Business Roundtable Praises New Bipartisan Cooperation on Trade Policy

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies, applauded the agreement announced today between Congress and the White House that will revitalize and reestablish bipartisan cooperation on trade policy initiatives.

“Bipartisan cooperation on trade is critical to developing the policies that will help Americans compete and win in the global economy,” said Jim Owens, Chairman and CEO of Caterpillar Inc., and a co-chairman of the Business Roundtable’s International Trade and Investment Task Force.

Owens praised all parties involved in the effort to change the tone on trade policy in Washington. “The new consensus between the Administration, Congress and the private sector will translate into trade policies that are good for business, consumers, workers and farmers,” he said. He specifically cited the work of House Ways and Means Chairman Charles B. Rangel (D-NY), Ranking Member Jim McCrery (R-LA), Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT), Ranking Republican Charles E. Grassley (R-IA), Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson, and U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab in building new bridges in trade policy to keep the nation competitive in the growing global economy.

“Bipartisan trade policy paves the way for greater collaboration on pressing issues including bilateral free trade agreements with Peru, Panama, Colombia and Korea, renewal of trade promotion authority and the completion of the Doha Round,” said Harold McGraw III, Chairman, President and CEO, The McGraw-Hill Companies and Chairman of Business Roundtable.

“The evidence is clear that expansion of trade promotes economic growth and adds jobs for people across the nation,” said McGraw. “The bipartisan agreement will allow policymakers and the private sector to continue to make progress on current and future initiatives that help the U.S. and its workers compete. It is important that this process moves forward with opening markets and also provides the strongest protections for intellectual property.”

“Every major U.S. competitor is moving forward with trade deals,” Owens said. “The bipartisan consensus from Washington sends a signal to the world that the U.S. is not standing still on trade.”

Recent studies confirm that trade brings many benefits to the United States. Nearly one in five Americans jobs is linked to U.S. exports and imports of goods and services. This means that more than 31 million Americans depend on trade for their jobs, and more than a quarter of our gross domestic product is directly linked to trade.

There are challenges, however, that need to be confronted. Owens said that trade policy is but one part of a larger national policy to keep the country competitive in the global marketplace. “We also need to address the dislocations that are caused by technological changes, globalization and other factors, through attention to adjustment assistance and retraining programs,” he continued. He cited the need for U.S. leadership in research and development, a well-educated workforce and a comprehensive energy policy as additional key components. Reporters call Jeff Surrell at 202.326.1748 for additional information.

Business Roundtable (www.businessroundtable.org) is an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies with $4.5 trillion in annual revenues and more than 10 million employees. Member companies comprise nearly a third of the total value of the U.S. stock markets and represent over 40 percent of all corporate income taxes paid. Collectively, they returned $112 billion in dividends to shareholders and the economy in 2005.

Roundtable companies give more than $7 billion a year in combined charitable contributions, representing nearly 60 percent of total corporate giving. They are technology innovation leaders, with $90 billion in annual research and development spending – nearly half of the total private R&D spending in the U.S.