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International Trade: Improvements Needed to Track and Archive Trade Agreements

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Report Type Reports and Testimonies
Report Date Dec. 14, 1999
Report No. NSIAD-00-24
Subject
Summary:

International trade has become increasingly important to the U.S. economy. Since 1990, U.S. exports have risen about 70 percent -- reaching nearly $700 billion a year. The United States has led the world in creating a system of open trade under accepted rules, in which the reduction of trade barriers, such as tariffs and import quotas, would help provide greater market access for U.S. goods and services. The current administration has sought to build on earlier efforts by negotiating several hundred separate trade agreements since 1992 that are aimed at opening markets and creating wider economic opportunities for Americans. This report examines (1) the number of trade agreements that the United States is party to, (2) the way in which the executive branch notifies Congress when trade agreements are entered into, and (3) the extent to which the public has ready access to information from government sources about trade agreements.

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