WASHINGTON, DC, USA - The Washington International Trade Association (WITA) kicked off the year with three record-attendance policy events at the (Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center).

On Thursday, January 26, WITA held a record breaking 250 plus attendee event that studied the Border Adjustment Tax (BAT) proposal. Two expert panels examined the Brady-Ryan tax reform blueprint, and their proposal to tax imports from around the world. The first panel debated the trade and investment impact of the tax proposal, the merits of origin- vs. destination-based tax systems and whether such a plan would be WTO-compliant. They also considered potential alternatives to the BAT in the context of existing US and global tax regimes. The second panel heard from industry supporters and opponents of the proposal.

On Thursday, February 9, WITA held an event titled NAFTA 2.0? before another record breaking crowd. As the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) agreement was at the forefront of a national discussion of trade in the 2016 election, WITA examined what revisiting the 23-year-old might look like. The first panel considered the objectives of the new administration in re-negotiating NAFTA and other trade agreements, possible ways of achieving them and why these options haven’t already been undertaken. The experts also discussed legal, political and macroeconomic implications of re-negotiating NAFTA. A second panel did a deep dive into several critical industries and what changes to the Agreement might mean for their sectors.

Lastly, WITA studied the past, present, and future direction of U.S.-China trade and investment relations on Thursday, February 16. Author John Pomfret discussed the evolution of the over 200-year-old U.S.-China trade relationship and his predictions for the future. Following panels debated today’s most pressing concerns surrounding Chinese trade and investment, and how to address them. Industry representatives and government officials cited opportunities to deepen trade ties, identified barriers still to be overcome and highlighted the countries’ interdependence.

Videos of all of these events can be found at americastradepolicy.com

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