutdown of GM's transmission plant in 2010 will wipe out another 1,400 jobs in a city with Canada's fourth-highest unemployment rate. GM will no longer employ anyone directly in Windsor, where it has been assembling transmissions since 1963.The other job cuts suffered by the city include the closing of a casting plant and joint venture aluminum factory by Ford Motor Co., as well as the shutdown of a Lear Corp. seat-making plant and more than 1,000 job cuts at Chrysler Canada Inc." | |
| Monday, May 12, 2008 |
U.S. farm bill could run afoul of global trade rules
International Herald Tribune
• Comment: "But the bill also could fan trade partners' fears that a Congress eager to protect farm programs might try to obstruct or dismantle a deal if sent to it for approval. Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives this year derailed a bilateral trade deal with Colombia, a Latin American ally. That action, which set the traditional procedure for voting trade agreements on its head, infuriated advocates of free trade and raised fears about growing iciness to trade deals in Congress, which is controlled by the Democrats." | |
After Losing Their Homes, Many Wind Up Losing Their Possessions In Storage
TheDay.com
• Comment: "Bill Martin, a 50-year-old former manager in the technology industry, lost his house in the Southern California community of Lake Forest last August. His local self-storage company sent a truck and driver to pick up his things, a service it offers all new customers.”Storage has my hopes in it,” said Martin, who sleeps on a foldout bed in his mother's guest room.“I don't tell anyone this, but at least once a week I go over and look at my couch, my refrigerator, my TV stand, my mattress and realize I did have a life, and maybe there's a way to go back to it.” | |
Toyota says new US auto plant delayed
Savannah Morning News
• Comment: "A senior Toyota executive said Monday that plans for a new auto assembly plant in Mississippi are being delayed by worries about slumping American auto sales and a broader U.S. economic slowdown.
The vehicle assembly plant being built in Blue Springs, near Tupelo, Miss., was initially to be up and running by late 2009 or early 2010, said Toyota Motor Corp. Executive Vice President Mitsuo Kinoshita.That has now been pushed back to mid-2010 after Toyota reviewed the plans and considered the signs of a slowdown in the U.S. market following the subprime mortgage crisis, Kinoshita told a small group of reporters at a Tokyo hotel." | |
Chicago Fed's Evans sees economy improving this year, but sees 'wea...
Forex TV
• Comment: "Evans said improvement in economic conditions will likely be very slow because past events involving economic damage to the financial system have led to very slow growth. He noted the savings and loan crisis in the early 1990s as one example in which banks became reluctant to lend, which created "headwinds that made the recovery from recession frustratingly slow."He said today's crisis is similar in that the securitization of mortgage debt has spread losses and made it more difficult to quantify losses, which again results in a reluctance to lend." | |
Bad for Boeing? China to build its own jumbo jets
KBCI 2 Boise
• Comment: "The central government and the Shanghai government are among the major shareholders, as are China's two main aircraft manufacturing and servicing companies, China Aviation Industry Corp. I and China Aviation Industry Corp. II, which were split off from state-owned China Aviation Industry Corp. in 1999." | |
China's April inflation rises to 8.5 percent
Seattle Times | |
Forex - Dollar mixed in Asian trade ahead of data
Sharewatch |  |
Dollar Rally Runs Out of Gas
Mena Report | |
China's April auto sales rise 14 percent, led by commercial vehicles
Canadian Business Magazine | |
Bullets and Bananas: The Violence of Free Trade in Guatemala
Upside Down World | |
| Sunday, May 11, 2008 |
Low-wage workers' incomes said to lag
Richmond Times Dispatch
• Comment: "In 1979, the lowest paid 10 percent of Virginians made $7.54 an hour. In 2006, they earned $7.64. That compares with the top 10 percent, which made $27.78 in 1979 and $38.36 in 2006. The figures are not adjusted for inflation.James Ceaser, a professor of politics at the University of Virginia, says the numbers can mean different things for workers, depending on their individual circumstances.A worker who has been locked into the same low-skill job over several years has not done as well as others in the growing economy, Ceaser said."It doesn't strike me as all that shocking that . . . [pay for] unskilled labor is not going up as fast as for others," Ceaser said." | |
Clinton, Obama criticize free trade for blue collar votes
Moneycontrol.com
• Comment: "Ken Goldstein, Economist at The Conference Board, said, "Is there a good chance post-November that a bill could go through Congress to penalize a company for shipping a job outside the United States? Don't hold your breath." | |
UAW: American Axle proposal includes closing three plants
Detroit News
• Comment: "Negotiations to end the nearly 11 week-long American Axle strike have broken down, as the company is now proposing to close a third plant, United Auto Workers President Ron Gettlefinger said Saturday.Gettlefinger, in an interview with WWJ radio, called the proposal to close a Cheektowaga, N.Y., plant an "insult" and said it came out of left field."If the company continues down this road, it's going to make the talks increasingly more difficult," he said."I don't know how they can call themselves American Axle anymore. To me it's more like Axle Mexico." | |
What it'll take to keep it open: Productivity called key to Delphi plant's future viability
Calibre Macro World
