Baucus Applauds Colombia FTA Entry

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) hailed the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement’s (FTA) entry into force, which is scheduled to take effect May 15, 2012 and will phase-out Colombian tariffs on American manufactured and agricultural goods. The trade agreement with Colombia will boost U.S. exports by more than $1 billion and help U.S. exporters regain market share that has been lost to countries that have already signed FTAs with Colombia, said Baucus in a press release. “Colombia is dropping tariffs on our manufactured and agricultural goods, and that means the door is opening for American workers and businesses to grow,” Baucus said. “This a major economic win that levels the playing field for American workers and businesses. Colombia’s economy is growing quickly, and it’s a lucrative market for the world-class products made here in the U.S. This trade deal is worth a billion dollars in new U.S. exports and thousands of new jobs at home, and that’s just the kind of boost our economy needs."