APEC Leaders: No Trade Barriers For 1 Year

Asia-Pacific Countries Pledge Free Trade, Vow To Return To Doha Talks

(CBS/AP)  Leaders from 21 nations that account for half the world's economy are pledging not to implement any protectionist measures for the next 12 months, no matter how punishing the global downturn gets.

The leaders are endorsing a declaration made at last weekend's summit in Washington, saying they won't raise new trade barriers over the next year.

They are also pledging to reach agreement next month on the outlines of a World Trade Organization pact that collapsed in July after seven years of negotiations.

A spokesman for the Japanese government said Saturday that concern over the global financial crisis revived willingness to push forward on the so-called Doha round of trade talks.

Addressing the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Lima on Saturday, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said the world must resist protectionist measures even if companies will keep going bankrupt and countless jobs will be lost.

U.S. President George W. Bush, attending his final global summit at a time of severe financial crisis, also said such measures would "stifle innovation and strangle growth."

He urged other countries on Saturday to spurn calls to erect protectionist trade barriers and keep pushing to liberalize trade, and to not repeat mistakes that turned a similar calamity seven decades ago into the Great Depression.

"One of the enduring lessons of the Great Depression is that global protectionism is a path to global economic ruin," Mr. Bush said in comments to business executives of Pacific Rim countries.

Mr. Bush said that because the economic problems are so widespread, all nations - both developed and developing - must work together to find solutions. He urged them to resist the "temptation to overcorrect" to fix the fiscal crisis. Mr. Bush has argued against over-regulating financial markets.

"Recovering from the financial crisis is going to take time, but we'll recover and so begin a new era of economic prosperity," he declared.

Mr. Bush was hoping to use his final APEC summit to get endorsement of a sweeping action plan to attack the global financial crisis that was drafted last week in Washington at a meeting of the Group of 20 nations, which include the world's richest economies plus major developing nations such as China, Brazil, India and Russia. Nine of the countries at the G-20 meeting are also members of APEC.

Mr. Bush said the APEC meeting could send a message that "we refuse to accept protectionism in the 21st century."

The APEC leaders were expected to commit to wrapping up the broad outlines of a free-trade agreement by the end of December.

However, some fear leaders will be unwilling to hold serious talks until U.S. President-elect Barack Obama takes office in January. He did not send representatives to Lima.

Free Trade Pushed

The two-day summit was taking place following another bad week for financial markets as investors became more fearful about the prospects of a deepening global recession.

Mr. Bush said that when he took office, the United States had free-trade agreements in effect with only three countries. Now it has such pacts in force with 14 nations. To hearty applause, he called it "extremely disappointing" that the U.S. Congress adjourned without passing pending deals with Colombia, South Korea and Panama.

Mr. Bush also said it was important for nations to push ahead to complete the global free-trade talks known as the Doha Round.

These discussions, which began seven years, ago have been stalled by disputes between rich and poor nations over farm trade and barriers to manufactured goods.

In addition to addressing the economic crisis, Mr. Bush used his discussions in Lima to provide renewed impetus to an effort to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons. North Korea has balked at allowing inspectors to take samples from its main nuclear complex.

Mr. Bush hopes to use his discussions with the leaders of Japan, South Korea and Russia to lock in an early December date when all six parties, including North Korea, will meet in China. The goal would be to get agreement on the verification of North Korea's nuclear declaration and disabling of its nuclear facilities.

At a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Mr. Bush joked about his "forced retirement" on Jan. 20 when Barack Obama replaces him.

Harper: Bad Government Policies Caused The Great Depression

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the current economic crisis is potentially as dangerous as anything the world has seen since 1929.

And he said the world must learn the lessons from the Great Depression, which he says was not caused by a stock market collapse but by bad policies from governments, so as to avoid a repeat of history.

He said policy makers erred in allowing their banking sector to contract, deflation to take hold, attempted to balance government budgets when fiscal stimulus was needed, and closed doors to trade in an effort to protect domestic jobs.

Those are mistakes Canada would not make, he said in an address to the APEC summit on Saturday.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was also among the leaders who arrived in Lima on Saturday morning to attend APEC.

Local newspapers reflected on the likelihood that the global financial crisis would dominate discussions at the summit.

On the streets of Lima on Saturday morning, massive security was deployed around the hotels hosting the different delegations.

