US withdraws duty-free imports of gold jewellery from India
Sunday, 1 July 2007
WASHINGTON, Jun 30 (PTI): Days after the collapse of G4 talks on WTO, the US has withdrawn concessions given to imports on gold jewellery and brass lamps from India as well as auto parts from Brazil as part of a revision of trade sops given to developing countries.
The duty-free access was withdrawn under its annual review of Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) through a proclamation signed by US President George Bush Thursday.
The changes mean exporters of gold jewellery from India, the world's largest producer, would now have to pay an import duty of four per cent. The move will impact close to USD 1.8 billion of jewellery exports to US, which accounts for one-third of the total shipment of USD 5.21 billion.
The decision would also affect exports of brass lamps, hitting the handicraft sector struggling under the impact of hike in rupee value.
The concessions were removed on imports that exceeded the new statutory threshold in 2006 established by US Congress, US Trade Representative Susan Schwab said in a statement.
Brazil has also been hit by the withdrawal of GSP benefits on brake, brake parts and ferrozirconium. Besides, gold jewellery from Thailand, wiring harnesses from the Philippines, and methanol from Venezuela were also excluded.
Incidentally, India and Brazil are leaders of the G20 group of developing countries and are part of G4, which also includes the US and EU. Talks between the four key WTO players collapsed on June 19 in Potsdam, Germany, making the conclusion of Doha Round of trade negotiations very unlikely.
As a result of the review, the US will continue GSP eligibility for 115 exports from 19 countries whose trade exceeded statutory limits in 2006 and end concessions on 21 products to advance a more targeted and effective programme to promote economic development, the USTR statement said.
The US feels these 21 products can now compete effectively in its market. In 2006, such imports were valued at about USD 4.8 billion.
According to the statement, US imports from beneficiary developing countries under the GSP programme totalled USD 32.6 billion in 2006, a 22 per cent increase over 2005. US imports under GSP constituted a significant share of total imports from several beneficiary countries, including Fiji, Kazakhstan, Paraguay, Tunisia, and Yemen.
The duty-free access was withdrawn under its annual review of Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) through a proclamation signed by US President George Bush Thursday.
The changes mean exporters of gold jewellery from India, the world's largest producer, would now have to pay an import duty of four per cent. The move will impact close to USD 1.8 billion of jewellery exports to US, which accounts for one-third of the total shipment of USD 5.21 billion.
The decision would also affect exports of brass lamps, hitting the handicraft sector struggling under the impact of hike in rupee value.
The concessions were removed on imports that exceeded the new statutory threshold in 2006 established by US Congress, US Trade Representative Susan Schwab said in a statement.
Brazil has also been hit by the withdrawal of GSP benefits on brake, brake parts and ferrozirconium. Besides, gold jewellery from Thailand, wiring harnesses from the Philippines, and methanol from Venezuela were also excluded.
Incidentally, India and Brazil are leaders of the G20 group of developing countries and are part of G4, which also includes the US and EU. Talks between the four key WTO players collapsed on June 19 in Potsdam, Germany, making the conclusion of Doha Round of trade negotiations very unlikely.
As a result of the review, the US will continue GSP eligibility for 115 exports from 19 countries whose trade exceeded statutory limits in 2006 and end concessions on 21 products to advance a more targeted and effective programme to promote economic development, the USTR statement said.
The US feels these 21 products can now compete effectively in its market. In 2006, such imports were valued at about USD 4.8 billion.
According to the statement, US imports from beneficiary developing countries under the GSP programme totalled USD 32.6 billion in 2006, a 22 per cent increase over 2005. US imports under GSP constituted a significant share of total imports from several beneficiary countries, including Fiji, Kazakhstan, Paraguay, Tunisia, and Yemen.