“Trump Plans to End Key Trade Preferences for India and Turkey.” This morning’s Bloomberg article leads with:
President Donald Trump has announced he plans to end key trade preferences for India and Turkey, in the latest move by the U.S. to counter what it calls unfair trade practices.
Trump notified Congress on Monday in letters of his “intent to terminate” trade benefits for both countries under the generalized system of preferences. The notification starts a 60-day countdown before the president can take the action on his own authority, the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office said in a statement.
Their designation under the program allows duty-free entry of about 2,000 products including auto components, industrial valves, and textile materials. The president can still walk back his notice to terminate the preference programs if the two countries satisfy the concerns of his administration.
India was the largest beneficiary of the program in 2017 with $5.7 billion in imports to the U.S. given duty-free status and Turkey the fifth largest with $1.7 billion in covered imports, according to a Congressional Research Service report issued in January.
Titanium Section 232 investigation launched by the Commerce Department. That in yesterday’s press release. More in last night’s Wall Street Journal article.
Monthly Treasury Statement to be released at 2 PM today. Look for the January statement here. It was delayed by the government shutdown. CBO will post its Monthly Budget Outlook at 2 PM Thursday here.
