U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement: Potential Economy-wide ... - USITC

will work with the U.S. Congress to pass the agreement upon full restoration and
normalization of commercially viable beef trade into the Korean market.
National Corn Growers Association 46
In a written submission to the Commission, the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA)
stated that it is an association representing more than 32,000 U.S. corn growers from 48
states and 26 affiliated state corn organizations. The association said that Korea is one of the
United States’ largest corn markets, and a potentially large market for corn coproducts, such
as DDGS.
The NCGA stated that the U.S.-Korean FTA would remove trade barriers and create new
export opportunities for U.S. corn growers. It remarked that improvements in market access
in Korea for U.S. corn and corn co-products are positive. While it would not address the
Korean market access for U.S. meat products, any gains in additional U.S. meat market
access to Korea would also benefit U.S. corn growers as significant amount of corn ends up
as livestock feed.
National Council of Textile Organizations 47
In hearing testimony, the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), stated that it
represents the entire spectrum of the textile sector, from fibers to finished products and from
machinery manufacturers to power suppliers. It stated that the FTA would pose a real threat
to the domestic industry, particularly in man-made fiber yarns and fabrics, knit fabrics,
socks, sweaters, shirts, and trousers. The NCTO added that it could significantly harm
existing U.S. business and trade flows, particularly with the CAFTA, NAFTA, and Andean
regions. It noted that the FTA is the first agreement since NAFTA where the FTA party has
a large and developed vertically integrated textile sector that exports significant quantities
of textile goods to the United States. NCTO expressed concern about the vulnerability of key
U.S. textile sectors to dumped and undervalued goods from Korea, given the overexpansion
of Korean textile manufacturing capacity, and to transshipments from China, a country in
which Korean textile firms have made significant investments.
NCTO stated that the FTA would give Korea immediate duty-free access to the U.S. market
for many sensitive goods, including sweaters, brassieres, swimwear, man-made fiber shirts
and socks, certain man-made fiber filament and staple fiber yarns and fabrics, and carded
cotton yarn. According to NCTO, the FTA would provide longer tariff phaseouts for goods
in most heavily traded rate lines that provide for products of a kind subject to U.S.
safeguards on imports from China. NCTO stated, however, that 422 rate lines subject to the
China safeguard categories would receive immediate duty-free market access, thereby
creating opportunities for Chinese transshipments in these sensitive goods.
NCTO reported that the FTA would include a strict yarn-forward rule of origin with no
loopholes, as well as strong customs enforcement language that is an essential element in
46 National Corn Growers Association, written submission, June 27, 2007.
47 Cass Johnson, president, National Council of Textile Organizations, testimony before the U.S.
International Trade Commission, June 20, 2007.
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