USTR Calls on Business to Support Korea FTA

U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab urged Chamber members to educate their employees, their communities, and their representatives in Congress on the importance of passing a free trade agreement with South Korea before the end of the year. Schwab spoke during a meeting of the Chamber-led U.S.-Korea FTA Business Coalition at the Chamber’s Washington, D.C., headquarters on April 28.

“So many jobs in this country and so many jobs in the future have to do with U.S. competitive exports,” Schwab told members of the coalition and the press. Korea is the United State’s 7th largest trading partner and the world’s 11th largest economy. It would be difficult “to find a more important partner than Korea,” Schwab said.  

Businesses face a “significant education process” and need to lay the groundwork for congressional approval of the Korea FTA now, Schwab said. “We want the agreement to be discussed and debated on its merits, and we haven’t had the chance to do that yet.”
Schwab criticized Congress for stalling consideration of an FTA with Colombia, noting that “for every day that FTA is sitting up there, Americans are paying the price in terms of tariffs.”

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