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An B C Con D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S Sp T U VWXYZ
Special American
Business Internship Training Program
SABIT, originally the Soviet-American Business Internship Training Program, is a
cooperative program that brings business executives and scientists from the former Soviet
Union for three-to six-month internships with American companies. The program teaches
these managers and scientists how to operate in a market economy at the same time that
American businesses development market contacts once their interns return home. Soviet
business managers are referred by the Commerce Department's International Trade
Administration to sponsoring U.S. companies, which make the final selection of their
interns. The program matches U.S. corporate sponsors with Soviet business executives from
the same industries. The Independent States provide transportation; the companies provide
living expenses and training in management techniques (production, distribution,
marketing, accounting, wholesaling, and publishing).
Special and Differential Treatment
The principle, enunciated in the Tokyo Declaration, that the Tokyo Round negotiations
should seek to accord particular benefits to the exports of developing countries,
consistent with their trade, financial, and development needs. Among proposals for special
or differential treatment are reduction or elimination of tariffs applied to exports of
developing countries under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), expansion of
product and country coverage of the GSP, accelerated implementation of tariff cuts agreed
to in the Tokyo Round for developing country exports, substantial reduction or elimination
of tariff escalation, special provisions for developing country exports in any new codes
of conduct covering nontariff measures, assurance that any new multilateral safeguard
system will contain special provisions for developing country exports, and the principle
that developed countries will expect less than full reciprocity for trade concessions they
grant developing countries.
Special Drawing Rights
SDRs are international reserve assets, created by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in
1970 and allocated to individual member nations. Within conditions set by the IMF, SDRs
can be used by a nation with a deficit in its balance of international payments to settle
debts with another nation or with the IMF. The value of SDRs is computed as a weighted
average of five currencies: deutsche mark, French franc, Japanese yen, pound sterling, and
U.S. dollar.
Specially Designated Nationals
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Department of the Treasury, implements and
enforces financial and trade sanctions. FAC has the authority to include within the
definition of the sanctioned government those individuals and entities that FAC has
determined are owned by, controlled by, or acting directly or indirectly on behalf of the
target government. Parties so identified are known as Specially Designated Nationals or
SDNs. In practice, an SDN is a target government body, representative, intermediary, or
front (whether overt or covert) that usually is located in a third country and functions
as an extension of the sanctioned government. An SDN may also be a third-party company
that otherwise becomes owned or controlled by the target government or that operates on
its behalf. No criminal linkage is necessary. Ownership by, control by, acting on behalf
of, or profiting from trade with the target government or country would suffice to qualify
a person for designation.
Special Policy of Insurance.
Document issued on behalf of the Underwriter stating the terms and conditions of the
marine insurance. Issued when evidence of insurance is required, as by the bank issuing
the Letter of Credit.
Special 301
The Special 301 statute requires the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to review
annually the condition of intellectual property protection among U.S. trading partners.
Submissions are accepted from industry after which the USTR, weighing all relevant
information, makes a determination as to whether a country presents excessive barriers to
trade with the United States by virtue of its inadequate protection of intellectual
property. If the USTR makes a positive determination, a country may be named to the list
of: (a) Priority Foreign Countries (the most egregious), (b) the Priority Watch List, or
(c) the Watch List. Special 301 (a variation of Section 301) was created by the Omnibus
Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988.
See: Section 301
Super 301.
Specification
A clear and complete descriptive statement covering the technical point of any item
ordered. A specification using a proprietary name or equal is acceptable.
Spot Exchange.
The purchase or sale of foreign exchange for immediate delivery.
Spot Transaction
See: Forward Exchange Rate.
Standard Industrial Classification
(SIC) system
The system established by the U.S. government for defining industries and classifying
individual establishments by industry.
Standard International Trade
Classification
The SITC was developed by the United Nations in 1950 and is used solely by international
organizations for reporting international trade. The SITC has been revised several times;
the current version is Revision 3.
Standards
As defined by the Multilateral Trade Negotiations "Agreement on Technical Barriers to
Trade" (Standards Code), a standard is a technical specification contained in a
document that lays down characteristics of a product such as levels of quality,
performance, safety, or dimensions. Standards may include, or deal exclusively with,
terminology, symbols, testing and test methods, packaging, marking, or labeling
requirements as they apply to a product.
The GATT Standards Code, negotiated
and accepted during the Tokyo Round in the 1970s, is designed to eliminate the use of
standards, technical regulations, and conformity assessment (certification) procedures as
unnecessary barriers to trade. The Standards Code is administered by the GATT Secretariat
in Geneva, Switzerland. The Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and
Technology is responsible for several provisions of the Standards Code which relate to the
establishment of a U.S. inquiry point, a standards information center, and a technical
office for non-agricultural products.
