Reports from financial circles continue to indicate that the beginning of the DR-CAFTA free trade agreement (FTA) might be postponed until as late as April 2006. The agreement, according to the note, might be set back a few months by the United States because needed legislation is not getting through the congresses of the FTA’s signatory nations. Although Kevin Manning, the president of the American Chamber of Commerce in the Dominican Republic told reporters from several newspapers that he was confident that the agreement would kick off in January 2006, he did not exclude the possibility of a postponement. As part of the preparations required by different international organizations, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (SEIC) set up a special commission to look into unfair trade practices as part of the obligations accepted from the World Trade Organization and the DR-CAFTA.
However, the note from El Financiero says that the United States Trade Representative (USTR), Robert Portman, is considering postponing the start-up date because the legislative processes have been “minimal.” This was confirmed by Tomas Duenas, the Costa Rican ambassador to the United States, who said that the USTR, Portman, has to certify before President Bush that the different countries have fulfilled their legislative commitments and other necessary adjustments. “Only then can the White House decree the start-up of the agreement,” according to Duenas. Although the decision has not been officially notified, Duenas assured reporters that there is talk of a postponement in Washington.