[…] A BIT with China would not interfere with the ability of the United States to take any action necessary to protect the national security. All U.S. BITs include an “essential security” exception that allows the United States to take any action that is necessary to protect the national security, including action by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to condition or block a Chinese acquisition of control over a U.S. company.

[…] Two small Asian economic dynamos, Hong Kong and Singapore, are the most open to foreign trade of all the world's countries and entities, according to a new study. The Global Enabling Trade Report 2008 ranks 118 countries according to how well they enable the free flow of goods and investments through their borders. Ranked after the top two are Sweden and Norway. They are followed in the top 10 by Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Switzerland and New Zealand.

[…] Approval and implementation of the U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement would eliminate tariffs on goods produced by several of the companies attending today's event, including:
• Case New Holland, a world leader in the manufacturing of agricultural and construction equipment, whose Fargo, North Dakota, plant exported about 48 percent of its production in 2007.
The Case IH tractor faces a $15,500 tariff from Colombia.

When two women looked at the transportation problems faced by urban dwellers in the United States, they saw a business opportunity, as well as a way to help the planet. Together they founded Zipcar Inc., the world's largest car-sharing business. In another corner of the globe, a woman entrepreneur used her skills and determination to create and run a successful printing company.

[…] Many also agree the constitutional referendum scheduled for May is unlikely to lead to the type of change necessary. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack, in a statement in early February, referred to Burma's "pervasive climate of fear, in which virtually the entire opposition, including Aung San Suu Kyi, is under detention …." No referendum held under these conditions can be free, fair and credible, he said.

[…] Since the United States, Canada and Mexico established the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994, trade has tripled, laying a firm foundation for expanded regional cooperation among three countries united by geography and a shared belief in democracy, President Bush says.

[…] It took Nancy Floyd almost three years to raise $65 million for the first venture capital fund focused on energy technologies. In the world of venture capital, $65 million was a meager amount. “It was like pushing a boulder uphill,” she told America.gov. “Markets [for those technologies] weren’t there yet.”

[…] Today, President Bush met with former Cabinet Secretaries and senior government officials and discussed the need for pro-growth economic policies, including opening new markets for U.S. exports through free trade agreements. Open markets contribute to America's prosperity. With exports now accounting for a larger percentage of our GDP than at any other time in our history, trade is playing an important role in supporting economic growth.

[…] The study, titled “Blue Collar Blues” and published by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, says the recent increase in U.S. income inequality has little to do with globalization, which is perceived by some Americans as harming unskilled workers. In the study, income inequality is defined as the difference between real, or inflation-adjusted, blue-collar wages and business-sector output per hour. In 2000-2006, it has roughly increased by 30 percent.

[…] The Export Control Directive mandates the commitment of additional financial and other resources, as well as procedural reforms, that will expedite the processing of export license applications for items controlled by the U.S. Munitions List. Although license processing times will be reduced as a result of this directive, the Administration is committed to ensuring that existing measures to prevent the diversion of such items to unauthorized recipients remain strong and effective.

[…] For all its legitimate importance, the word “innovation” has become something of an all-purpose cliché.

Punch it into the Google search engine -- itself a prime example of innovation on a grand scale -- and one gets no fewer than 87,800,000 “hits.” A dictionary definition is quite straightforward: Merriam-Webster Online sees innovation as “a new idea, method or device.”

[…] “Peruvian access to the U.S. market, which had to be renewed by Congress periodically, will become permanent. This permanent access will help build a more efficient and effective economic engine to create growth, jobs and economic opportunities both in Peru and in the United States,” Rice said in a statement.

[…] And I want to share with you some thoughts about an important debate that we're engaged in here. I believe the outcome of this debate will determine whether we embrace new opportunities for free and fair trade, or whether or not we'll become protectionists. My position is clear: We will work with Congress to open up new markets for American goods, and services, and farm products -- to make sure this economy continues to grow and our people have a high standard of living.

[…] The two officials said the United States is “deeply disappointed” that the talks among senior officials of the United States, the European Union (EU), Brazil and India designed to revive the stalled WTO process broke down when the Brazilian and Indian delegations walked away from the negotiations.

[…] The program -- run by the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Fortune magazine’s Most Powerful Women Summit, and Vital Voices Global Partnership -- gives gifted young businesswomen the opportunity to develop leadership, management and business skills and gain experience in the U.S. business world.

[…] The new trade policy also addresses issues related to intellectual property, port security and government procurement. For example, it aims to ensure that U.S. trading partners in the developing world will be able to sell generic life-saving drugs without breaking patent protections. Democratic Representative Sander Levin, who was involved in the negotiations, said: “This is a major breakthrough in what we’ve been fighting for … to be sure that globalization opens up for many more people.”

[…] “This is a year for pushing ahead, not being driven off course, or conceding that some parts of the [Western] hemisphere are too hard to help,” Negroponte told participants in a meeting of the Council of the Americas, a Washington-based business group. During the event, Negroponte announced that he will visit Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Panama May 7-12 to discuss pending trade agreements, energy issues and regional cooperation.

[…] Shannon, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, told participants in the 37th Washington Conference on the Americas that he had just come from a breakfast meeting at the White House hosted by President Bush for Colombian President Álvaro Uribe.

At that meeting, said Shannon, Bush underscored the importance of the three free-trade pacts awaiting congressional approval.

[…] Joint commitments on a broad range of economic and security issues were signed April 30 during the annual U.S.-EU summit in Washington. President Bush, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso signed the trans-Atlantic economic partnership plan under which the two trading partners will establish a framework for business integration by streamlining regulatory standards that are often different between the trans-Atlantic partners.