- Title: U.S., Mexico reach sugar pact but U.S. producers not on board
- Date: 6th June 2017
- Summary: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES (JUNE 6, 2017) (REUTERS) ****WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** U.S. COMMERCE SECRETARY WILBUR ROSS APPROACHES PODIUM (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE SECRETARY WILBUR ROSS SAYING: "The Mexican side has agreed to nearly every request made by the U.S. industry to address flaws in the current system and to ensure fair treatment of American sugar growers and refiners." AUDIENCE LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE SECRETARY WILBUR ROSS SAYING: "These new agreements between the governments, as well as the Mexican sugar industry, prevent dumping of Mexican sugar and correct for subsidies the Mexican sugar industry receives." AUDIENCE LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE SECRETARY WILBUR ROSS SAYING: "Unfortunately, despite all of those gains, the U.S. sugar industry has said it is unable to support the new agreement in its present form." WHITE FLASH (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE SECRETARY WILBUR ROSS SAYING: "We remain confident that this deal defends American workers across many industries and is the right way to ensure stability and growth." WIDE OF THE ROOM (SOUNDBITE) (English) MEXICAN ECONOMY MINISTER ILDEFONSO GUAJARDO SAYING: "The agreement that we have reached, in principle, continues to allow Mexican sugar exports to access the U.S. market at the same volumes they were traditionally exported. There is a difference in terms of the split between raw sugar and refined sugar. Traditionally, Mexican exports have been exported to the United States in a ratio of 60 percent raw, 40 percent refined. The new agreement takes those to new levels, to 70 - 30, as secretary Ross has mentioned." WIDE OF THE ROOM (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) MEXICAN ECONOMY MINISTER ILDEFONSO GUAJARDO SAYING: "Basically, the most important thing is that it keeps the access to the American market of Mexican sugar companies in the same terms as the 2014 agreement. It changes in terms of the difference between refined sugar and raw sugar. Traditionally, we exported 40 percent refined and 60 percent raw. The new agreement now is 30 percent refined and 70 percent raw. The prices are critical for the distribution of the profits between small producers, workers. They help better distribute the profits of this sugar project in Mexico. And, basically, the other difference with that agreement is that, there were no additional requirements for additional agreements for sugar in USA. Now, they will be 100 percent requested in Mexico, and we have the right to say whether we can export it or if they should offer it to a different country. That's a big part of this agreement." MEXICAN ECONOMY MINISTER ILDEFONSO GUAJARDO AND DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE SECRETARY WILBUR ROSS SHAKE HANDS AND WALK OUT OF THE ROOM
- Embargoed: 20th June 2017 20:16
- Keywords: imports of American high-fructose corn syrup Mexican Minister of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross United States and Mexico deal on sugar trade
- Location: WASHINGTON, D.C., AND MAUI, HAWAII, UNITED STATES; TUXTEPEC, OAXACA, MEXICO
- City: WASHINGTON, D.C., AND MAUI, HAWAII, UNITED STATES; TUXTEPEC, OAXACA, MEXICO
- Country: USA
- Topics: Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0016K55A9V
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The U.S. and Mexican governments reached a new agreement in principle on trade in sugar, but U.S. producers have failed to endorse the deal, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Tuesday (June 6).
The agreement, which calls for Mexico to shift its export a smaller proportion of refined sugar and a larger proportion of raw sugar to the United States, would go through a final drafting stage, during which he said the two sides would try to make it easier for U.S. sugar producers to "come on board" with the deal, Ross said.
The deal cut by Ross and Guajardo leaves Mexico's overall access to the U.S. sugar market unchanged but refined sugar must fall to 30 percent of overall imports from Mexico from a previous limit 53 percent.
Sources on both sides of the border said on Monday that the U.S. sugar industry had added new demands outside of the terms agreed on earlier in the day by the two governments. U.S. refiners have complained that high-quality Mexican raw sugar was going straight to sugar consumers, rather than passing through U.S. refineries.
The deal would mark the culmination of a years-long dispute between the countries over sugar, after U.S. groups three years ago asked the government for protection from dumping of subsidized imports from Mexico. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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