Glossary of Trade Acronyms
Trade Organizations
State: Department of State
Lead cabinet level agency focusing on U.S. foreign policy.
Treasury: Department of the Treasury
Cabinet level agency focusing on U.S. public finances (including
taxation) and foreign exchange rate policy.
ITC: U.S. International Trade Commission
Independent and quasi-judicial agency that conducts injury
investigations in trade remedy cases and produces congressionallyrequested analyses on trade issues.
ITA: International Trade Administration
Primary agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce dealing
with export and import policies as well as foreign direct investment
DOC: Department of Commerce
Cabinet level agency that deals with numerous federal laws and
regulations affecting U.S. commercial activity. One sub-agency is
the ITA.
USDA: Department of Agriculture
Lead agency for agriculture policy in the U.S.
APHIS: Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service
Agency within the USDA charged with protecting animal and plant
health. Involved in inspection of food imports.
DOL: Department of Labor
Cabinet level agency responsible for labor policies at the Federal
level.
FDA: Food and Drug Administration
Agency charged with regulating food and drug safety in the U.S.
The FDA is part of the cabinet level Department of Health and
Human Services
CPB: Customs and Border Protection
Agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with
customs procedures.
Acronym/Term
Definition
Ad valorem tariff
Import taxes based on a percentage of trade value
AGOA: African Growth and Opportunity
Act
Unilateral US program that eliminates tariffs on certain products
from qualifying sub-Saharan Africa countries; qualifications
include, among other issues, market-based reforms, political
pluralism, protections of human and labor rights.
AD: Antidumping duties
WTO-allowed discriminatory tariffs based on foreign firms selling
below "normal price" that causes material injury to domestic firms
APEC: Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
Group of countries on the Pacific rim that are working toward lower
barriers to trade and investment
Applied tariffs
Statutory tariffs applied to foreign products; can be lower than
commitments (bound tariffs) negotiated at the WTO
ATPA: Andean Trade Preferences Act
Unilateral US program that eliminates certain tariffs on countries in
the Andes that cooperate on anti-narcotics programs; not applicable
to countries with a US FTA
Bound tariffs
Tariffs negotiated at the WTO; countries agree not to charge higher
rates except under special circumstances
Tariff overhang
Difference between bound and applied tariffs; close to zero for
most US tariffs
BIT:
Treaty between two countries that sets procedures for dealing with
private foreign investment; often includes procedures in the event
of nationalization or expropriation
Bilateral Investment Treaty
CAFTA-DR: Central America-Dominican
Republic Free Trade Agreement
Free-trade agreement between the US, five central American
countries, and the Dominican Republic
CARICOM: Caribbean Common Market
Organization of 15 Caribbean nations to promote economic
integration and cooperation among members, and to coordinate
foreign policy
CBI: Caribbean Basin Initiative
Unilateral trade preferences offered by the US towards countries in
the Caribbean; somewhat superseded by CAFTA-DR
China safeguard
Safeguard action applied only to Chinese exports to the US; will
phase out in 2013; only example: Chinese exports of tires
Customs union
Trade agreements that eliminate trade barriers among partners and
harmonize trade policies with non-members
Countervailable subsidy
Subsidies that are subject to countervailing duties by importing
governments; WTO rules require that they be, in effect, specific to
the exporting industry, de jure or de facto
CVD:
WTO-allowed discriminatory tariffs based on foreign firms
receiving subsidies that cause material injury to domestic firms
countervailing duty
DDA: Doha Development Agenda (Round)
Latest WTO talks on lowering trade barriers; started in 2001 and
still under way
DHS:
Agency that has primary responsibility for homeland security in
the US; includes Customs and Border Protection and the US Coast
Guard
Department of Homeland Security
Doha Round
See DDA
DSM:
WTO process that allows members to complain that trading partners
are not living up to WTO commitments; involves first a threeperson panel and possible appeal
dispute settlement mechanism
escape clause:
See safeguard
Finance:
Senate committee with primary responsibility for trade issues
FTA:
Senate Finance committee
Free trade agreement
Agreement to eliminate trade (and sometimes investment) barriers
between partners; partners may retain independent policies with
non-members
FTAA Free Trade Area of the Americas
Moribund initiative to eliminate trade barriers in the Western
Hemisphere
FOIA: Freedom of Information Act
Freedom of information law in the United States that allows full
or partial disclosure of previously unreleased information and
documents controlled by the U.S. government
GATT: General Agreement on Tariff and
Trade
Trade agreement that established substantial multilateral reductions
in tariffs and was a precursor to the World Trade Organization
GATS: General Agreement on Trade in
Services
WTO level commitments on trade in services
GSP: Generalized system of preferences
Unilateral US program to lower tariffs on select manufactured goods
from less developed countries
GPA: Government Procurement Agreement
Plurilateral agreement under the WTO that specifies government
procurement of goods and services in trade agreement
HS:
IA:
harmonized tariff system
Classification system for trade and tariffs used by all WTO
members; consistent across countries at 6-digit level
Import Administration
Agency in Department of Commerce responsible for, among
other things, administration of dumping and countervailing duty
investigations; subdivision of ITA. Now referred to as Trade
Enforcement and Compliance
ILO International Labor Organization
UN agency dealing with international labor standards
Investment agreement
Bilateral (usually) agreement between countries that lays out rules
to treat foreign direct investment; provisions include arbitration,
compensation, nationalization, profit repatriation, etc.
