Aid for Trade Global Review 2022
How Can Exporting Countries Improve Utilization of US Trade Preference Programs?

Sponsored by the US Delegation to the WTO

July 27, 2022

OBJECTIVE: To learn more about why US trade preferences are not being utilized, whether it’s because of a lack of knowledge, difficulty in compliance, or other reasons, and to suggest ways to improve utilization. We will also highlight examples of AGOA beneficiaries who have used the tariff preference program to be competitive in the U.S. market and discuss what we can learn from their success.

The United States has five programs that provide preferential tariff treatment based on either geographic location or development status that cover 130 beneficiaries. In some product sectors, beneficiaries of these programs might not be taking full advantage of the trade preferences. This session will look at rules of origin and utilization rates for these programs and investigate what hinders greater utilization by beneficiaries. For example, utilization of preferences—even for goods that are wholly obtained—can vary significantly among beneficiaries and can even vary year-to-year for an individual beneficiary. We will investigate how supply chains for certain products, such as textiles, apparel, and bicycles, interact with rules of origin and other factors to affect utilization of the preference programs.

Part 1 – Exporting countries and utilization of US Trade Preference Programs: An Overview

Panelists:

• Kent Shigetomi
  Director for Multilateral Non-Tariff Barriers, USTR
• Darlan F. Martí
  Trade Policy Specialist, WTO
• Stefano Inama
  Chief, Technical Assistance, Trade and Customs, UNCTAD

Part 2 – Case Studies: Why companies make the sourcing decisions they do?

Panelists:

• Patrick Fox
  Senior Director, Customs and Trade Strategy, VF Corporation
• Cen Williams
  Hub Leader for Africa and Middle East region, PVH Corporation
• Greg Poole
  Chief Sourcing Officer, The Children’s Place
• Bob Margevicius
  Executive Vice President, Specialized Bicycles

Part 3 – A guided conversation Q&A

Moderator:

• Paul Fekete
  Senior International Trade Advisor, USAID’s Center for Economics and Market Development