Authorities in Lima declared Thursday and Friday public holidays in the capital in order to reduce traffic and ensure better security measures for the summit. Many Lima residents took advantage of the four-day-long weekend to leave the capital.

Yesterday, at least one thousand people protested in central Lima against the arrival of President Bush.

The protesters, who were called to action by one of Peru's main trade unions, also burned a rat effigy intended to represent Peruvian President Alan Garcia, among other political figures.

Union leaders blamed a poor turn out at the protest on a lack of public transport in the capital, because of the public holiday.

[txgrouch2007]

Lets make a trade agreement that works both ways.
Posted by kevinkkloste at 01:56 PM : Nov 22, 2008

Let''s get our definitions straight:

PROTECTIONISM: anything that would keep jobs for workers in the USA

FREE TRADE: anything that would reduce USA workers to slaves and eliminate the middle class

Our Presi(puke) - sorry, calling him President just made me puke - has just PLEDGED ONCE AGAIN TO PURSUE NOTHING BUT FREE TRADE.

Now that the election is over, out leaders are showing their true colors.

Pelosi is a Communist who wants to nationalize industry.

Barney Frank will keep doing what he''s been doing after his constituents said "Atta boy, carry on."

And George W Bush is THE ENEMY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.

He HATES THE VERY ONES WHO VOTED FOR HIM - TWICE!!!

I will be sure to return the sentiments from NOW ON.

[txgrouch2007]

STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID

They have now sworn an oath to FORCE US ALL INTO SERFEOM by forcing the workers in established economies to compete head-to-head with workers in slave labor nations.

THEY WANT US TO BE SLAVES!!!!

I hope this will be one of the things Obama reversed when he takes office.

[mgpm-2009]

WE MUST BUY OUR OWN PRODUCTS, MADE IN THE USA TO GET OUR ECONOMY BACK ON TRACK.

How else are we going to create jobs? STOP buying junk made in CHINA---they have horrible human rights abuses in that country and they will put anything in their products (melamine, lead) to make them cheap. No concern for saftey, only profit. AND they don''t import much from us.

All those people who get out and wave flags on July 4, should demonstrate their patriotism by BUYING AMERICAN MADE PRODUCTS. It should be considted unpatriotic to buy a foreign car from now on...it should be considered unpatriotic to support CHINA or any other country over the US. Let''s get our nation back to work!!!!

[notfooled]

Ban all free trade agreements.

Bring jobs back to america

[whitemale08]

Mr. Bush, the world wants you to END THE PRIVATE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM NOW!!!!

THAT''S WHAT THE WORLD WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU!!!!!

AND ALL COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD HAVE ABOLISH THEIR PRIVATE CENTRAL BANKS TOO!!!!!

THAT'' THE ONLY WAY TO END THE IMPERIAL BRITISH IMF/WORLD BANK NIGHTMARE!!!!!!

[netbs9]

http://www.kudlowsmoneypolitics.b
logspot.com/
"Total compensation per hour for the big-three carmakers is $73.20.

Posted by jschmidt27 at 10:40 PM : Nov 22, 2008


That''s a total complete right wing lie

Kudlow is a pile of ***** like Bush/Cheney

And so is you

Now stop spreading your stupid right wing BS


UAW workers avg pay with bennies is around $28 per hour

Free trade is killing US manufacturing

And that all George dipstick can talk about this week

End

[jschmidt27]

rightbehind- the UAW doesn''t bargain for a fair wage- they hold a gun to the head of the automakers until they cave in. Now we see what that leads to. THe automakers can''t make a profit because the UAW makes too much.
http://www.kudlowsmoneypolitics.blogspot.com/
"Total compensation per hour for the big-three carmakers is $73.20. That%u2019s a 52 percent differential from Toyota%u2019s (Detroit South) $48 compensation (wages + health and retirement benefits). In fact, the oversized UAW-driven pay package for Detroit is 132 percent higher than that of the entire manufacturing sector of the U.S., which comes in at $31.59."

[jschmidt27]

Healthcare we are not the consumer of healthcare. THe employers are. They have the power to negotiate with the insurance companies not the employee. The employee needs to be able to directly deal with the insurance companies and pick and choose what he wants. A minimum coverage needs to be established with employers paying into a fund that is given out to employees. Govt will decide minimums and employer contributions. The only reason other countries are able to get better deals for drugs is the companies make up the difference with US prices. The US forces drug companies to take cuts may reduce research in drugs. Not good. Insurance adminstration costs are too high. But how much of that is the duplicate processes required by each company and the requirments of govt for documentation. THe VA has an adminstrative system using computer automation. That should be duplicated. But automatically setting up a 1 payer system is an entitlement we can''t afford.

