TRADE NEWS BULLETIN Volume 2 Number 185 Monday, October 18, 1993 Headlines: CLINTON HAILS NAFTA IN RADIO ADDRESS BENTSEN RIPS PEROT; ROCKEFELLER TO VOTE AGAINST NAFTA BALLADUR SEEKS CONCESSIONS FROM GATT PARTNERS JAPAN MAY MAKE DECISION ON RICE NEXT MONTH ________________________________________________________ NAFTA News Summary ________________________________________________________ CLINTON HAILS NAFTA IN RADIO ADDRESS President Bill Clinton used his Saturday morning radio address to promote the North American Free Trade Agreement. He warned Americans that a rejection of the trade pact would encourage Mexico to form agreements with other trade partners. "With NAFTA, our products will have easier access to Canada and the second fastest growing market in the entire world: Latin America. Without NAFTA, one of our best markets, Mexico, could turn to Japan or Europe to make a sweetheart deal for trade," Clinton said. White House officials say they are optimistic NAFTA will pass both houses of Congress before the Thanksgiving recess, but they acknowledge the votes are not there yet. The key factor for undecided members may be the opinions of their constituents. In his address, Clinton encouraged listeners to tell their representatives to vote for NAFTA. On Wednesday, representatives of 200 companies with interests in Mexico will display products at the White House to show the importance of trade with Mexico. The Citizens' Trade Campaign, a coalition of environmental, labor, consumer advocacy and farm groups opposed to NAFTA, will hold a counter news conference to argue that NAFTA's main export will be jobs. Former President Ronald Reagan has agreed to join former Presidents George Bush, Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford in forming a commission to work for passage of NAFTA. "The NAFTA and Beyond Commission: Implications for the American Economy" will be co-sponsored by Carter's Atlanta-based presidential center and by Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies. Sources: "Clinton Says Failure for NAFTA Could Hurt U.S.," REUTER, October 17, 1993; Kenneth R. Bazinet, "White House, Distracted From NAFTA, to Resume Full-Court Press," UPI, October 16, 1993; Robert D. Hershey Jr., "Trade Pact Needed to Avert Rise in Imports, Clinton Says," NEW YORK TIMES, October 17, 1993; Jerry Schwartz, "Reagan Joins Carter, Bush, Ford in U.S. NAFTA Push," REUTER, October 15, 1993; ________________________________________________________ BENTSEN RIPS PEROT; ROCKEFELLER TO VOTE AGAINST NAFTA U.S. Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen said the American public has been subject to a great deal of misinformation on NAFTA. He rejected the claims of Ross Perot and others who argue NAFTA will encourage U.S. companies to move to Mexico to take advantage of cheap labor. Bentsen said the "giant sucking sound" that Perot refers to is the sound of U.S. products heading south, not jobs. "If cheap wages was the reason, then watch out for Bangladesh. Watch out for Haiti," he said. Senator Jay Rockefeller IV (D-West Virginia) announced Friday that he would reverse his position on NAFTA and vote against it. He said the pact would hurt the economy of his home state. "It is a risk that I have concluded we should not take right now," Rockefeller said. "We shouldn't have to sacrifice any more jobs or lose any more plants." Sources: "Sen. Rockefeller Withdraws Support of Trade Agreement," LOS ANGELES TIMES, October 16, 1993; "Bentsen Blasts Perot's NAFTA Stance," UPI, October 15, 1993. ________________________________________________________ GATT News Summary ________________________________________________________ BALLADUR SEEKS CONCESSIONS FROM GATT PARTNERS French Prime Minister Edouard Balladur told a summit of French- speaking nations that France would not sign a GATT accord unless other nations made concessions. "If nothing changes, if everything stays in today's state, it is clear France will not approve this accord," Balladur said. Representatives of 47 Francophone states, gathered in Mauritius, backed French demands that cultural trade be exempted from GATT. Former Socialist Culture Minister Jack Lang, who supports restrictions on foreign movie and television programs, said if culture were included in GATT, it would lead to "the mental colonization of Europe and the progressive destruction of its imagination." Balladur said he would like to reach a settlement to the Uruguay Round of talks and that he would work for an agreement in coming weeks. But, in addition to culture, he expressed dissatisfaction with current talks on aircraft exports, textiles and agriculture. Lawmakers in France's National Assembly (lower house) applauded Balladur last week for insisting that a GATT accord would not be imposed on France. In addition, many politicians from both the Left and the Right criticized a member of Balladur's own Gaullist party, Patrick Devedjian, who sought to publish a parliamentary report calling for a speedy conclusion to GATT talks. The report was suppressed by members of Devedjian's special commission charged with reviewing the trade talks. Sources: Paul Taylor, "Balladur Demands GATT Concessions, Delors Warns France," REUTER, October 17, 1993; Nelson Graves, "French Political Class Suffers GATT Fever," REUTER, October 17, 1993; "France-U.S. Trade Impasse Threatens Opportunity for World Economic Recovery," MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE, October 17, 1993. ________________________________________________________ JAPAN MAY MAKE DECISION ON RICE NEXT MONTH Japan's YOMIURI SHIMBUN newspaper reported Saturday that Japan will lift its outright ban on foreign rice imports and replace it with tariffs. The newspaper said Japan would like to delay the tariffs for six years, during which foreigners would be given "minimum access" to Japan's market. Japan is trying to determine whether such a proposal would be acceptable to the United States and other trading partners, YOMIURI reported. U.S. officials confirmed receiving the proposal. Sources: "Japan to Announce Lifting of Rice Import Ban - Daily," REUTER, October 16, 1993; "Decision on Rice Imports Due Next Month," UPI, October 17, 1993; Jacob M. Schlesinger, Jathon Sapsford, "Japan's Proposal on Rice Imports May Signal Change," WALL STREET JOURNAL, October 18, 1993. ________________________________________________________ Editor: Kai Mander The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) 1313 Fifth Street SE, Suite #303 Minneapolis, MN 55414-1546 USA Telephone:(612)379-5980 Fax:(612)379-5982 E-Mail:kmander@igc.apc.org ________________________________________________________