US, Thai Negotiators Hold Talks On Pork Market Access - Trade Representative

Mohammad Ali (@ChaudhryMAli88) Published July 23, 2019 | 05:10 AM

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd July, 2019) American and Thai negotiators met to discuss concerns over pork market access and workers' rights, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) said.

"The United States and Thailand met today under the U.S.-Thailand Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) to discuss the bilateral trade relationship, including the importance of Thailand taking action to reduce the U.S. trade in goods deficit and address the pressing trade concerns at the heart of the ongoing Generalized System of Preferences reviews of pork market access and worker rights in Thailand," the USTR said in a statement on Monday.

The United States also raised issues related to agriculture, customs, intellectual property protection and enforcement, and labor, according to the statement.

Trade ties between the two countries date back to the 1833 US-Thailand Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations, the release added. Thailand is the United States' 20th largest goods trading partner with $44.5 billion in total two-way trade in 2018. The US trade deficit with Thailand in 2018 was $19.3 billion.