In Brief

Ongoing NAFTA negotiations: As the fourth round of negotiations to modernize NAFTA wrapped up in Virginia last week, AAFA has continued to express strong opposition to provisions that introduce uncertainty into the agreement (e.g., five-year sunset clause) or that impose costs and burdens that would undermine the U.S. jobs supported by NAFTA compliant supply chains. The next round of negotiations has been delayed to November 17 in Mexico. We encourage members to communicate support for a modernized NAFTA that functions for our industry. Simply click here to send an email letter to the President and Congress to show your support. Questions? Contact Steve Lamar and Nate Herman.

USGVC Coalition launch: AAFA is a founding member of the new U.S. Global Value Chain Coalition (USGVC), launched last week to educate policymakers and the public about the millions of American jobs and national economic growth our members generate through their value chains. AAFA members Gap Inc., Intradeco, Levi Strauss & Co., Macys Inc., Precision Custom Coatings, SanMar Corporation, Target Corp, and VF Corporation are all founding Coalition members. Visit www.usglobalvaluechain.com to learn more and to download a full copy of the research report showcasing how millions of American jobs rely on the U.S. global value chain and contribute to the American economy. Contact Steve Lamar for questions about joining this effort.

Last week in Vietnam & upcoming supply chain events: On October 19, AAFA hosted our annual, international Product Safety and Compliance Conference in Vietnam. Thank you to all of the sponsors who helped us bring the industry together in Ho Chi Minh City around these pressing topics! AAFA will host two product safety seminars in the U.S. in 2018, as well as a Sourcing Conference (in Washington, D.C. in April) and Traceability Seminar (in Seattle in August). For more on AAFA’s supply chain programs in 2018, visit www.aafaglobal.org/events.

AAFA's busy week in Hong Kong! Members of AAFA’s leadership team, including President and CEO Rick Helfenbein, are in Hong Kong this week meeting with AAFA members and partners. Today, AAFA launched a new agreement with the Federation of Hong Kong Industries (FHKI) which represents more than 2,000 members in manufacturing, services, and other industries based in Hong Kong. On Monday, AAFA’s Rick Helfenbein delivered remarks to the HK Chamber of Textiles and also appeared on CNBC Asia, Squawk Box with Bernie Lo to discuss trade policy matters including NAFTA – watch this brief segment of the interview.

On Thursday, our Executive Think Tank will bring together more than 130 executives including leaders from JD.com, Li & Fung, PVH, Shoes of Prey, ShopShops, Stitchfix, and Target to discuss the most important topics impacting the industry today.

See all of AAFA’s latest letters, comments, and testimony here.