• Comment: "The nature of the products the Lockport site makes -- "big and bulky" -- also influenced Delphi's decision. It makes sense to manufacture those sorts of products somewhere near the automotive assembly plants that will use them, he said. Shipping those from overseas, compared to something small like sparkplugs, would prove too costly, he said.Miller said the Lockport plant still faces challenges. Its labor costs, though lower than they were before, are still high by competitors' standards, he said." | |
India, US resume talks to sort out Doha deadlock
Express India
• Comment: "India and the United States have agreed to resolve the divisive issues for an early conclusion of the Doha round of trade negotiations." | |
The UAW Can't Count on Buyers' Support Anymore
Washington Post
• Comment: "My friend Monique Tapie, communications manager for Global Advertising Strategies, a firm specializing in multicultural marketing, says my perception that foreign cars rule New York's streets is right. And she says that the regional growth of foreign-car sales largely is influenced by the area's huge immigrant population."They come to New York from Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East and South America already familiar with brands such as Toyota, Nissan and Mercedes-Benz," Monique said. "They are not as familiar with Dodge or Cadillac. So, they stick with what they already know." | |
Chinese producer prices keep surging: up 8.1 per cent year-over-year
Brandon Sun
• Comment: "China's producer price index, a key indicator of inflation, rose 8.1 per cent in April over the same month a year earlier, the government reported Friday, as a top economic official sought new controls to cool rising prices." | |
A New Inflationary Epoch
Safe Haven
• Comment: "China's economic growth will rebound to 10.8% this quarter as local governments and companies rebuild after the worst blizzards in 50 years in January and February, state economists forecast. Faster gains in industrial output and factory spending will boost the expansion from 10.6% in the previous three months... 'The infrastructure reconstruction in the southern provinces hit by the snowstorms will add new investment demand,' economists said." | |
China's Yuan Ascends As Trade Surplus Rises
Yahoo! Canada
• Comment: "China's exports surged 21.8% in April from year-earlier levels, after rising 30.6% in March. Its trade surplus was $16.8 billion, slightly bigger than it was a year ago. The U.S. and Europe have been pressuring China to strengthen its currency to reduce its huge trade surplus."Currency appreciation will have to continue; trade surpluses and foreign reserves continue to pile up at an unsustainable pace," said Alaistair Chan, an economist at Moody's Economy.com. "A one-off revaluation could solve these problems as well as stop speculative inflows." | |
Dollar Rally Runs Out of Gas
Yahoo! Canada | |
Rise of the Have-Nots
Washington Post | |
Up to 35 jobs lost; Domtar official confirms layoffs at Timmins mill
Timmins Daily Press | |
Rethinking the "Made in China" label
CHINAdaily | |
| Saturday, May 10, 2008 |
Choice hits Chrysler's laid-off workers
Detroit News
• Comment: "Hundreds of laid-off Chrysler LLC workers in Sterling Heights are facing the reality of the landmark UAW contract they agreed to last fall as they find themselves choosing between out-of-state posts and the possibility of permanently losing their jobs." | |
Lay offs, factory closings cost Kimball in third quarter | Comments (21)
Evansville Courier
• Comment: "Kimball, based in Jasper, Ind., makes furniture used in offices and hotels, as well electronic devices sold to a variety of industries throughout the world. In March, the company said it plans to lay off about 150 workers by June 30. Between 75 and 100 of those jobs were to be cut in Jasper and the rest in the company’s factories throughout the world." | |
Trade deficit narrows as demand for imports plunges
Los Angeles Times
• Comment: "The Commerce Department reported Friday that the deficit totaled $58.2 billion, down 5.6% from February, a larger improvement than had been expected.The smaller deficit reflected spreading weakness in the U.S. economy, which cut demand for imports by 2.9%, the largest one-month decline since December 2001, one month after the last recession ended." | |
Chinese firms triumph in U.S. battery suit
China.com
• Comment: "Energizer Holdings, the second largest battery maker in the U.S., in 2003 filed complaints against more than 20 companies, including nine Chinese manufacturers, claiming they had infringed on Eveready's zero-mercury-added patent. According to an announcement by Hogan & Hartson, the law firm that helped Chinese enterprises with the case, the patent claims were unfounded. The U.S. Court of Federal Appeals for the Federal Circuit in late April affirmed a previous ruling by the US International Trade Commission (ITC) that Energizer's claim was not valid. It is the final decision on the case since this was the second time Energizer appealed." | |
Plasmon move leads to layoffs
The Gazette | |
| Friday, May 09, 2008 |
The Fast-Track Trade War
American.com
• Comment: "First, the fast-track coup was accomplished almost single-handedly by Rules Committee Democrats (with the crucial support of Speaker Pelosi). The absence of the traditionally powerful Ways and Means Committee and its chairman, Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY), is striking. Rangel seems to have been presented with a fait accompli, though undoubtedly he was consulted at some point late in the process. According to some House staff members, however, the episode is part of a pattern, at least on trade policy, in which Rangel has told members that he is “only a traffic cop” and that the Speaker exercises real control in this area." | |
Economic Report: Trade gap narrows to $58.2 billion on fewer imports
MarketWatch
• Comment: "In a sign of weaker global growth, both imports and exports fell sharply in March, driving the U.S. trade deficit down to $58.2 billion, the Commerce Department reported Friday.
