Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
By By Elvina Nawaguna 10 hours ago .......... July 30th 2014
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Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
Obama administration kicks off bid to renew Africa trade program
By By Elvina Nawaguna 10 hours ago .......... July 30th 2014
By Elvina Nawaguna
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration on Tuesday pushed for Congress to renew a 14-year-old trade program giving African countries duty-free access to U.S. markets, warning that allowing the program to expire would disrupt trade flows between the two regions.
U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said the African Growth Opportunity Act, or AGOA, which expires on Sept. 30 next year had both benefited African countries and supported 120,000 U.S. jobs.
Froman's remarks came just days before the White House is set to host 50 African leaders at a three-day U.S.-Africa summit aimed at strengthening relations. AGOA, which is at the heart of U.S.-Africa trade ties, will be a key issue.
Enacted in 2000, AGOA gives about 7,000 products from sub-Saharan African countries access to U.S. markets free of import duty. Nearly 40 African countries are eligible to take part.
"Given that Africa is home to the world's fastest growing middle class and six out of 10 of the fastest growing economies in 2014, it's easy to see why companies like General Electric Co, Caterpillar Inc and Procter & Gamble Co increasingly view engaging with Africa not as a choice, but as a necessity," Froman said.
The head of the House Ways and Means trade subcommittee, Devin Nunes, told reporters Congress could package AGOA renewal together with fast-track power for trade negotiations, or trade promotion authority (TPA), and other outstanding trade issues.
"We have so many of these trade issues that are basically standing behind TPA, we have got to get TPA first," he said.
Exports from sub-Saharan Africa to the United States under AGOA and other trade preferences totaled $26.8 billion in 2013, according to USTR data. Most of those exports were petroleum products; non-oil goods accounted for just $4.9 billion.
"That is still relatively modest and we want to see that grow," Froman said at an event sponsored by the Brookings Institution.
The trade program has been criticized for disproportionately benefiting certain industries and a handful of countries, including Nigeria, South Africa and Angola.
Some African leaders have also said their countries lack the skilled labor and infrastructure to take advantage of it. Several African countries, for instance, are plagued with poor roads and shortages of electricity, which leads to power rationing that interrupts manufacturing.
Froman said the Obama administration plans to address AGOA's shortcomings and expand access to the program while also holding eligible countries more accountable. His office wants Congress to renew the program in advance.
Lawmakers will likely demand overhauls to the program, including making it more reciprocal so the United States can enjoy open access to African markets.
"The specific parameters of AGOA, of course, are ultimately a prerogative of Congress, and we look forward to working with them to put in place a program that reflects the reality of Africa's rise," Froman said.
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The Future of America's Partnership with Sub-Saharan Africa
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President Barack Obama delivers remarks to Parliament at the International Conference Centre in Accra, Ghana, July 11, 2009. (Official White House
Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
Today, President Obama took another step in deepening our partnerships with the nations and peoples of sub-Saharan Africa. In signing a new Presidential Policy Directive on the region, President Obama has committed the United States to a forward-looking strategy in which we will work closely with our African partners to advance the prosperity, security, and dignity that citizens deserve.
Developed through a rigorous process that drew on the expertise of leaders from both inside and outside of government—including African voices—this new Directive places the United States in a stronger position to help our African partners seize the opportunities and meet the challenges facing the continent.
The U.S. Strategy Toward Sub-Saharan Africa reflects the core components and strategic priorities outlined in the Presidential Policy Directive. The strategy sets forth four strategic objectives for U.S. engagement in Africa: (1) strengthen democratic institutions; (2) spur economic growth, trade, and investment; (3) advance peace and security; and (4) promote opportunity and development.
Two of these objectives—strengthening democratic institutions and promoting economic growth, trade, and investment—will receive particular attention. Under the President's strategy the United States will help strengthen institutions at every level, promote more open and accountable governance that advances the aspirations of Africans, and expand efforts to promote human rights and the rule of law. Importantly, the strategy makes clear that the United States will not stand idly by when leaders threaten the credibility of democratic processes.
This strategy recognizes President Obama's firm belief that—even as Africa faces enduring challenges—this is a moment of great economic promise for sub-Saharan Africa. The United States has a unique opportunity to help ensure that the benefits of growth accrue to the many, not just the few. We will work to expand sub-Saharan Africa's capacity to access and benefit from global markets, promote regional integration, and strengthen economic governance. U.S. companies can and should play a role in this process, bringing capital, technology, and American resourcefulness to support Africa's continued development, as well as the creation of jobs in America.
At the same time, the strategy reaffirms the U.S. commitment to advancing peace and security on the continent and pursuing our global development priorities which help citizens live lives of opportunity and dignity.
Throughout all of these efforts, the United States will prioritize efforts to empower Africa's next generation of civic leaders, entrepreneurs, and agents of change. Through the President's Young African Leaders Initiative, we are providing the tools to support leadership development, promote entrepreneurship, and connect young leaders with one another, and with the United States. These capable individuals are already changing the continent for the better, and their ideas and ingenuity will shape the trajectory of Africa's progress for years to come.
