Country Reports on Economic Policy and Trade Practices

COUNTRY REPORTS ON ECONOMIC POLICY AND TRADE PRACTICES FOR 1992 are available on the University of Missouri- St. Louis Gopher (UMSLVMA.UMSL.EDU). From the main menu select the following directory:

/The Library/Government Information/Country Reports on Economic Policy and Trade Practices

INTRODUCTION

The Department of State is submitting to the Congress its Country Reports on Economic Policy and Trade Practices, in compliance with Section 2202 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988. The legislation instructs the Department to prepare a detailed report regarding the economic policy and trade practices of each country with which the United States has an economic or trade relationship: we have done so. In addition, we have included reports on a few other countries that may be of interest to readers despite a relatively small level of economic involvement with the United States.

Many of our trading partners experienced enormous political and social upheavals in 1991. The countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are represented in this report for the first time. The report on the new independent states of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics contains as much information as was available prior to going to press. Each of the new independent states will be discussed in individual reports in the 1993 Trade Act Report.

The country reports have been compiled from information supplied by U.S. Embassies overseas, amplified by analysis and review within the Department of State and in consultation with other U.S. Government agencies. The reports are intended primarily as general guides to economic conditions in a specific country. While we have attempted to standardize the reports, some are necessarily different, reflecting wide variances in availability of data. In some countries, the U.S. has no formal representation. In other cases access to reliable information is limited. Nevertheless, all the country reports incorporate the best information available.

Each country report is divided into nine sections.

o Key Economic Indicators: The report begins with a chart showing data for key economic indicators in the national income, monetary, and trade accounts.

o General Policy Framework: The first narrative section is a general sketch of macroeconomic trends.

o Exchange Rate Policies: The second section outlines exchange rate policies, particularly with respect to their impact on price competitiveness of U.S. exports.

o Structural Policies: The third section on structural policies also emphasizes those changes with might affect U.S. exports to that country.

o Debt Management Policies: The fourth section describes debt management policies and implications for trade with the United States.

o Significant Barriers to U.S. Exports and Investment: The fifth section addresses significant barriers to U.S. exports and investment.

o Export Subsidies Policies: The sixth section notes any government acts, policies, and practices that provide support for exports from that country, including exports by small businesses.

o Protection of U.S. Intellectual Property: The seventh section discusses the country's laws and practices with respect to protection for intellectual property.

o Worker Rights: The eighth and final section has three parts.

-- The first part outlines in general the country's laws and practices with respect to internationally recognized worker rights. -- The second part (subsection f.) highlights conditions of worker rights in goods-producing sectors where U.S. capital is invested. -- Finally, a table cites the extent of such investment by sector where information is available.

We believe that this fourth annual report builds on the strong foundation of the reports submitted in January 1989, January 1990, and February 1991. The Department of State considers the report to be an important contribution toward our goal of ensuring that strong and effective U.S. Government trade policies are based on the best possible understanding of the economic trends in countries around the world.

Eugene J. McAllister Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs

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Country Reports-Economic Policy & Trade Practices [for Africa]

6. Algeria Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 7. Angola Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 29. Egypt Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 34. Gabon Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 36. Ghana Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 53. Kenya Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 60. Morocco Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 64. Nigeria Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 77. South Africa Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 85. Tunisia Economic Policy and Trade Practices . 93. Zaire Economic Policy and Trade Practices .

Standard NTDB footnotes

The NTDB system uses a number of standard footnote codes in the footnote fields in the monthly, quarterly, annual, and matrix data records. Frequently, the footnote values will be associated with a data value of "0" or "-999999" (which the NTDB uses to indicate missing). Additional non-standard codes may also be used but these will appear in the PGM- TECH records for each information program.

Note that the distinctions between the various footnotes may be confusing to people outside of an agency but the agency itself feels the distinctions are relevant.

The standard footnote codes are as follows:

Code Meaning 1 Legitimate zero value. Associated data value will be 0. 2 Rounds to zero. Associated data value will be 0. 3 Not available; field in time series is outside the available observation range (e.g. January observation for a series that begins in June). Associated data value will be blank. 4 Not available; value is missing. Associated data value will be blank. 5 Not applicable; typically used in matrix cells for values in undefined columns. Associated data value will be blank. 6 Not collected. Associated data value will be blank. 7 Break in time series. 8 Value supressed to avoid disclosure. Associated data value will be blank. 9 Revised. 10 Estimated. 11 Corrected. 12 Preliminary. 13 Less than $500,000. Associated data value will be 0. 14 Less than 500 acres. Associated data value will be 0. 15 Less than 50 employees. Associated data value will be 0. 16 Not elsewhere classified.

------------------------------------------------------------------------ US Department of State COUNTRY REPORTS ON ECONOMIC POLICY AND TRADE PRACTICES from US Dept. of Commerce National Trade Databank (NTDB) CD- ROM SuDoc number C 1.88:993/10 (RCM-Libraries of the Univ. of Missouri- St. Louis)/ CRPT0067.