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United States Trade Representative (USTR): The Office
of the U.S. Trade Representative, originally Office of the Special Trade
Representative (STR), is responsible for developing and coordinating
international trade, commodity, and direct investment policy, and leading or
directing negotiations with other countries. It is headed by the United States
Trade Representative (also USTR), a Cabinet-level official with the rank of
Ambassador. The agency provides trade policy leadership and negotiating
expertise on all matters within the World Trade Organization (WTO);
trade, commodity, and direct investment matters dealt with by international
institutions such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) and the United Nations
Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD); export
expansion policy; industrial and services trade policy; international commodity
agreements and policy; bilateral and multilateral trade and investment issues;
trade-related intellectual property protection issues; and import policy. The
agency has administrative responsibility for the Generalized System of
Preferences (GSP); Section 301
complaints against foreign unfair trade practices; unlawful and unfair import
competition under Section 337; and import relief cases under Section
201. Five Members from each of the House and Senate are
formally appointed under statute as official Congressional advisors on trade
policy, and additional Members may be appointed as advisors on particular issues
or negotiations.
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