GHY Tradelines

span style=”font-size:85%;”(Canadian Transportation amp; Logistics)/spanbr /br /The Purchasing Management Association of Canada’s (PMAC) professional accreditation program has received recognition from the international purchasing body as meeting the highest global standard in supply chain education.br /br /The International Federation of Purchasing and Supply Management (IFPSM), a union of 43 national supply chain associations, has awarded PMAC’s Strategic Supply Chain Management Leadership Program (SSCMLP) its Certificate of Competence. This affirms that the PMAC program, which leads to accreditation as a Certified Professional Purchaser (C.P.P.), reflects current practices, learning methodologies and assessments. Officials say it is the only program in Canada to achieve this distinction.br /br /Read the complete PMAC press release a href=”http://www.pmac.ca/news/media_release_program_recognition.asp”here/a.

span style=”font-size:85%;”(World Trade Interactive)/spanbr /br /While congressional action continues to be scarce on higher-profile trade issues such as China’s currency, free trade agreements and trade preferences, lawmakers are moving forward in other areas like food and product safety that could have important effects on the trade community. Read more a href=”http://www.strtrade.com/wti/wti.asp?pub=0amp;story=34418amp;date=amp;company”here/a.

span style=”font-size:85%;”(Wall Street Journal Blog – John W. Miller)/spanbr /br /strongTrade deals involve giving up one interest for another more valuable./strongbr /br /Since 2007, the European Union and India have been working on an agreement that would cut most import tariffs. EU trade commissioner Karel De Gucht says it should be completed by the end of the year.br /br /One of the EU’s biggest interests in all trade talks is pharmaceuticals. EU exports to non-European countries rose to $110.8 billion in 2009, making it the EU’s fourth-best export, after nuclear parts and machinery, electrical equipment and electronics, and vehicles. However, exports of EU pharmaceuticals to India, the world’s second-most populous country, were worth only $481.3 million last year. That’s partly because India is home to a multibillion-dollar pharmaceutical industry of its own, and because it’s much harder to renew drug patents in India. Read more a href=”http://blogs.wsj.com/brussels/2010/04/26/trade-cant-be-fair-for-everybody/”here/a.

span style=”font-size:85%;”(CBP)br //spanbr /U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Alan Bersin and U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Chairman Inez Tenenbaum today [April 26] signed a memorandum of understanding for CBP’s Import Safety Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center. The MOU will allow CPSC personnel to access CBP commercial automated systems for import safety risk assessments.br /br /“This is an important first step in strengthening our ability to promote consumer well-being and safety,” said Commissioner Bersin. “With this memorandum of understanding, CBP and the Consumer Products Safety Commission will be able to further protect consumers against the importation of dangerous goods into the U.S.”br /br /The MOU gives CPSC the capability to conduct import safety risk assessments and perform targeting work using CBP’s Automated Commercial System.br /br /“This cooperation between federal partners is making U.S. consumers more safe. By identifying and checking consumer products at our ports, we can reduce the flow of dangerous products into our homes,” said CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum.br /br /The Import Safety CTAC reflects the three core principles announced by President Obama’s Food Safety Working Group in July 2009: prevention, surveillance and response. Created in March 2009, the Working Group was tasked with advising President Obama on how to upgrade the U.S. food safety system for the 21st Century.br /br /CBP established the CTAC Oct. 1, 2009, as a fusion center for agencies to share targeting resources, analysis, and expertise to achieve the common mission of protecting U.S. citizens from unsafe imports. In addition to CBP, the government agencies represented at CTAC include the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Food and Drug Administration, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety Inspection Service.br /br /strongRelated:/strong a href=”http://www.strtrade.com/wti/wti.asp?pub=0amp;story=0amp;full_articles=yesamp;date=4/23/2010amp;company=#story3″Lawmakers Consider Bill to Address Problems with Product Safety Law/a span style=”font-size:85%;”(World Trade Interactive)/span

span style=”font-size:85%;”(The News.com)/spanbr /br /The government’s decision to observe two-day weekly holidays created confusion on Saturday as customs officials responsible for clearing import and export consignments at the Karachi Port remained absent from their duties.br /br /Loading and unloading of goods from the vessels continued as usual, but freight forwarders could not take imported cargo out of the port, due to absence of customs officials.br /br /“Like airports, the seaports operate round-the-week,” a Karachi Port Trust (KPT) official said. “But the customs officials seem to have taken the announcement too seriously. They think it is a complete holiday.” Read more a href=”http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=235809″here/a.