Stand-By Arrangements
A stand-by arrangement, like an extended arrangement, assures a member country of the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) that it will be able to make purchases up to a specified
amount from the IMF during a given period, as long as the member has observed the
performance criteria and other terms specified in the arrangement. Stand-by arrangements
extend up to three years.
See: International Monetary Fund.
Standstill
Standstill refers to a commitment of GATT contracting parties not to impose new
trade-restrictive measures during the Uruguay Round negotiations.
See: Rollback.
State Export Program Database
The SEPD is a trade lead system maintained by the National Association of State
Development Agencies (NASDA). The SEPD includes information on state operated trade lead
systems.
State Trading Enterprises
STEs are entities established by governments to import, export and/or produce certain
products. Examples include: government-operated import/export monopolies and marketing
boards or private companies that receive special or exclusive privileges from their
governments to engage in trading activities.
Statistical Office of the European
Community
EUROSTAT provides European Economic Community-wide statistics on economics, finance,
foreign trade, services, transportation, industry, population, social conditions, energy,
agricultural, forestry, and other topics. Eurostat offices are located in Luxembourg.
Steamship Conference.
A group of steamship operators that operate under mutually agreed-upon freight rates.
Stock.
See Shares.
Straight Bill of Lading.
A non-negotiable bill of lading in which the goods are consigned directly to a named
consignee.
Strategic Level of Controls
Commodity groupings used for export control purposes.
See: Export Control Classification Number.
Structural Impediments Initiative
The SII was started in July 1989 to identify and solve structural problems that restrict
bringing two-way trade between the U.S. and Japan into better balance.
Subcontractor production.
(also one of the means of implementing Offsets - see under Offsets)
Overseas production of a part or component of a U.S.-origin article. The subcontract does
not necessarily involve license of technical information and is usually a direct
commercial arrangement between the U.S. manufacturer and a foreign producer.
Subrogation.
The operation by which the insurance company (on payment of a claim) assumes all of the
assured's rights to recovery from any third parties; substitution of one creditor for
another.
Subsidies
GATT does not directly define subsidies. The U.S. regards a subsidy as a bounty or grant
paid for the manufacture, production, or export of an article. Export subsidies are
contingent on exports; domestic subsidies are conferred on production without reference to
exports. While governments sometimes make outright payments to firms; subsidies usually
take a less direct form (R&D support, tax breaks, loans on preferential terms, and
provision of raw materials at below-market prices).
Summary Investigation
A 20-day investigation conducted by the International Trade Administration immediately
following filing of an antidumping petition to ascertain if the petition contains
sufficient information with respect to sales at "less than fair value" and the
injury or threat of material injury to a domestic industry caused by the alleged sales at
"less than fair value" to warrant the initiation of an antidumping
investigation.
See: Tariff Act of 1930.
Summit Conference
A summit conference is an international meeting at which heads of government are the chief
negotiators, major world powers are represented, and the meeting serves substantive rather
than ceremonial purposes. The term first came into use in reference to the Geneva Big Four
Conference of 1955.
Sunflowerseed Oil Assistance
Program
SOAP, one of four export subsidy programs operated by the Department of Agriculture, helps
U.S. exporters meet prevailing world prices for sunflowerseed oil in targeted markets.
USDA pays cash to U.S. exporters as bonuses, making up the difference between the higher
U.S. cost of acquiring sunflowerseed oil and the lower world price at which it is sold.
Supplier Credit.
Credits granted by a supplier, usually through commercial banks, to a foreign buyer under
deferred payment terms.
Supply Access
Assurances that importing countries will, in the future, have fair and equitable access at
reasonable prices to supplies of raw materials and other essential imports. Such
assurances should include explicit constraints against the use of the export embargo as an
instrument of foreign policy.
Support for East European Democracy
The SEED Act, signed into law in November 1989, contained 25 distinct actions to support
structural adjustment, private sector development, trade and investment, and educational,
cultural, and scientific activities in Poland and Hungary. Funding for most of the actions
was provided by the Agency for International Development. The SEED Act expired at the end
of fiscal year 1990. Since then support has been provided under the Foreign Assistance Act
of 1991.
See: Foreign Assistance Act of 1991.
Surveyor.
A marine specialist who examines damaged property and determines the cause, nature, and
extent of damage and methods of repair and/or replacement. He is not an adjuster, and all
his actions are without prejudice to policy terms and conditions.
Suspension of Investigation
A decision to suspend an antidumping investigation if the exporters who account for
substantially all of the imported merchandise agree to stop exports to the U.S. or agree
to revise their prices promptly to eliminate any dumping margin. An investigation may be
suspended at any time before a final determination is made. No agreement to suspend an
investigation may be made unless effective monitoring of the agreement is practicable and
is determined to be in the public interest.
See: Tariff Act of 1930.