Nominal imports fell 2.9% to $206.7 billion, the largest decline in more than six years, despite record oil prices. Nominal exports dropped 1.7% to $148.5 billion, the biggest drop in nearly three years, despite higher prices for U.S. farm products." | |
Techs suffer patent-protection setback in Senate
MarketWatch
• Comment: "Now it seems the legislation may fizzle, or at least the elements that technology businesses cared about most. "At this point, it seems unlikely that patent reform will pass," according to Stanford University Law School professor Mark Lemley, "If it does, it will likely be stripped of the provisions that dealt with patent abuse." | |
Manufacturers trade group releases lobbying funder names
Sharewatch
• Comment: "NAM was trying to keep the names secret, but lost a fight against a new lobbying disclosure law that requires trade groups and coalitions to divulge the names of members that give more than $5,000 in a quarterly period toward such activities. Congress tightened the lobbying-disclosure requirements to target "stealth coalitions" or groups that use nondescript names to lobby for industries.
Facing a $250,000 fine and a maximum five years in prison, NAM relented and provided a Web site link to the list of the funders in the April 30 amended report, which also indicated the trade group spent more than $2.2 million lobbying in the January-to-March period." | |
March trade gap narrows on record import drop
Washington Post
• Comment: "The closely-watched U.S. trade deficit with China narrowed to $16.1 billion in March, the lowest in two years." | |
Bush signs bill extending US labor law to Marianas
South Carolina Enquirer-Herald
• Comment: "Workers in the Mariana Islands will receive the protection of U.S. labor law under a bill signed Thursday by President Bush.Debate over whether to extend federal labor and immigration law to the Marianas, in the northwestern Pacific, had been sullied by reports of sweatshop labor and past associations with the lobbying scandal surrounding Jack Abramoff, whose firm was hired by the islands to oppose the changes." | |
Brazil may contest US rules at WTO
Upstreamonline.com
• Comment: "Brazil may bring a case against the US to the World Trade Organisation if proposed ethanol tax rules are approved as part of a new US farm bill, Brazil's chief trade negotiator said." | |
Kerkorian officially solicits Ford shares
Detroit News
• Comment: "In documents filed this morning with the SEC, Kerkorian stated: "We are making the offer because we believe Ford is an attractive investment. We do not have a present intent to acquire or influence control over the business of Ford. Depending on our continuing evaluation of the business and prospects for Ford and other factors, including business and market conditions, we may, from time to time, propose business strategies and, subsequent to the expiration of the offer, acquire additional shares." | |
Notices for 76 layoffs released
MSNBC | |
Auto Parts Supplier Delphi Reports Wider Loss
ABC News | |
GM to help end Axle strike
Detroit News | |
Federal government confirms decision to reject foreign takeover of Radarsat
Yahoo! Canada | |
Cavanagh: NAFTA not good for America
The Daily Reporter | |
Plant closing cuts down TreeHouse profits
Biz Journals | |
US Dollar: Selectivity Remains the Key
Yahoo! Canada | |
The Textile Industry and China: Pimping All Over the World
Skanner | |
| Thursday, May 08, 2008 |
U.S. imposes duties on Chinese, German paper producers
East Bay Business Journal
• Comment: "Some Chinese producers of lightweight thermal paper face duties of nearly 133 percent imposed by the U.S. Department of Commerce because the agency found evidence that the firms exported the products into the country at prices below fair value.The Commerce Department issued its preliminary decision in the antidumping case Wednesday, according to Appleton Papers, an employee-owned producer of lightweight thermal paper based in Appleton. Under the decision, One Chinese exporter faces a duty of 2.3 percent, while an unspecified number of other Chinese exporters face duties of 132.95 percent." | |
U.S. Democrats reassure EU over stance on Doha talks
Washington Post
• Comment: "EU trade chief Peter Mandelson said on Thursday he had been given assurances by U.S. Democratic leaders that they would not unpick a global trade deal if the party won November's presidential election." | |
Reviving the free-trade free-for-all (By Gary Andres)
Washington Times
• Comment: "Unfortunately, many free-trade supporters have an outmoded view of how lobbying really works in the 21st century. They believe it's done through hiring a few well-connected advocates to "fix" the problem. Insiders — former staffers or members of Congress — get hired to influence the votes and attitudes of the very malleable public officials. But that view of the influence business only exists in the minds of Hollywood screenwriters and maybe editorialists for The New York Times. Elections influence public policy a lot more than lobbyists — and so does public opinion." | |
Vehicle supplier to idle 177 at Van Wert plant
Toledoblade.com
• Comment: "Kongsberg Driveline Systems, of Van Wert, has told state officials it plans to move its shifter-cable, sample-service, and extrusion work from its local plant, resulting in the layoff of 177 employees." | |
General Motors to pay up to $200M to help end American Axle strike
Yahoo! Canada
• Comment: "The strike has crippled GM's production of pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles and hurt its bottom line. About 30 GM factories have been either fully or partially closed due to the strike.No deal had been reached between American Axle and the UAW as of Thursday afternoon, but American Axle spokeswoman Renee Rogers said talks were continuing.
