The National Association of Manufacturers has embarked on a new initiative aimed at reducing industrial tariffs. The focus of the initiative is expected to be consideration of a “zero for zero” trade strategy.
We hope that such a strategy does in fact emerge as a center point of discussion during the round of trade negotiations expected to be launched when the World Trade Organization (WTO) gathers this coming November in the Middle East.
Under a “zero for zero” plan, nations accounting for the preponderance of trade in particular industry sectors would agree simply to eliminate tariffs on those goods.
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“Manufacturing accounts for over 70 percent of all goods traded globally,” said NAM President Jerry Jasinowski. “But we still face high tariffs in many countries, and eliminating these barriers would create a major impetus for future global economic growth. Zero for zero cuts are among the most practical way of reaching this goal.”
The NAM has formed a “WTO Industrial Tariff Working Group” to develop the initiative. That group is headed by Maureen Smith, international vice president of the American Forest & Paper Association. She is widely recognized for leading previous industry coalition initiatives on tariff reductions.
Smith wants the first round of zero for zero agreements concluded within a year of the WTO gathering, and then implemented immediately.
It is a bold, but necessary timeline. U.S. trade – particularly in the manufacturing sector – needs a real boost and a zero for zero could be the quickest way to provide that boost.
Rhode Island manufacturers would welcome a chance to play on a more level playing field.
James F. Marquart, president and CEO of the Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America, based in Providence, took that message to Washington, D.C. on Sept. 4 as one of 100 Rhode Island business leaders who attended U.S. Sen. Jack Reed’s annual “Rhode Island Business Day.”
Marquart used the opportunity to ask several members of Congress, including Reed, to support a zero for zero trade initiative. Such a policy, he said, would allow jewelry manufacturers to help jump-start the American economy.
And in an interview with Providence Business News last week, Marquart continued on that theme.
“Once these barriers are down, and our local companies learn how to export, there is no doubt in my mind that they would become extremely successful…,” he said. “Fifty percent of our jewelry jobs have been lost in the last 20 years. We have to protect the jobs that we have left.”
Find pro-business candidates
A survey conducted by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) should serve as an important reminder to all candidates running for elected office in November. That is, small business owners vote.
In the survey conducted this summer, more than 800 small business owners across the country were queried and a resounding 84 percent said they are “extremely” or “very likely” to vote in the upcoming elections. That represents an impressive number when one considers that voter turnout in most states reaches around 50 percent, including Rhode Island, where in recent years it has dipped below that mark.
The results of the NFIB survey were released on the heels of another interesting poll, conducted by USA Today, CNN and Gallup. That poll found that 75 percent of respondents said they trust small business owners, second only to teachers — and well ahead of doctors (66 percent), journalists (38 percent) and lawyers (25 percent).
“All elected officials claim to support small business and want the support of small business owners when it is campaign season, but not everybody walks the walk,” said NFIB President Jack Faris. “One of NFIB’s main goals is to help voters figure out what their elected officials actually do in Washington, as opposed to what they say on the campaign trail.”
In the coming days the NFIB will do just that. The group is in the process of releasing its annual legislative scorecard.
We recommend you check out the organization’s findings (you can do so by visiting NFIB.org). That will give you a sense of how instrumental your incumbent legislators have been in working to rebuild our economy.
As for congressional challengers and candidates in local elections, monitor for yourself their responses to business issues and grade them with regard to whether the economy and job development is a serious component of their political platform. It should be.
