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France: Factors Shaping Foreign Policy, and Issues in U.S.-French Relations

Description: This report examines the key factors that shape French foreign policy. From that context, it analyzes some of the reasons for the tensions in and the accomplishments of U.S.-French relations. The report is illustrative, rather than exhaustive. Instead, the report reviews issues selected because they exemplify some of the essential features of the U.S.-French relationship. Some issues, such as the effort by the United States and the EU-3 (France, Britain, and Germany) to curb Iran's military nuc… more
Date: May 21, 2008
Creator: Gallis, Paul
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S. Taxation of Overseas Investment and Income: Background and Issues

Description: This report analyzes how the current U.S. tax system applies to foreign investment undertaken by U.S. firms abroad, and how that application was changed by recent legislation. It also assesses the impact of the tax system and legislation, and concludes by discussing a variety of issues in international taxation that Congress may face in 2008 and beyond. It begins with a brief examination of the data on international investment.
Date: May 21, 2008
Creator: Marples, Donald J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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China's Currency: Economic Issues and Options for U.S. Trade Policy

Description: This report starts out by describing China's policy of pegging its currency to the U.S. dollar at an exchange rate of roughly 8.28 yuan to the dollar. As a result, the exchange rate between the yuan and the dollar basically stayed the same. The report discusses most significant events concerning China's currency policy and its impact on U.S. trade deficit.
Date: May 22, 2008
Creator: Morrison, Wayne M. & Labonte, Marc
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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China's Currency: Economic Issues and Options for U.S. Trade Policy

Description: This paper reviews the various economic issues raised by China's present currency policy, including: the economic concerns raised by the United States over China's currency policy and China's concerns over changing that policy; how China's fixed exchange rate regime works and the various economic studies that have attempted to determine China's real, or market, exchange rate; trends and factors in the U.S.-China trade imbalance; economic consequences of China's currency policy for both China an… more
Date: May 22, 2008
Creator: Morrison, Wayne M. & Labonte, Marc
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Tax Treaty Legislation in the 110th Congress: Explanation and Economic Analysis

Description: This report discusses the proposals that are designed to curb “treaty shopping” — instances where a foreign parent firm in one country receives its U.S.-source income through an intermediate subsidiary in a third country that is signatory to a tax-reducing treaty with the United States.
Date: May 22, 2008
Creator: Marples, Donald J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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United States-Southern African Customs Union (SACU) Free Trade Agreement Negotiations: Background and Potential Issues

Description: Negotiations to launch a free trade agreement (FTA) between the United States and the five members of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) (Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, and Swaziland) began on June 3, 2003. A potential FTA would eliminate tariffs over time, reduce or eliminate non-tariff barriers, liberalize service trade, protect intellectual property rights, and provide technical assistance to help SACU nations achieve the goals of the agreement. This potential agreement wou… more
Date: May 27, 2008
Creator: Langton, Danielle
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Iraq: Post-Saddam Governance and Security

Description: This report analyzes U.S. and international sanctions against Iran and provides examples of companies and countries that conduct business with Iran, based on a wide range of open-source reporting.
Date: June 4, 2008
Creator: Katzman, Kenneth
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Mad Cow Disease and U.S. Beef Trade

Description: This report discusses the U.S. beef trade with its four major beef export markets, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and Korea. The 110th Congress has been monitoring U.S. efforts to regain foreign markets that banned U.S. beef when a Canadian-born cow in Washington state tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in December 2003.
Date: June 4, 2008
Creator: Hanrahan, Charles E. & Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Mad Cow Disease and U.S. Beef Trade

Description: This report discusses the international beef market and U.S. efforts to regain foreign markets that banned U.S. beef when a Canadian-born cow in Washington state tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in December 2003.
Date: June 4, 2008
Creator: Hanrahan, Charles E. & Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Illegal Logging: Background and Issues

Description: This report discusses illegal logging, which is addressed by Congress in the 2008 farm bill (P.L. 110-234). A provision in the law amends the Lacey Act to include plants traded in violation of foreign laws. This was primarily intended to deter imports of illegally-obtained timber from foreign countries.
Date: June 9, 2008
Creator: Sheikh, Pervaze A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Burma: Economic Sanctions

