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U.S. Business Hails Completion of U.S.-Singapore FTA Negotiations
Conclusion of final round of talks paves way for signing of pact;
U.S. businesses looking at increased trade and investment opportunities
(Washington, DC) The US-ASEAN Business Council today hailed the completion of free trade negotiations between the U.S. and Singapore. The Council noted that the agreement will not only boost trade and investment between the United States and Singapore, but will provide momentum for continued trade liberalization in the region, and will help anchor the U.S. in Southeast Asia in a broader strategic sense.
“As the first FTA with an Asian country, the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement is historic, and sends a strong signal to investors that trade has momentum in Asia, and will fuel a new round of global economic growth in the next decade.” said Ernest Z. Bower, President of the US-ASEAN Business Council. "This is the agreement that puts Singapore, and with her, the ASEAN nations, at the epicenter of trade and investment-driven growth in Asia.”
The agreement addresses a wide range of issues, including trade in goods, customs and rules of origin, trade in services, e-commerce, telecommunications, investment, intellectual property rights, competition policy, and government procurement. The agreement represents the most extensive bilateral U.S. FTA to date, and substantially covers all trade areas
The US-ASEAN Business Council will follow up aggressively on the opportunities created by the FTA, including a series of high-level programs to help American and Singaporean businesses take full advantage of the agreement. The Council announced that it will hold its Board of Directors meeting in Singapore from July 13-15, 2003, and will be involved in a series of other programs, including several Congressional Staff delegation visits, a business promotion tour by the U.S. Ambassador to Singapore and Singapore Ambassador to Washington across the United States early next year, as well as a concerted effort to educate lawmakers on the benefits of the landmark agreement to ensure its passage in the U.S. Congress early in 2003.
Although there has been a sharp increase in free trade activity in Asia during the past two years, the agreement with Singapore is the first involving the U.S. Aside from its NAFTA partners, at present the U.S. only has FTAs with Israel and Jordan.
The completion of the negotiations follows President Bush’s announcement last month of the Enterprise for ASEAN Initiative (EAI), under which the United States is opening the door to possible free trade agreements with other interested ASEAN nations. (Details on the EAI are available on the US-ASEAN Business Council Web site at http://www.us-asean.org). “This agreement shows what is possible through leadership and engagement on trade issues. The Bush Administration’s focus on Southeast Asia has demonstrated that we can move forward simultaneously in the bilateral, regional, and global arenas to provide momentum and action on the trade liberalization agenda.”
Despite its small population and geographic size, Singapore is a tremendously important U.S. trade and investment partner. The city-state is the 11th largest U.S. export market worldwide, and the largest in Southeast Asia, with two-way U.S.-Singapore trade last year totaling US$33 billion. Singapore has one of the most open, well-regulated, safe and secure investment climates in the world, and its economy is consistently rated among the most competitive worldwide. It hosts US$27 billion in U.S. direct investment, and more than 1,300 American companies have a presence in Singapore.
The US-ASEAN Business Council serves as the secretariat to the U.S. Singapore Free Trade Agreement Coalition. The Coalition, co-chaired by Boeing, ExxonMobil, and UPS, is a group of approximately 75 leading U.S. companies and trade associations that support the conclusion and passage of a US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. For more information on the Coalition, visit its web site at http://www.us-asean.org/ussfta/index.asp.
The US-ASEAN Business Council is America’s leading private business organization dedicated to promoting increased trade and investment between the United States and the member nations of ASEAN. The Council's membership includes approximately 150 leading American companies with significant trade and investment interests in the ASEAN region, and the council's members are represented in diverse industries, including aerospace, agribusiness, automobiles, computers and information technology, consumer goods, energy exploration and development, express delivery services, financial services, health care and pharmaceuticals, software, and telecommunications. For information on the US-ASEAN Business Council or general information on the ASEAN region, please contact John Goyer at jgoyer@usasean.org or visit the Council's Web site at www.us-asean.org
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