The National Congress of Brazil in Brasilia, designed by Oscar Niemeyer image
The U.S. - Brazil Commercial Dialogue
A partnership to prevent, reduce, and remove non-tariff barriers to trade.

U.S.-Brazil Commercial Dialogue Statement 2023

21st Plenary of the U.S.-Brazil Commercial Dialogue
November 6, 2023
Brasilia, Brazil

JOINT STATEMENT

The Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade and Services (MDIC) Secretariat of Foreign Trade and the U.S. Department of Commerce International Trade Administration, (DOC) are pleased to issue this Joint Statement celebrating the 21st Plenary of the U.S.-Brazil Commercial Dialogue held on November 6, 2023, in Brasilia, Brazil.  

Since work began with the first Plenary in 2006, the Commercial Dialogue has matured into a strong partnership between MDIC and DOC.  This partnership empowers officials in both governments to work together toward a common goal – to improve our economies through increased bilateral trade and investment.  

Longstanding work related to trade facilitation, good regulatory practices, trade in the digital economy, and standards continues to be the backbone of the Commercial Dialogue.  We reaffirm our intent to work together to prevent, reduce, and remove non-tariff and unnecessary technical barriers to trade to help support the growth of bilateral trade and investment.  The Dialogue maintains its overarching intention to:
•    Support the implementation of the U.S.-Brazil Protocol on Trade Rules and Transparency;
•    Foster an environment for ongoing and future cooperation;
•    Support both countries’ efforts to enhance resilient supply chains; and
•    Remain engaged with the private sector and other stakeholders.

Recent Work 
In 2022/2023 the Commercial Dialogue executed programs to:  
•    Support the implementation of the Good Regulatory Practices and Customs Administration and Trade Facilitation Annexes of the U.S.-Brazil Protocol on Trade Rules and Transparency;
•    Foster increased collaboration on standards, metrology, and conformity assessment;
•    Expand cutting edge work in the digital sector with discussions focused on cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, and cross-border data flows; and
•    Support innovators by improving our intellectual property systems, increasing efficiencies, and reducing application backlogs.


New Initiatives  
The Commercial Dialogue continues to be agile in responding to the changing needs of the business community through innovative programming.  In 2023, the Commercial Dialogue launched two new initiatives: 
•    The Trade and Sustainable Development Working Group aims to focus on preventing non-tariff barriers that may arise from efforts to address climate change and protect workers’ rights.  Its initial topics for discussion include best practices related to the circular economy, responsible business conduct, and trade adjustment assistance. 
•    The new Trade Promotion work stream of the Trade Promotion and Facilitation Working Group aims to feature discussions on each government’s efforts to ensure that the benefits of international trade reach all segments of society.  Initial discussions are intended to focus on trade and gender.
Since 2006, the U.S.-Brazil Commercial Dialogue has been a consistent, reliable, and effective partnership that delivers concrete results to the business communities, with the aim of improving the economy for all communities in the United States and Brazil.  DOC and MDIC are proud of what has been accomplished and recognize that much work remains to be done.  We are committed to working with our business communities to promote shared prosperity, and to foster economic growth in the United States and Brazil.  

The U.S. Department of Commerce looks forward to hosting the 22nd Plenary of the Commercial Dialogue in 2024 in Washington, D.C.

 
Commercial Dialogue – Joint Statement Appendix
Working Group Activities and Plans for 2024

The U.S.-Brazil Commercial Dialogue is organized into working groups, which identify concrete, technical issues that are important to exporters and, through information exchanges, seek to foster a better understanding of these issues and prevent, reduce, or remove non-tariff and unnecessary technical barriers to trade.
The Trade Facilitation Working Group is led by the MDIC Secretariat for Foreign Trade (SECEX) and International Trade Administration (ITA), and seeks to increase the rapid and secure movement of goods.
 

•    Recent Programming: 
o    In support of Annex I of the U.S.-Brazil Protocol on Trade Rules and Transparency (ATEC Protocol), the Trade Facilitation Working Group focused on supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and shared best practices on the use of technological solutions for the processing of small packages and express shipments.
 

•    Future Work:
o    The Trade Facilitation Working Group has been renamed the Trade Promotion and Facilitation Working Group.   This working group intends to continue discussions related to customs and trade facilitation, with a focus on small and medium-sized enterprises, and plans to launch a trade promotion series of discussions focused on exchanging information on programs each country is developing to support the participation of women-led companies in international trade.
The Good Regulatory Practice (GRP) Working Group is led by MDIC’s Secretariat for Competitiveness and Regulatory Policy (SCPR) and ITA, and aims to improve transparency, evidence-based decision-making, and centralized coordination for regulatory agencies in both countries.
 