As the President said during his visit to Ghana, the people of Africa are ready to claim their future. This strategy makes clear that the United States will, in the spirit of partnership and mutual respect, stand with the people of Africa in support of their aspirations for a shared future of freedom and prosperity.
For additional information, see the Fact Sheet on the Obama Administration's efforts in sub-Saharan Africa.
- Read Deputy National Security Advisor Mike Froman's remarks before AGOA
- Watch President Obama's speech in Accra
- See all coverage of First Lady Michelle Obama's 2011 visit with young African leaders in South Africa
- See photos from the First Family's 2009 trip to Ghana on flickr
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Advance Estimate of GDP for the Second Quarter of 2014
Posted by Jason Furman on July 30, 2014 at 09:35 AM EDT
Economic growth in the second quarter was strong, consistent with the recent further improvement in the labor market and other indicators. The economy could do even better if Congress does its part to help — starting with taking the steps needed to ensure that work on our roads and bridges is not brought to a halt this fall. But to make further progress, the President is pressing ahead on his own authority, taking action to facilitate investments in American manufacturing, energy, and infrastructure.
FIVE KEY POINTS IN TODAY'S REPORT FROM THE BUREAU OF ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
1. Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 4.0 percent at an annual rate in the second quarter of 2014, according to the advance estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The second-quarter increase in GDP follows a first-quarter decline that was slightly less steep than previously reported. In the second quarter, growth in consumer spending and business investment picked up from the previous quarter, and residential investment increased following two straight quarters of decline. Additionally, state and local government spending grew at the fastest quarterly rate in five years. However, net exports subtracted from overall GDP growth, as imports grew faster than exports. Over the last four quarters, real GDP has risen 2.4 percent.
2. The revisions to historical data released today altered the pattern of growth over the last several years but had little net effect on the overall magnitude of the recovery. Real GDP growth in 2011 and 2012 was revised down to an average annual rate of 1.6 percent, but growth in 2013 was revised up to 3.1 percent. The strong growth in 2013 reflects especially rapid growth in the second half of the year. From the end of the recession in 2009:Q2 to the end of 2013, the economy grew at an average annual pace of 2.3 percent, little changed from what was previously reported.
3. Health care prices rose at a 1.8 percent annual rate in 2014:Q2, continuing the unusually slow health care price inflation seen in recent years; today's release does not contain useful information on growth in health care spending. This quarter's increase in health care prices is lower than overall inflation and is roughly in line with the 1.6 percent increase over the last four years. As we have noted previously, the United States is currently in the midst of a sustained period of unusually slow health care price inflation, to the significant benefit of health care consumers.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) also reported that real health care spending grew at a very slow 0.7 percent rate in the second quarter. However, as we noted last quarter, BEA has very limited data on health care spending when constructing its first and second estimates, so those estimates contain little useful information on actual health care spending.
This fact was strikingly illustrated last quarter, when BEA first estimated growth in real health care spending at 9.9 percent, but ultimately revised that estimate down to -1.4 percent. More generally, as depicted below, BEA's first estimate of health care spending growth has been a consistently poor predictor of its third estimate in recent years. By contrast, BEA's first estimate of growth in health care prices is generally reliable, reflecting the fact that BEA has access to much better data on health care prices when producing the first estimate.
4. Real residential investment rose 7.5 percent at an annual rate in the second quarter, following two straight quarters of decline. Previously, residential investment had expanded in 10 straight quarters from 2011:Q2 through 2013:Q3. The weakness in residential investment in 2013:Q4-2014:Q1 was in large part due to a drop in brokers' commissions and other ownership transfer costs, which are included in residential investment but are generally reflective of home sales rather than construction activity. In the second quarter, the "other" components of residential investment (brokers' commissions, home improvements, dormitories, and manufactured homes) returned to growth, and single- and multi-family construction continued to grow, leading to a gain in overall residential investment. Nevertheless, the level of residential construction activity represented 3.2 percent of GDP in the second quarter, still well below its average of 4.6 percent from 1960 to 2000.
5. Real private domestic final purchases (PDFP)—the sum of consumption and fixed investment—rose 3.1 percent at an annual rate in the second quarter. Real PDFP growth is generally a more stable and forward-looking indicator than real GDP because it excludes highly volatile components like inventory investment and net exports. For instance, in the first quarter, consumption and fixed investment posted positive growth, while the decline in overall GDP mostly reflected drops in the inventory investment and net export components. In the second quarter, consumption and fixed investment grew strongly, but by somewhat less than overall GDP, which received a boost from inventory investment that was only partially offset by falling net exports.
As the Administration stresses every quarter, GDP figures can be volatile and are subject to substantial revision. Therefore, it is important not to read too much into any one single report and it is informative to consider each report in the context of other data that are becoming available.
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