U.S. Chamber of Commerce Issues GSP Report
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently issued a report describing the benefits to U.S. consumers and companies of the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program and urged Congress to extend the program beyond its December 31, 2006 expiration date.
The report entitled, "Estimated Impacts of the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences
to U.S. Industry and Consumers" states:
- GSP keeps U.S. manufacturers and their suppliers competitive. In 2005, three quarters of U.S. GSP imports were raw materials, parts and components, or machinery and equipment used by by U.S. companies to manufacture goods.
- American families benefit from GSP. Finished consumer goods sold by U.S. retailers accounted for 25% of GSP imports in 2005. Relatively inexpensive jewelry was the most significant item.
- GSP is particularly important to U.S. small businesses, many of whom rely on the program's duty savings to compete with larger companies.
- GSP imports support U.S. jobs. Moving GSP imports from the docks to retail shelves supported nearly 82,000 U.S. jobs in 2005.
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