TPT September 2015

Global Marketplace

As noted by EU correspondent James Kanter of the New York Times , “They also argue that the push to make US and European regulations more similar would result in American- style rules they see as too lax on environmental protection, public health, and personal privacy.” At a protest this year in Berlin, the populist group Campact featured a giant dragon modelled on a spray bottle from Monsanto, the American agrochemical giant, and puffing imitation herbicide. (“In Germany, Grass-Roots Opposition to a European-US Trade Deal,” 9 June) While such techniques are commonplace in the US, the decentralised approach is fairly new to European activists. But they are fast learners.Apan-European petition campaign called Stop TTIP has the support of more than 470 organisations, including the big environmental group Friends of the Earth Europe. “The protest organisers have set the tone of the trade debate from the start, and the deal’s backers have been playing defence ever since,” Peter Sparding, a fellow at the German Marshall Fund in Washington, told the Times . “Nearly all German politicians have faced protesters pressuring them to be sceptical about the trade deal and threatening them with a backlash from voters.” › While it is too soon to gauge the effect on TTIP of efforts like Campact’s, on 10 June a preliminary vote on the controversial trade deal was postponed indefinitely by European Parliament President Martin Schulz when debate became raucous. The day before, more than 200 complaints and amendments were tabled against the bill under discussion, which includes deregulation measures and could allow private companies to sue European governments for taking decisions which harm profits. With the treaty which took 12 years to put together facing further delays, it is safe to say that Washington is not pleased. › The stakes are high, for both sides. The US and the EU are the world’s two biggest economies, accounting for 60 per cent of global GDP (gross domestic product) and a market of 820 million consumers. Last year, trade with the US constituted 15.2 per cent of total EU trade. Airlines While US carriers attend to their bicoastal service, Britain’s Virgin Atlantic instead connects Michigan with Europe With US airlines competing vigorously for transcontinental passengers, the major carriers have all stepped up their overtures to the Wall Street-Hollywood-Silicon Valley trade by introducing new amenities on the most pertinent routes. On 16 June, United Airlines announced an additional effort at enhancing its appeal to that highly lucrative market: a move out of New York’s Kennedy International Airport and the shift

are making its exports more competitive. (“The Flip Side of Sanctions: an Influx of Russian Steel”) In a 1 June client note cited by Mr Treadgold, the investment bank JP Morgan advised that “trade case developments seem imminent but Russian scrap will keep a lid on US steel price advances.” It was the view of the analysts that finished and scrap steel imports were “wreaking havoc on the steel industry.” “We ended 2014 with a number of major macro headwinds including a strong US dollar, falling oil prices, and near record- high steel premiums over Chinese price,” the bank said. “This led to rising imports, which in turn depressed steel and scrap prices.” Morgan in March published data showing that US steel imports represented roughly 36 per cent of domestic consumption this January versus 32 per cent in January 2014. Served by a well-developed steel scrap collection industry, all-scrap minimills are, of course, the biggest US users. But scrap represents as well some 60 per cent of the raw feedstock in domestic steel production. Steelmaking in China, by comparison, uses mainly iron ore with a 10 per cent scrap top-up. Mr Treadgold observed that steel is not the only material under pressure in the current situation. The stronger dollar has encouraged Russia to accelerate the export of raw materials such as aluminium, nickel and steel; and it has made the US a go-to market for producers of commodities and semi-finished goods. › “Fighting back using trade laws is one option for US steel producers,” wrote the Forbes contributor. “But anyone who has gone down that route gets old long before getting a satisfactory result.” US-European trade Especially vocal in Germany, grass-roots groups protesting the trade pact TTIP become a new force in the European Union Germany’s export-driven economy could be a principal beneficiary of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), and Chancellor Angela Merkel is a strong supporter. But, paradoxically, as American and European negotiators slog through deliberations launched in 2013, public opposition to a deal would appear to be stronger in Germany than anywhere else in the European Union. Supporters of the pact look for it to strengthen a trade relationship already worth $3 billion a day by removing business barriers between Europe and America and bolstering Western influence on the conduct of world trade. Opponents warn against further empowering multinational corporations at the expense of small businesses and consumers.

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S eptember 2015

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