Trade probe: USTR seeks hearing date from Dhaka

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has sought a date from Bangladesh for a hearing as part of the US’s twin investigations into trade and forced labour.

Brendan Lynch, the assistant USTR for South and Central Asia, contacted the commerce ministry for the date, Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman told The Daily Star.

A date would be given right after the Eid-ul-Fitr holidays as there are only three working days left, he said.

At the hearing, the USTR may seek information on production capacity in different industrial and manufacturing sector, wage payment, labour law update, export capacity, subsidy payment and labour issues.

The USTR may raise the issues of non-tariff barriers that American businesses are facing in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh has already started preparations for the hearing and gathering evidence to support the country’s stance, he said.

For the USTR, it would be difficult to prove Bangladesh’s excessive production capacity as many of the factories, particularly the garment factories, had shuttered over the last few years for dearth of work orders from the international clothing retailers and brands.

The USTR’s claim that Bangladesh provides export subsidies will also be difficult to prove, as the government significantly reduced such subsidies three years ago as part of preparations for graduation from the least-developed country category later this year.

The interim government has already amended the law to bring it in line with international standards, following suggestions from the International Labour Organisation, he added.

Bangladesh is well capable of facing the investigation with strong evidence, said Mostafa Abid Khan, a former member of the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission with experience in dealing with such matters.

For instance, several years ago the US claimed that Bangladesh’s exports of sleeping bags had increased dramatically, prompting an investigation by the USTR.

Bangladesh won the case after producing substantial evidence, Khan said, adding that the US raised the same claim again the following year without evidence.

Although the hearing of the investigation will be government-to-government, the garment sector is ready to help with data and evidence to make a robust case before the USTR, said Mahmud Hasan Khan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association.

The garment sector does not indulge in overproduction to the extent that it would be a threat to the US’s manufacturing sector, he said, adding that Bangladesh does not produce any counterfeit garment items that may violate intellectual property rights.