[incog-nito]

One year? That should be enough time for the destruction of American''s economy to be complete.

[jschmidt27]

Up till March of this year we have hovered at or below 5% unemployment. From March it has increased to 6.5%. It may go up another half to full point. If 2.5 million jobs are created that will bring the rate down 2.5% to 4-5%, the same as in the Bush years. Even in the golden Clinton years it was 4.5 to 5%. So with unemployment Bush did as good as Clinton. And the hope is Obama will do as good as Bush-4.5 to 5%.

[jschmidt27]

lastdance has a few screws loose.

[f091964]

wake up people lastdance134 is speaking truth and sometimes truth hurts.

[jschmidt27]

lastdance- bring it on! if you really want to get the conservatives and Republicans organized and riled up then just try and bring charges up on the Bush administration. You will really tick off the majority, the moderates and the conservatives. You will have wasted so much time, created anti Democratic party feelings and accomplished nothing. But go ahead go for it. There would definitely be a Republican congress next time around.

[jschmidt27]

curse- the tech bubble was your man Clinton doing. GW had to handle the aftermath of that, 9/11, 2 wars, subprime, oil prices, hurricanes, wildfires, floods. That is why the deficit is so high. It has been one thing after the other.

[jschmidt27]

lastdance- that''s nice

[f091964]

right on lastdance134

[jschmidt27]

cbsblogger- protectionism is your answer? That might have worked when we were the major exporter of things such as oil, steel. But we put barriers up why wouldn''t everyone else do it, like the oil producing countries. No you can''t go backwards. We need to find ways to have good paying jobs and be competitive in a global market. Now we are head to have one employer- the US government.

[cbsblogger]

This discussion about more free trade is absurd. It is a slap in the face to many USA citizens who have seen their jobs lost and wages declining every year since the WTO and "free trade" was foisted upon us by the same criminals on Wall Street, who have put the world in this financial mess, and now are on the receiving end of trillions in bailouts from Goldman Sachs guy Hank Paulson.

Let''s go back to a time when the only taxes in the USA were tariffs on imported goods in the early 1900s. That was when industry in Europe enthusiastically moved operations to the USA to have free access to our market. That tax never should have been eliminated as it benefited the USA.

But America became populated with immigrant bankers and financiers more interested in making a dollar than making the USA stronger. Today we have the result, with our country deep in debt, fighting a war for other countries, and a currency that is on the verge of being destroyed by our reckless ways. We still have the reserve currency of the world but we are quickly losing and credibility do to the reckless ways of those who run the Federal Reserve and Wall Street.

US protectionism and tariffs are needed. We have countries such as China that are exporting at will their ***, while US industry such as Harley Davidson is restricted from China.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iXizWpAK4GEB-7HzIHQFfc-PFvgQ

[jschmidt27]

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/11/bush_shows_obama_the_way.html
Capping all this off, Bush said: "The triumph of free-market capitalism has been proven across time, geography, culture and faith. And it would be a terrible mistake to allow a few months of crisis to undermine 60 years of success."

That reference to 60 years harkens back to the original post-World War II economic-rebuilding conference held in Bretton Woods, N.H., in July 1944. At that historic meeting, the United States and Britain led 170 delegates from around the world into a new era of free markets, free trade and stable currencies. It was a conference of global coordination that broke down the isolationist and protectionist sentiments that upset the world order so badly during the prior 15 years.

Ultimately, the free-market system forged at Bretton Woods, which was in no small way predicated on economic prosperity, led to a triumph of Western values over Soviet state socialism. And it was President Reagan -- along with his friend, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher -- who applied the final blow to the now-defunct Soviet system with his rejuvenation of free-market capitalism.

So what George W. Bush seems to be saying is this: Do not discard that triumphal system just because we''ve had a rough year in the financial markets and the economy.

[jschmidt27]

rightbehind- the private sector makes better jobs than the public sector which essentially pays for union welfare. The jobs the private sector makes for technology competent workers are higher paying and longer lasting. The voters cannot afford the tax increases needed to make the public sector the employer of choice. They can''t afford the pensions and they can''t afford the health care. We''ll create the UAW in the private sector.