IPR:
Guarantees for private property involving, for example, copyrights,
trademarks, and patents
intellectual property rights
ITA:
International Trade Administration
ITC:
US International Trade Commission
KORUS:
Korea-US free trade agreement
Part of the Department of Commerce; includes Global Markets,
Industry and Analysis, and Enforcement and Compliance
US quasi-judicial body that rules on material injury (in antidumping
and CVDs) and serious injury (safeguards); also rules on patent
infringement on imported goods
FTA between the US and Korea
May 10th agreement
Agreement between Congress and the Bush administration that
required certain labor and environmental standards as part of
particular new free trade agreements
Mercosur
Customs union involving Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay
MFA: multi fiber agreement
Now defunct system of quotas for worldwide trade in apparel
MFN:
Trade policy treatment accorded to all WTO members; no WTO
member gets better treatment than MFN, except under specified
circumstances
most favored nation status
MOU: Memorandum of Understanding
A document expressing a mutual will and common line of action
between two or more parties
NAFTA: North American Free Trade
Agreement
Free trade agreement among the US, Mexico and Canada; in place
since 1994; (Canada and the US had an earlier bilateral agreement
since 1989)
NAMA:
Set of talks at the Doha round involving trade barriers in nonagricultural goods, primarily in manufacturing
non-agricultural market access
NEC:
National Economic Council
White House interagency body that coordinates policy on economic
issues
NSC:
National Security Council
White House interagency body that coordinates policy on national
security issues
NTB:
non-tariff barriers
Restrictions on imports that do not involve taxes on imports; e.g.
quantitative restrictions such as quotas and technical regulations that
discriminate against imports
NTR: normal trade relations (status)
Countries with the status receive MFN tariffs; called "MFN status"
in most other countries
OAS: Organization of American States
An international organization consisting of 35 different countries
across the Western Hemisphere to promote regional solidarity and
cooperation
OPIC: Overseas Private Investment
Corporation
Quasi-official US agency that provides insurance to large capital
projects overseas
PNTR: permanent normal trade relations
(status)
All WTO members have this status with the US on a permanent and
unconditional basis; see NTR
PTA:
preferential trade agreement
Umbrella term for customs unions and free trade agreements;
countries get better than MFN treatment; subject to certain WTO
rules
Rules of Origin
Requirements that imports fulfill certain "origination" status before
receiving preferential trade treatment; e.g. to receive NAFTA
benefits, a certain percentage of a good must be produced in
NAFTA members
ROO:
safeguard:
WTO-allowed restrictions on imports of a particular industry if
imports cause "serious" injury; time limit of 8 years; restrictions are
placed on all imports on an MFN basis
Section 301:
US process that identifies foreign trade restrictions that burdens
U.S. commerce; retaliatory barriers may be placed on that country's
goods
SPS Sanitary and phytosanitary measures
Health and safety regulations for humans, animals, and plants;
covered in the final Uruguay Round agreements
SOE: state-owned enterprises
Entities with controlling interest by the domestic government; can
sometimes involve direct control or control through state-owned
banks
State trading enterprises
State trading enterprises are defined as governmental and nongovernmental enterprises, including marketing boards, which
deal with goods for export and/or import; covered under the final
Uruguay Round agreements
TAA:
US program to offer extended unemployment and training to
workers who the Labor Department determines lose their jobs
because of foreign competition
TBT:
trade adjustment assistance
technical barriers to trade
Another name for non-tariff barriers that involve technical
requirements
TIFA: Trade and Investment Framework
Agreement
A trade agreement that provides rules to lower trade and investment
barriers; less complete and comprehensive than a full-scale FTA
with the US
TPA:
trade promotion authority
Congressional-delegated power to the President to negotiate trade
agreements; usually involves a commitment for an up- or down
vote without amendment; also called “fast track" authority
Trans Pacific Partnership
Current and on-going set of trade and investment liberalization
negotiations among a number of countries on the Pacific Rim
includes, for example, the US. New Zealand, and Chile, among
others
TPP:
TPRG:
Trade Policy Review Group
Interagency group established by statute to develop and approve
trade policies positions within the US government; often includes
officials approved by the Senate, e.g. Under Secretary for
International Trade (DOC)
TPSC:
Trade Policy Staff Committee
Interagency group established by statute to develop and approve
trade policies positions within the US government; officials are less
senior than those for TPRG
TRIMs: trade related investment measures
(Agreement on)
Domestic government policies that effect foreign investment, often
that is tied to trade; covered under the Uruguay Round agreements
TRIPs plus
Expanded IPR commitments included in US free trade agreements
TRIPs: trade related intellectual property
(Agreement on)
Domestic government policies that affect intellectual property
rights; covered under the Uruguay Round agreements
TRQ: tariff rate quota
Combination of tariff and quota; imports less than a specified
amount subject to low (even zero) tariffs; after that amount has
been reached, much higher tariffs are imposed; often used with
agricultural products
TTIP: Translatlantic Trade and Investment
Partnership
Proposed free trade agreement between the European Union and the
United States
USTR:
Lead executive branch agency on trade issues, including
negotiations and trade disputes. Part of the Executive Office of the
President.
U.S. Trade Representative
AUSTR
Assistant USTR
DUSTR
Deputy USTR (superior to AUSTR)
Ways and Means: House Ways and Means
committee
House of Representative committee with primary responsibility for
trade issues
WTO accession
Process by which countries become members of the WTO; requires
unanimity among existing members