Description: On October 19, 2007, President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13449. This followed a September 25, 2007 statement by President Bush that sanctions against Burma, which have been in place since 1997, would be tightened to specifically target leading Burmese officials and impose additional financial and travel sanctions. This report provides background information on existing economic sanctions against Burma and possible options to expand sanctions.
Date: June 10, 2008
Creator: Niksch, Larry A. & Weiss, Martin A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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International Trade: Rules of Origin

Description: "This report deals with rules of origin (ROO) used to determine the country of origin of merchandise entering the U.S. market, in three parts. First, [it] describe in more detail the reasons that country of origin rules are important and briefly describe U.S. laws and methods that provide direction in making these determinations. Second, [the report] discuss briefly some of the more controversial issues involving rules of origin, including the apparently subjective nature of some U.S. Customs a… more
Date: June 10, 2008
Creator: Jones, Vivian C. & Martin, Michael F.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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EU-U.S. Economic Ties: Framework, Scope, and Magnitude

Description: This report provides background information and analysis of the U.S.-EU economic relationship for Members of the 110th Congress as they contemplate the costs and benefits of closer U.S. economic ties with the EU. It examines the economic and political framework of the relationship and the scope and magnitude of the ties based on data from various sources. In addition, the report analyzes the implications these factors have for U.S. economic policy toward the EU.
Date: June 12, 2008
Creator: Cooper, William H.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Iran's Economy

Description: This report provides a general overview of Iran's economy, addresses related U.S. policy concerns, and discusses policy options for Congress. The purpose of this report is two-fold. First, it provides insight into important macroeconomic trends, policy reforms and objectives, key economic sectors, international trade patterns, and sources of foreign exchange. Secondly, in the context of U.S. economic sanctions imposed for national security and foreign policy reasons, it evaluates Iran's economi… more
Date: June 12, 2008
Creator: Ilias, Shayerah
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S. Food and Agricultural Imports: Safeguards and Selected Issues

Description: The report provides background information in the increase of food and agricultural imports and federal oversight responsibilities. It discusses international trade considerations, import refusals by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), administration, and legislative proposals.
Date: June 12, 2008
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Brazil’s WTO Case Against the U.S. Cotton Program

Description: The "Brazil cotton case" is a long-running World Trade Organization dispute settlement case initiated by Brazil - a major cotton export competitor - in 2002 against specific provisions of the U.S. cotton program. This report details the overview of the case, background on the U.S. cotton sector, a sequence of events in the case, specific claims of Brazil on the U.S. Cotton policy being against World Trade Organization ordinances, panel recommendations, and related information and figures.
Date: June 17, 2008
Creator: Schnepf, Randy
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Brazil's WTO Case Against the U.S. Cotton Program: A Brief Overview

Description: On June 2, 2008, a World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body (AB) publicly released its final report upholding a December 2007 compliance panel ruling that the United States has not fully complied with a March 2005 WTO ruling against certain U.S. cotton support programs. This AB ruling was part of a prolonged dispute settlement case (DS267) originated by Brazil against certain aspects of the U.S. cotton program in September 2002. This report provides a brief overview of Brazil's case agains… more
Date: June 17, 2008
Creator: Schnepf, Randy
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Foreign Investment and National Security: Economic Considerations

Description: This report assesses recent international developments as the leaders from a number of nations work to reach a consensus on an informal set of best practices regarding national restrictions on foreign investment for national security purposes. This report also provides one possible approach for assessing the costs and benefits involved in using national policies to direct, or to restrict, foreign direct investment for national security reasons.
Date: June 27, 2008
Creator: Jackson, James K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Proposed U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA): Provisions and Implications

Description: This report is designed to assist Members of the 110th Congress as they consider the costs and benefits of the U.S.-South Korean Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA). It examines the provisions KORUS FTA in the context of the overall U.S.-South Korean economic relationship, U.S. objectives, and South Korean objectives.
Date: June 27, 2008
Creator: Cooper, William H.; Manyin, Mark E.; Jones, Vivian C.; Cooney, Stephen; Jurenas, Remy & Siskin, Alison
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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