During a question and answer period today with members of the National Association of Manufacturers, Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke acknowledged the U.S. loss of market share as a consequence of not enacting U.S. trade agreements with South Korea and Colombia. Secretary Locke:

What is interesting to note is that, for instance, on the Korea trade agreement, the European Union has signed a tentative agreement with Korea, and it will result in substantial market entry for companies from Europe, and the longer we wait to pass an agreement, to ratify an agreement with Korea, the more the relationships between Korean entities and European counterparts will have been solidified. And of course, once you have a business relationship, you’re not just going to jettison that relationship just because someone else is new knocking on your door.

And so we need to finalize that agreement as quickly as possible and try to get it to the Hill. But there are a few outstanding issues that most everyone knows about and we need to address that, and Ambassador Kirk is eager to do that.

Quite frankly, we know that many in Canada and others are going to have unparalleled access to Colombia, and Colombia has been a terrific partner and ally with the United States on a whole host of issues. And so we know that the longer we wait, that the harder it is for the American companies to catch up.

Right!

Secretary Locke’s comments were prompted by a question from a construction equipment manufacturer who noted the Panama Canal expansion project and the huge size of the Colombian market for the company’s products, especially in the mining industry.

This Sunday, November 22, marks the third anniversary of the signing of the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement. And yes, indeed, the waiting becomes increasingly difficult to justify, especially since the bipartisan agreement between the Bush Administration and Congress in May 2007 addressed the environmental and labor issues previously used to reject the pending FTAs.

Most observers believe the votes are there in Congress to enact the U.S.-Colombia and U.S.-Panama free trade agreements, and most probably for the U.S.-Korea pact, as well. It’s up to the President to submit the agreements to Congress for action.

UPDATE (4 p.m.): For context, the Secretary’s comments before the above quote: (continue reading…)

The testimony has been posted from yesterday’s Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing, “A World of Opportunity: Promoting Export Success for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses,” and the committee also has a nice selection of quotes here.

From Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), who chaired the hearing by the Subcommittee on Competitiveness, Innovation, and Export Promotion: “Exporting is literally a world of opportunity. Over 95 percent of the world’s customers are located outside the United States. Increasing our exports will mean more business, more jobs and more growth for the American economy.”

And from the manufacturer who testified, Tom J. Wollin, Director of International and Government Sales, Mattracks, Inc.,* of Karlstad, Minn.:

There are roadblocks for U.S. companies, big and small, when they export products internationally. Tariffs, duties, and value-added taxes can make the costs of U.S. products extremely prohibitive. For example, an American product that has a dealer cost of $35,000 when it leaves our shores can have a final cost reaching $60,000 to $70,000 when it reached its destination! U.S. innovation and product quality can overcome many obstacles, but a doubling in price can be crippling. The removal of these types of trade barriers are also needed to ensure new and continued sales growth internationally.

That’s a critical point. For all the many good and helpful government programs to promote manufacturing exports, sales must be cost-competitive. That’s why Congress’ resistance to enacting the pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea is so discouraging. By ratifying the Colombia Free Trade Agreement, for example, Congress could quickly lower costs of U.S. exports to that country by an average of 14 percent.

* A plug for Mattracks — What a great product! A “rubber-track conversion system [that ] transforms most 4×4 vehicles into a true all-terrain vehicle equipped with rubber tracks that will go almost anywhere and bring you back!”