On April 24, 2008, U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez and leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives unveiled the “Colombia Tariff Ticker,” which has calculated that U.S. exports have faced nearly a billion dollars in Colombian tariffs as indicated by the “Colombia Tariff Ticker,” which tracks the dollar value of tariffs since the signing of the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA) 520 days ago.  This free-trade agreement would eliminate 80 percent of these tariff payments on consumer and industrial goods immediately, and 100 percent within ten years.  As the Tariff Ticker approaches the $1 billion mark, the Agreement awaits Congressional approval.  American exports face an estimated $1.9 million on tariffs each day that passes without two-way free trade with Colombia.  See also http://www.trade.gov.

“Nearly a billion dollars in tariffs have been imposed on American exports to Colombia, whose goods we allow into the U.S. market duty free,” Gutierrez said.  “The tariffs imposed on American exporters tick upward—roughly $22 dollars per second, almost $2 million dollars per day and nearly $1 billion dollars in the past 520 days.  Congressional approval of the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement will permanently stop the rolling ticker, saving U.S. businesses, workers and farmers critical resources by replacing one-way trade preferences with fair, two-way free trade.”

Today, more than 90 percent of Colombian products enter the United States duty free, as they have for more than 16 years with strong Congressional support.  The “Colombia Tariff Ticker” highlights the unfair playing field on which American exporters currently operate, and likewise the money they could save if Congress approves the U.S.-Colombia TPA.

Colombia is the second-largest market for U.S. agriculture in the Western Hemisphere after the NAFTA market.  The U.S.-Colombia TPA will be of particular benefit to U.S. small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs). More than 9,000 U.S. companies export to Colombia, of which 7,705 are SMEs.

Free-trade agreements improve U.S. competitiveness in the global economy, knocking down foreign barriers to American-made products and creating millions of new customers for U.S. exporters.  Exports are a critical engine for U.S. economic growth – exports increased almost 13 percent last year over 2006, reaching $1.6 trillion globally. The tariffs paid by U.S. exporters to Colombia displayed on the Colombia Tariff Ticker are an estimate based on data from the World Trade Atlas and Colombian tariff schedules.  This includes the best estimate of the variable effect of Colombia’s agricultural price bands.    To view and download the Colombia Tariff Ticker, please visit http://www.trade.gov.