•    Recent Programming:
o    The GRP Working Group continued programming to support the implementation of Annex II of the ATEC Protocol.  In addition, the Government of Brazil issued a decree regulating the promotion of GRPs, and establishing rules for the implementation of Annex II within the Executive Branch.
o    The Government of Brazil appointed the new Secretariat of Competitiveness and Regulatory Policy of MDIC as the designated agency responsible for promoting GRPs and proposing measures for regulatory improvement, in consultation with other Brazilian Federal agencies.
o    The Government of Brazil joined the Summit of the Americas GRP Declaration, and presented on its domestic dissemination and implementation of GRPs at the July 2023 GRP Declaration check-in.
 

•    Future Work:
o    This group intends to continue to support the implementation of Annex II of the ATEC Protocol through discussions related to regulatory planning and public consultations, regulatory improvement, regulatory impact analysis, and intergovernmental coordination.
The Intellectual Property Working Group is led by Brazil’s National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI) and the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO).  The group strives to foster innovation and economic prosperity through the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights.
 

•    Recent Programming:
o    INPI and USPTO continue to collaborate to improve their IP systems.
o    Through site visits, high-level meetings, training programs, and technical engagements, the IP Working Group promoted improved processes and systems, leading to reduced wait times for patent and trademark applications and increased office efficiencies.
o    Through joint outreach programs, the IP Working Group raised IP awareness and fostered the use of IP systems in the United States and Brazil.
 

•    Future Work:
o    The IP Working Group intends to focus on trends such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and best practices in IP protection.
The Trade in the Digital Economy Working Group is led by ITA and SECEX, and focuses on preventing sector-related trade barriers and addressing market access issues, so that the technologies driving competitiveness and innovation can effectively promote trade and investment in the digital economy.
 

•    Recent Programming:
o    The Working Group completed a multi-part program on cybersecurity and trade, reviewing governmental approaches to cybersecurity policies, as well as cybersecurity experiences and resources for SMEs. 
o    The Working Group held discussions on AI cooperation, and focused on building out programming on AI in the context of trade policy development.
o    The Working Group continued ongoing programming exploring international data transfers, focusing on cross-border data transfer mechanisms and the expansion of the Global Cross Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) System. 
 

•    Future Work:
o    This group intends to continue developing its current agenda on AI, cross-border data flows, and cybersecurity, and is exploring additional topics for continued cooperation including semiconductors, smart cities, and opportunities in 5G for emerging technologies and Open-RAN.
The Standards and Conformity Assessment and Trade Related Issues (SCATRI) Working Group is led by ITA and SECEX, and seeks to ensure that standards, technical regulations, and conformity assessment procedures do not act as unnecessary barriers to trade.    
 

•    Recent Programming:
o    Over the past year, the group has held discussions related to technical regulations, standards, and conformity assessment procedures regarding cybersecurity and the U.S. Government National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technologies (NSSCET).
The Standards & Metrology Working Group is led by Brazil’s National Institute of Metrology, Standardization and Industrial Quality (INMETRO) and the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and aims to strengthen measurement science (metrology), standards, conformity assessment, and accreditation practices in each country, with the overall goal of supporting industry by avoiding technical barriers to trade.
 

•    Recent Programming:
o    INMETRO and NIST have worked together on metrology (measurement) issues ranging from chemical, electrical, optical frequency, and acoustical metrology.
o    Since the 2022 Plenary, INMETRO and NIST held discussions on how best to provide assistance and consultancy to other agencies implementing conformity assessment schemes.  
 

•    Future Work:
o    Given the common agenda and to improve collaboration on standards issues, MDIC and the U.S. Department of decided to combine the two Standards Working Groups, and develop a joint action plan for the coming year.  This action plan is intended to include sustainability standards and post-market surveillance practices in the automotive sector, featuring a program on electric vehicles and the NSSCET.
o    NIST and INMETRO aim to focus on the Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 update process, AI project implementation, and furthering researcher collaboration between both organizations.
o    INMETRO and NIST intend to work together through metrology and pre-standardization research programs that provide the fundamental measurement science for solutions to problems, underpin standards development, and support advances in the critical and emerging technologies (CET) industries.
The newly established Trade and Sustainable Development Working Group is intended to focus on non-tariff barriers that may arise from efforts to address climate change and protect workers’ rights.  
 

•    Future Work:
o    The Working Group intends to share best practices related to the circular economy, responsible business conduct, and trade adjustment assistance, as well as collaborate with other working groups on cross cutting issues.