According to his spokesperson, House Majority Leader Cantor (R-VA) does not plan to schedule a vote on the Agriculture Committee's version of new farm legislation when Congress returns on Nov. 13 in Lame Duck session.
Cantor's spokesperson was addressing a news report published by the Idaho Statesman which said the majority leader intended to schedule a vote on the bill (H.R. 6083). The newspaper quoted Cantor as telling reporters, "I'm committed to bring the issue to the floor and then to see a way forward so we can get the votes to pass (a bill)." According to the spokesperson, though, Rep. Cantor never committed to a specific vote noting that, "All he said was we'd address the issue."
In a statement the same day, Senate Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry Committee Chairwoman Stabenow (D-MI) said, "I'm very pleased to hear that Majority Leader Cantor is now committed to bring the Farm Bill to the floor immediately after the election. America's farmers, ranchers, small businesses and 16 million Americans employed in agriculture desperately need the certainty and disaster relief the Farm Bill provides."
Most Washington officials have assumed the timing of a vote on the legislation depends on the elections' outcome. If Republicans capture the White House and the Senate, House leaders probably would wait until the new Congress is sworn in before taking up new farm legislation. Another possibility is to add the farm bill to legislation addressing spending cuts and taxes that could develop during the Lame Duck session -- as the House and Senate bills offer substantial budget savings that could be valuable offsets to tax and spending legislation.
US, EU Join Chinese Subsidies Consultations
The United States and the European Union have asked to join World Trade Organization (WTO) consultations requested by Mexico with China related to subsidies that Mexico contends China provides to textile and apparel manufacturers.
Mexico filed a complaint contending the subsidies have a detrimental impact on its apparel exporters and reduced sales in the US market by nearly 50% since China joined the WTO in '01.
A US Trade Representative office spokeswoman said, "(w)e are currently reviewing Mexico's claims, consulting with U.S. stakeholders, and analyzing the facts and the law related to this matter to determine what our next steps should be."
The primary benefits of joining as a third party are to: 1) hear the exchange between the complainant and respondent country and 2) make a direct assessment of the complaint's strength.
Australia and Guatemala have asked to join the consultations as third parties.
The National Council of Textile Organizations issued a statement praising the US decision to seek to join the consultations.
Mexico requested the WTO consultations with China on Oct. 15 and the consultations are expected to be scheduled for November. If the consultations fail to resolve the issue bilaterally, Mexico could request formation of a dispute settlement panel. If Mexico requests a dispute settlement panel, countries affected by the subsidies would have to decide whether to be third parties or to join the complaint.
India's Textile Subsidies Questioned
The United States questioned India's export subsidies for textiles and apparel at the April 26 and Oct. 23 meetings of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM). Under the SCM Agreement, a WTO member country is to phase out export subsidies on any given product for which they have reached export competitiveness.
The United States and Turkey disagree with India concerning the time frame for which India has to phase out their export subsidies for textiles and apparel. Both have stated that India reached export competitiveness on textile and apparel products in '07 and therefore was required to begin phasing out its export subsidies in that industry. However, the United States contends that India had not done that and has even begun implementing new or extending existing export incentives to their textile and apparel sector.
The United States also expressed concern over India's view that certain technical legal issues had to be resolved by the SCM Committee before India would be required to phase out its export subsidies in textiles and apparel. The United States has stated it is ready to discuss this issue both bilaterally with India and in the SCM Committee. India also has stated that it is open to discussions with WTO officials and interested members.
Farmers Urged to Record Hurricane Losses
USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) Administrator Juan M. Garcia urged farmers and ranchers affected by Hurricane Sandy to keep thorough records of all losses.
FSA recommends that owners and producers record all pertinent information of natural disaster consequences, including: crop records, including seed and fertilizer purchases; planting and production records; photos of on-farm storage facilities that were destroyed by wind or flood waters; evidence of damaged farm land; documentation of the number and kind of livestock that have died, supplemented if possible by photographs or video records of ownership and losses; dates of death supported by birth recordings or purchase receipts; costs of transporting livestock to safer grounds or to move animals to new pastures; and feed purchases if supplies or grazing pastures are destroyed.
Producers with damaged farmland should contact their local FSA office. The Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) may be able to assist producers who need to repair farmland or remove debris due to Hurricane Sandy. FSA currently has $15.5 million available for producers in counties that received a major disaster declaration pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Producers located in counties that have not received a major disaster declaration should visit their local FSA office for information on ECP if funding becomes available in the future.
USDA's Risk Management Agency reminds producers faced with questions on prevented planting, replant or crop losses to contact their crop insurance agent for more information.
