Dhaka to place trade commitments at USTR meet

Business Report :

Bangladesh has set its plans to negotiation with the United States responding to Washington’s reciprocal tariff measures.
As part of these, Bangladesh government officials are going to present its commitments with duty-free access for a wider range of American goods and introduce a warehousing facility for US cotton in the country.
Sources said, aiming to reduce the trade imbalance between Bangladesh and the USA, Dhaka is expected to put these commitments during a meeting with officials from the United States Trade Representative (USTR) at it’s (USTR) headquarters in Washington, DC on Wednesday.
On a bid to narrow the trade gap with the United States, Bangladesh will ramp up its imports of Boeing aircraft, liquefied natural gas, gas turbines, and cotton, according to Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman.
He also mentioned that efforts will be made to encourage the private sector to increase imports from the US.
Rahman is scheduled to hold talks with Brendan Lynch, Assistant USTR for South and Central Asia, at the USTR office in Washington, DC.
The meeting will be led by Lutfey Siddiqi, Special Envoy for International Affairs to the Chief Adviser.
Rahman said that Bangladesh plans to highlight its intention to boost imports of soybean oil, soybean seeds, consumer products, and industrial raw materials in bulk as part of its strategy to reduce the trade imbalance.
He added that discussions with USTR officials will also cover topics related to child labour and enhancements in labour rights in Bangladesh.
Additionally, representatives from the Finance Ministry and the National Board of Revenue (NBR), who are currently in Washington for meetings with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), will attend the talks with the USTR.
Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed and Finance Secretary Md Khairuzzaman Mozumder are already in the US to participate in the IMF meetings. Rahman said customs-related matters will also be part of the discussion agenda with the USTR.
The Commerce Secretary further said that Bangladesh has lifted the longstanding requirement for double fumigation of American cotton.
He also shared that Bangladesh will establish warehousing facilities for US cotton and promote private sector imports of soybean products.
In a swift response to former President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin had sent a letter to USTR Jamieson Lee Greer on April 7.
In the letter, Uddin pledged to remove tariffs on an additional 100 US goods, supplementing the existing 190 items already granted such relief.
The correspondence also indicated that Bangladesh is actively reviewing its tariff structure and seeking ways to eliminate non-tariff barriers.