"We are hopeful that GM's financial assistance to help fund the buyouts, retirement incentives and buy downs ... will facilitate an expedited resolution to the international UAW strike," Rogers said. "It's been costly and disruptive. A quick return to work will be a win-win-win for everybody." | |
McCain: Mich. economy fix lies in helping displaced workers
WWJ Newsradio 950
• Comment: "He also voiced his support for a new federal law mandating increases in the corporate average fuel economy or CAFE.A question about it came from a retired General Motors Corp. worker, who said the legislation couldn't have been worse for his company than if it had been written by its Asian rivals. He seeks a ''more rational solution'' to conserving gas." | |
Toyota fourth-quarter falls as strong yen, weak U.S. weigh
Reuters via MSN Money
• Comment: "Toyota Motor Corp posted a bigger-than-expected 28 percent drop in quarterly net profit due to a stronger yen and sliding U.S. sales, and forecast its first annual profit decline in seven years.
The world's biggest automaker is expanding rapidly in China, Russia and the Middle East to try and counter a slowdown in the mature markets of the United States, Japan and Western Europe." | |
Hu makes proposal for China-Japan economy co-op
CHINAdaily | |
Heinz to close Dallas plant
East Bay Business Journal | |
German trade surplus narrowed slightly in March
FXStreet.com | |
Currency issues plague forest and paper industry, but good news coming from southern hemisphere and emerging markets
Yahoo! Canada | |
A&A to buy Connecticut manufacturer
Biz Journals | |
| Wednesday, May 07, 2008 |
Is U.S. Innovation Headed Offshore?
Business Week
• Comment: "Is American tech supremacy thanks to heavy investments in R&D also benefiting U.S. workers? Or are U.S. inventions mainly creating jobs overseas? A few years ago, most people took it for granted that what was good for companies was good for the greater economy. But the flat growth in living standards for most Americans during the last boom has raised doubts over the benefits of globalization." | |
Several companies disclose layoffs in Texas
Forbes.com
• Comment: "Dallas Woodcraft Co. said it will close its Dallas plant and eliminate 119 jobs on June 30. The company made products for Home Interiors & Gifts Inc., which sells decorating accessories through home parties but had seen its sales fall by more than half in four years, and it filed for bankruptcy protection last week.Another Home Interiors division, Laredo Candle, said it would lay off 77 workers in Webb County on June 30." | |
China currency must rise faster: IMF chief
Straits Times
• Comment: "The IMF Managing Director said sustaining growth in China would entail reducing the country's dependence on exports and investment growth and rebalancing demand toward domestic consumption.That rebalancing would among other things require a further appreciation of the renminbi, also known as the yuan .'China needs to go further and faster if new misalignments among major currencies are to be avoided,' Mr Strauss-Kahn added." | |
Lay offs, factory closings cost Kimball in third quarter
Evansville Courier
• Comment: "Kimball, based in Jasper, Ind., makes furniture used in offices and hotels, as well electronic devices sold to a variety of industries throughout the world. In March, the company said it plans to lay off about 150 workers by June 30. Between 75 and 100 of those jobs were to be cut in Jasper and the rest in the company’s factories throughout the world." | |
China Equities Have Bottomed
Forbes.com | |
A&A to buy Connecticut manufacturer
Business Journal of Milwaukee | |
Dollar Rises Against Yen in Asian Trade
PhillyBurbs.com | |
Prime Minister reiterates support for US businesses,
VietNamNet Bridge | |
