Plans to increase a tax credit for electric vehicles containing a U.S.-made battery if the car was assembled in a U.S., union-represented plant is a source of worry for Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in French Nov. 18 at a news conference after the North American Leaders' Summit, according to a story from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. "This would be quite a problem for vehicle production in Canada," he said. "We stressed this with the Americans throughout our conversations. They've heard us loud and clear." The provisions are part of the Build Back Better bill that passed the House the following day on Nov. 19.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo met with Trade Minister Hagiuda Koichi Nov. 15, and talked about strengthening supply chains, export controls and cooperating on digital technologies -- and talked about how to cooperate to confront excess capacity in steel and aluminum. Japanese exports of steel face a 25% tariff in the U.S., and after the U.S. agreed to tariff rate quotas on steel with Europe, Japan asked to get a similar deal.

The former minister counselor for trade affairs in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing told an audience that in the last few years, Chinese government officials "feel like they've outflanked us on the trade front." James Green, who was speaking on a Flexport webinar on the future of U.S.-China trade policy, said that officials were pleasantly surprised that the tariffs on most exports to the U.S. did not hurt their economy more. And, he said, between sealing the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and applying to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, they also feel like they have other options for exporting when things with the U.S. sour.

Ahead of a planned trip to India Nov. 22 by U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, the Alliance for Trade Enforcement is asking her to make sure that the U.S.-India Trade Policy Forum "eliminates significant trade barriers in India to expand economic opportunities for U.S. workers and businesses."

The United Kingdom could enter the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership relatively quickly, former trade officials said. While items still need to be addressed in the negotiation process, which began in September (see 2109280018), they said the U.K. shouldn't face too many hurdles and most members support the U.K.’s accession.

Australia, New Zealand and Thailand officially ratified the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, paving the way for a range of tariff and trade benefits with 12 other countries in the Asia Pacific region. The deal is scheduled to enter into force Jan. 1, 2022. Thailand submitted its ratification Oct. 28, the Bangkok Post reported Nov. 1. Australia and New Zealand ratified it Nov. 2, Australia’s foreign ministry said. The large trade deal will expand market access for RCEP member countries and includes provisions on intellectual property, e-commerce, competition and more (see 2011160028).

South Korea and the Philippines recently finished negotiating a free trade deal and expect to sign the agreement in February, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Nov. 1. South Korea will lift tariffs on 94.8% of Philippines‑sourced products, and the Philippines will cut tariffs on 96.5% of South Korean goods. The two countries had been close to a deal since 2019 (see 1912110023).

Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for the Western Hemisphere Daniel Watson and Andrés Cárdenas Muñoz, Colombia's vice minister of foreign trade, directed their customs and trade facilitation teams to have another discussion on lessons learned and future plans "especially with regard to the digitalization of customs procedures," according to a USTR readout of the Oct. 22 meeting.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said she talked about "ongoing efforts to address global overcapacity in the steel and aluminum sectors and shared challenges posed by non-market economies" when she met with her European Union counterpart on the sidelines of the G-20 meeting in Sorrento, Italy. The EU did not issue its own readout of the meeting, but Valdis Dombrovskis tweeted, "Met [the] USTR, Ambassador Tai, to continue our discussions on finding a settlement on the Trump steel & aluminium tariffs #232. The work continues." He has previously said that an agreement on Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum has to be reached by early November in order to prevent retaliatory tariffs from doubling on Dec. 1. Those retaliatory tariffs have hurt the export of American spirits.

Correction: Anna Ashton, vice president of government affairs for the U.S.-China Business Council, analyzed U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai's Oct. 4 China remarks (see 2110040049) during a virtual event hosted by University of Pennsylvania professor Neysun Mahboubi.