Allowing firms to use trademark law as a trade barrier limits competition, especially on price, damaging consumer interests.

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American and Canadian trade officials, however, are significantly less impressed with the working group's assessment, and see it as a last-ditch attempt to vindicate an unfair trade barrier.

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Second, even if the offset argument is valid with the VEETC in place, the tariff still represents a substantial barrier to trade.

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This ambiguity also frustrates American trade officials, who consider European labelling laws, both in theory and in their rather confused practice, to be a technical barrier to trade.

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The simplicity of the American plan is attractive but also potentially misleading: as most poor countries know to their cost, tariffs are not the only barrier to trade.

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In December, China issued what is known as a technical barrier to trade notification to the World Trade Organization that detailed a proposed law requiring handset makers ensure preloaded apps and operating-system updates are in accordance with Chinese laws before the phones are sold in China.

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These make more urgent the need to aggressively seek barrier-lowering trade agreements.

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Voluntary trade benefits both sides, and every barrier to this freedom harms consumers.

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The World Bank estimates that over two-thirds of the overall benefits from Doha's barrier-lowering would come from freer farm trade.

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