International Trade

Dry Cleaners Protest Chinese Wire Hanger Tariffs
An attempt to protect one vanishing U.S. industry – the makers of steel wire garment hangers – is drawing opposition from dry cleaners who had switched to cheaper Chinese-made substitutes for their customers’ shirts, dresses and pants.

Wine Makes A Case For Free Trade In South Korea
Since Chile and South Korea signed a free-trade deal in 2003, Chile has become the highest volume seller of wine to South Korea. It is a shift being used to persuade other countries to chase — or, in the case of the U.S., ratify — similar deals.

U.S. Steelworkers, Chinese Tire Makers Set for Face-Off
The U.S. steel lobby and the Chinese tire industry are gearing up for a face-off later this week over cheap tires often used by consumers to replace more expensive brands. The U.S. Trade Representative is scheduled to issue a decision Friday in a case that claims Chinese tire imports have caused harm and job losses to domestic tire makers.

Mexican Truck is First to Cross Border in Trial Program
A North Carolina-bound Mexican truck crossed the U.S. border at 12:51 a.m. Saturday in Laredo, setting in motion a one-year trial program that has broken a decade-long impasse between the two countries. With a load of 20,000 pounds of steel, driver Luis Gonzalez, 39, became the first Mexican trucker to cross the border under a controversial Department of Transportation program aimed at satisfying one of the remaining components of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

U.S. Firms Not Eyeing Mexico
Although more than 800 Mexican trucking companies are waiting for access to U.S. roadways under the cross-border trucking pilot program announced last month, fewer than 10 American companies are seeking the same access in Mexico. The U.S. government is optimistic more U.S. truckers will come forward to join the program, but industry leaders are skeptical because they say the risks outweigh the benefits.

Express-News: Apparel Industry Loses Its Fit
Inside two windowless buildings on El Paso Street, a remnant of this city’s former glory is hanging by a thread. El Paso was once considered the blue jeans capital of the world. But in the past decade, America’s jeans manufacturing giants have moved elsewhere.