Suspension of Liquidation
If affirmative, the preliminary determination of dumping or subsidization, or final
determination after a negative preliminary determination, provides for suspension of
liquidation of all entries of merchandise subject to the determination which are entered,
or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, on or after the date of the publication of
the notice in the Federal Register. Customs is directed to require a cash deposit, or the
posting of a bond or other security, for each entry affected equal to the estimated amount
of the subsidy or the amount by which the fair value exceeds the U.S. price. When an
administrative review is completed, Customs is directed to collect the final subsidy rate
or amount by which the foreign market value exceeds the U.S. price, and to require for
each entry thereafter a cash deposit equal to the newly determined subsidy rate or margin
of dumping.
See: Tariff Act of 1930.
Swap Network
The swap network is a series of bilateral arrangements between the Federal Reserve and
fourteen foreign central banks and the Bank for International Settlements providing
standby reciprocal facilities for obtaining foreign currencies. The facilities provide for
the swap (simultaneous spot purchase and forward sale) of each other's currency by the
Federal Reserve and the respective foreign central bank. Swap drawings typically have a
three-month maturity, with an understanding that they may be more or less automatically
rolled over for another three months.
Swaps
Swaps take dozens of forms but often entail the exchange of one type of asset or payment
for another. Some of the more common forms are: cross-border; currency; debt-for-charity;
debt-for-commodity; debt-for-debt; debt-for-development; debt-for-equity; debt-for-export;
debt-for-local-currency; debt-for-nature; discount; dual currency; interest rate; inward;
premium; reverse; and vanilla. Minor variation in names is common.
Currency swaps convert principal from
the lender's currency into the debtor's currency and receiving interest payments in the
debtor's currency. The swap, made to protect the principal from future changes in foreign
exchange rates, involves a forward exchange contract to recover the currency involved.
Debt swaps entail replacing the
foreign liabilities of a debtor country with ownership or rights of value. A
debt-for-equity swap replaces foreign liabilities with a stake in the debtor country's
national enterprises; a debt-for-export swap replaces foreign liabilities with an
arrangement to receive proceeds from the overseas sale of the debtor country's products or
commodities; a debt-for-debt swap replaces an existing foreign liability with a new
commitment from the debtor country.
Interest rate swaps involve agreements
on the means for exchanging future cash flows. Single currency interest rate swaps concern
exchanging future cash flow in the same currency and offer a means for modifying the
impact of future changes in interest rates on a company's profitability. Cross currency
interest rate swaps concern exchanging future cash flows between one currency and another,
traded either on a fixed or floating rate, and offer a means for limited the risk of
converting financial interests between currencies.
Swaps also involve arrangements
whereby different sellers of similar commodities swap and deliver them to each other's
customer if such action saves transportation costs.
See: Derivatives.
Swedish International Development
Authority
SIDA, an agency responsible to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, administers the greater
portion of Swedish development cooperation. Swedish development assistance is directed
toward five goals: economic growth, economic and social equality, economic and political
independence, democratic development, and environmental quality. About 50 percent of Sweden's
development assistance is directed toward a limited number of designated "program
countries" in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and involves negotiated efforts to
integrate external assistance and long-term development strategies. The remaining
assistance is allocated to UN agencies, international development banks, and about 90
countries. The Authority was established in 1965; headquarters are in Stockholm, Sweden.
See: Swedish International Enterprise Development Corporation.
Swedish International Enterprise
Development Corporation SwedeCorp, a government funded under Sweden's aid program,
supports enterprise development through joint venture investments in developing countries
and in Central and Eastern Europe. The Corporation also encourages the transfer of
industiral and commercial knowledge from Sweden to third world countries and promotes
exports from developing countries to Sweden. The Corporation was formed in July 1991 based
on a reorganization of international industry assistance programs; headquarters are in Stockholm,
Sweden.
See: Swedish International Development Authority.
Swing.
Margin of credit allowed on a bilateral clearing account beyond which all trade exchanges
stop and cannot be resumed until the swing imbalance is reduced.
Switch Arrangements
A form of countertrade in which unused purchase rights under government-to-government
trade (clearing agreements) on unwanted goods received by a firm in a countertrade
transaction are sold at a discount to buyers for cash.
Switch Trading.
Trade activities connected with converting bilateral clearing imbalances into convertible
currencies through the sale of the clearing imbalance to switch traders at discounted
prices. The switch traders then reduce or eliminate the imbalance through import/export
transactions that they arrange. The term is also used to denote nonclearing transactions
involving triangular or multiple sales of different goods by various brokers. By a series
of trades at discounted prices, a primary exporter can convert into hard currency revenues
a soft currency payment or a countertraded product hard to market.
System for Tracking Export License
Applications
STELA is a BXA computer-generated voice unit that interfaces with the BXA database: ECASS
(Export Control Automated Support System). STELA enables a caller to check on an export
license by making a telephone call. 202-482-2752
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