From the Wall Street Journal (subscription), “Trade Official Says No Need To Redo Nafta“:

WASHINGTON — The top U.S. trade official said it isn’t necessary to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement, despite a campaign promise by President Barack Obama to strengthen the pact’s labor and environmental provisions.

“The president has said we will look at all options, but I think they can be addressed without having to reopen the agreement,” U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk told reporters Monday in a conference call.

From CQ Politics, “Free Trade Returns to the Table“:

On the heels of the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said Monday that a delegation from Panama will visit Washington this week to try to resolve disputes over the U.S.-Panama trade deal. Kirk added that President Obama hopes to clear remaining obstacles to a separate pact with Colombia.

Ultimately, Obama — who met with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe during the summit — believes that “a resolution of the Colombia trade agreement would be a good thing for both economies,” Kirk said.

And Bloomberg, “Obama works to bolster NAFTA.”
Very positive developments, and Ambassador Kirk is doing a fine representing the pro-growth, pro-trade arguments. When the February trade data come out earlier this month, Kirk issued a news release making the case for more trade and trade agreements, “Ambassador Kirk Says Trade Data Underscores Need to Open Markets to U.S. Goods.” There were ways to spin the data into an anti-trade message, but Kirk — and the Obama Administration — chose the pro-trade angle. Which is, of course, the pro-jobs angle, too.

From the White House:

President Bush will welcome President Martin Torrijos of the Republic of Panama to the White House on September 17, 2008. Panama is an important friend and ally of the United States. The President looks forward to discussing a range of issues with President Torrijos, including our common commitment to the United States-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement, expanding free trade and strengthening democracy throughout the region, enhancing security cooperation, and strengthening cooperation in international fora. This visit, following President Torrijos’ visit last May, underscores the on-going deep friendship and cooperation between the United States and Panama.

Greetings from Panama, the other country that has a trade agreement pending with the United States. I will leave hand-wringing over trade to those in Geneva this week – because here it’s awfully hard to find anyone who doesn’t support the idea of free trade and, more specifically, the U.S.-Panama Free Trade Agreement.

Landing yesterday, the plane made a sweep over the Pacific, where I counted 17 container ships lined up on approach to the Canal. Lots of commerce, on its way from Asia to the East Coast and points further east. There was a similar queue on the Atlantic end of the Canal too. This is trade at its most fundemental, and few nations are better positioned to benefit than Panama. The United States and China are the two largest users of the canal.

Having lunch al fresco along the Canal approach, it was hard not to notice the constant procession of PanaMax ships in both directions. You can propose a time-out on trade in Washington, but it’s not going to make a whit of difference here. They’re expanding the Canal in one of the largest public works projects in the world. U.S. Companies stand to benefit greatly from this project – so passing the trade agreement and getting those tariffs removed will be a great thing for lots of manufacturers. More on the Canal tomorrow after our tour.

From nearly any vantage point, Panama City reminds you of Hong Kong, with scores of 50 and 60 story residential towers crowded together. It is a bit surprising to find such a concentration of tall buildings in a small country, but Panama continues to be a big draw for U.S. and European retirees, and is a critical logistics and services center for Latin America. It is predominently on on services economy, including call centers, banking, insurance, and lots and lots of shipping-related business.

Three million people live in this country, about half in Panama City. This is still a developing country, with poverty levels still above 30%. But unemployment is low – below 5%, and GDP is growing. Inflation, particularly food prices, is running about 8-10% this year, I was told this morning. A trade agreement will certainly lower food prices, as agriculture and food tariffs tend to be high.