Producers who need emergency credit may receive assistance through the Emergency Loan Program if they need assistance recovering from production and physical losses due to natural disasters. Producers are eligible for these loans as soon as their county is declared a Presidential or Secretarial disaster county.
More information about federal crop insurance is atwww.rma.usda.gov. Additional resources to help farmers and ranchers deal with flooding and other damage is atwww.usda.gov/disaster.
Electronic Signature Trial Completed
USDA's Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Memphis office says an electronic signature trial, which began in '10 for Phytosanitary Certificate Issuance and Tracking (PCIT) certificates for baled cotton, has been completed. APHIS informed the NCC that any commodity may be certified with an electronic signature. For example, the APHIS office in Memphis certifies cotton, lumber and grain through the use of the electronic signature procedure.
This policy is in accordance with NCC trade policy that urges "...USDA to support efforts to ensure that APHIS-issued phytosanitary certificates enhance the value of US-produced baled cotton and fulfill applicable international treaty obligations, while minimizing industry and administrative burden." Much like electronic warehouse receipts, the APHIS e-Phyto initiative is creating new efficiencies for shippers, marketing coops, freight forwarders and others while reducing the need to create and track paper documents.
The NCC was informed that the electronic signature procedure has been well received with only a few countries refusing to accept it. At this time, there is no universal agreement and Korea, Brazil, European Union and Mexico do not accept the electronic signatures. APHIS also has documented a few localized problems at ports in China but China's Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine accepts the electronic signatures.
Cotton Council International (CCI) and Cotton Incorporated joined forces with Central Fabrics and Sanyang Textile, both COTTON USA licensees, to promote US cotton at the Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics show. At the joint exhibit, fabrics and garments from 16 COTTON USA licensees were on display, including: Chicks, Central Fabrics, Dazzle, Devil Nut, Deyao Textiles, D'zzit, Enfant, Federation (Sanhe), Golden Dragon, Jasonwood, JNBY, Levi's Kids, Nautica, Peacebird, Vigoss and Teelocker.Supima also had an array of products on display.
Textile manufacturers around the world are facing fluctuating raw material prices, relocation of supplying sources for procurement and newly adopted macroeconomic policies in China. COTTON USA provides a platform to identify top quality suppliers of COTTON USA eligible products based on specific needs. This helps companies improve their sourcing efficiency and encourages manufacturers along the textile supply chain to establish cooperative relationships.
This year's Intertextile Apparel Fabrics show included 3,358 exhibitors that attracted about 65,700 visitors from 98 countries. Visitors to the CCI/Cotton Incorporated exhibit learned about fabric developments, new technologies for cotton textiles and other subjects. Cotton Incorporated highlighted research/development projects in collaboration with industry partners that are aimed at increasing cotton's demand and profitability. During the exhibition, Cotton Incorporated provided a product trend forecast for the spring and summer of '14.
In addition to participating in the Intertextile show, CCI also joined the Kingpins show in Shanghai, a jeans supply chain trade show. CCI had full support from COTTON USA licensed denim fabric and garments manufacturers, including Datsun, Jasonwood, Kefang, Labarjeans and Vigoss.
Sales, Shipments Steady
Net export sales for the week ending Oct. 25 were 102,700 bales (480-lb). This brings total '12-13 sales to approximately 6.3 million bales. Total sales at the same point in the '11-12 marketing year were approximately 7.8 million bales. Total new crop ('13-14) sales are 274,400 bales.
Shipments for the week were 133,000 bales, bringing total exports to date to 2.0 million bales, compared with the 1.2 million bales at the comparable point in the '11-12 marketing year.
Effective Nov. 2-8, ’12
Adjusted World Price, SLM 11/16
61.10 cents
*
Fine Count Adjustment ('11 Crop)
1.07 cents
Fine Count Adjustment ('12 Crop)
1.27 cents
Coarse Count Adjustment
0.00 cents
Marketing Loan Gain Value
0.00 cents
Import Quotas Open
13
Special Import Quota (480-lb bales)
824,732
ELS Payment Rate
0.00 cents
*No Adjustment Made Under Step I
Five-Day Average
Current 5 Lowest 3135 CFR Far East
81.35 cents
Forward 5 Lowest 3135 CFR Far East
NA
Coarse Count CFR Far East
NA
Current US CFR Far East
82.10 cents
Forward US CFR Far East
NA
'12-13 Weighted Marketing-Year Average Farm Price
Year-to-Date (Aug.-Sept.)
71.00 cents
**
**Aug.-July average price used in determination of counter-cyclical payment
