[CTC] Free trade versus food democracy

[Arthur Stamoulis]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/12/us-trade-asiapacific-japan-usa-factbox-idUSBRE93B0OC20130412

Factbox: Details of U.S. deal to let Japan into Pacific trade talks


Fri Apr 12, 2013 10:30am EDT
(Reuters) - The United States and Japan on Friday reached a deal  
paving the way for Tokyo to join talks on the Trans-Pacific  
Partnership, a proposed regional free trade agreement that already has  
been under negotiation for three years.

Here are details of the U.S.-Japan agreement, as outlined by the U.S.  
Trade Representative's office.

U.S. AUTO TARIFFS

Japan agreed that U.S. tariffs on imports of Japanese motor vehicles  
will be phased out in accordance with the longest staging period for  
any other product in the TPP negotiations, and that phase-outs of  
these tariffs will be "back loaded" to take place at the end of the  
staging period.

The two countries also agreed that treatment of these American tariffs  
will substantially exceed the U.S. tariff treatment provided in the  
U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement.

The United States has a 2.5 percent tariff on passenger cars and 25  
percent tariff on light trucks.

The South Korea agreement, which recently had its first anniversary,  
allows the United States to keep the car tariff until year five and  
the truck tariff until year eight, after which it will be eliminated  
over the next two years.

EASIER IMPORT PROCEDURES FOR CARS

Japan will more than double the number of motor vehicles eligible for  
import under its Preferential Handling Procedure (PHP), a simpler and  
faster certification method often used by U.S. auto manufacturers to  
export to Japan.

In the near term, U.S. auto producers will be allowed to export up to  
5,000 vehicles annually of each vehicle "type" under the PHP program,  
compared with the current annual ceiling of 2,000 vehicles per vehicle  
type.

PARALLEL TALKS ON MANY ISSUES

The United States and Japan will hold a parallel set of negotiations  
to address a broad range of non-tariff measures in Japan's automotive  
sector - including those related to transparency in regulations,  
standards, certification, "green" and new technology vehicles and  
distribution - in a bilateral negotiation parallel to the TPP talks.

They also agreed to negotiate a special motor vehicle safeguard  
provision, as well as a mechanism to "snap back" tariffs as a remedy  
in dispute settlement cases. The results of the parallel talks will be  
included as enforceable commitments in the final bilateral market  
access package agreed between the U.S. and Japan in the TPP  
negotiations.

The United States will also address concerns about other Japanese non- 
tariff barriers in parallel negotiations.

Areas targeted for discussion include regulatory transparency,  
investment restrictions, intellectual property rights protections,  
standards, government procurement, competition policy, express  
delivery and food safety rules.

JAPAN POST INSURANCE

The two sides agreed to address U.S. concerns that Japan unfairly  
restricts access to its domestic insurance market in both the TPP  
talks and a parallel set of negotiations.

In addition, Japan Post Insurance, a state-owned firm, is expected to  
refrain for several years from approving new or modified cancer  
insurance and/or stand-alone medical products.

That is to provide time for Japan to establish equivalent conditions  
of competition for private sector insurance suppliers and for Japan  
Post Insurance to put a properly functioning business management  
system in place.

(Reporting by Doug Palmer; Editing by Will Dunham)
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